The Keening - Hardcover

LaFaye, A.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1571316922 ISBN 13: 9781571316929

Publisher: Milkweed Editions, 2010

Synopsis

Born into a family with artistry in their fingers, Lyza laments that her only talent is carving letters into wood. That is until her life is turned upside down when her mother succumbs to the influenza pandemic of 1918, which is devastating their small coastal town in Maine. With her mother gone, Lyza must protect her eccentric father, who runs the risk of being committed, especially now that he claims he’s waiting for the return of his dead wife. Can Lyza save her father and find her own path in the process?

About this title

From School Library Journal

Grade 6–9—At age 15, Lyza knows there's something different about her family. Her father, a sculptor viewed by many in their Maine fishing village as insane, relies entirely on his wife for daily care. When the 1918 influenza epidemic claims her mother, Lyza fears for Pater and their way of life. It soon becomes apparent that his genius extends beyond the natural world; he communes with spirits to fulfill the wishes of departing souls. The teen begins to have her own visions, accepts her supernatural inheritance, and uses it to protect her father and their home. LaFaye begins the novel in the deepest, darkest parts of Lyza's mind and then drags readers through a dizzying succession of thoughts, actions, and ideas. There is no time to become invested in any one character, and the plot takes a lot of unnecessary twists and turns. Readers interested in ghost stories may pick this one up after exhausting other options, but this title will otherwise be a hard sell.—Sara Saxton, Tuzzy Consortium Library, Barrow, AK
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From Booklist

A dreamlike quality flows through this novel set during the influenza pandemic of 1918, and it's a style that will hinder some readers even as it enthralls others. These poetic attributes also lend a timelessness; even though the story takes place nearly a century ago, it feels easily transferable to modern times. The plot follows 14-year-old Lyza, the daughter of two eccentrics living on the borders of a small Maine town. When her beloved Mater is suddenly struck down with influenza, Lyza is left with a difficult decision: head to the big city of Portland to take a college entrance exam (like Mater would've wanted), or stay behind to help Pater, an artist seemingly incapable of rudimentary tasks such as eating and paying bills. He's also “a man who saw angels in meteors”—what seems like just another example of his detachment before the plot makes a surprising supernatural swerve. This mature, challenging work is bleak, but haunting in its careful use of suggestion and nuance. Grades 7-10. --Daniel Kraus

About this edition

• Publisher: Milkweed Editions
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 1571316922
• ISBN 13: 9781571316929
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 224