Miss Emily

by Burleigh Muten, Matt Phelan (Illustrator)

Overview

Discover the mischievous and affectionate side of a revered poet in this adventure about Emily Dickinson, four young friends, and a traveling circus.

When an invitation to join Miss Emily in the garden appears, Mattie, Ned, Sally, and Mac know they’re in for some fun because Miss Emily — Emily Dickinson to the rest of us — always has a surprise in store for her young friends. And today’s may be the biggest adventure yet. In Burleigh Mutén’s suspenseful story, beautifully illustrated by celebrated artist Matt Phelan, Mac, the youngest member of the group, tells what happens when a reclusive poet and her band of pretend Gypsies wait for the midnight circus train to arrive.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780763657345
Publisher:	Candlewick Press
Publication date:	03/25/2014
Pages:	144
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.30(h) x 0.70(d)
Lexile:	900L (what's this?)
Age Range:	7 - 10 Years

About the Author

Burleigh Mutén is a member of the Emily Dickinson International Society and a frequent volunteer at the Dickinson Homestead. She has published several books for children, including The Lady of Ten Thousand Names: Goddess Stories from Many Cultures. Burleigh Mutén lives in western Massachusetts.

Matt Phelan is the author-illustrator of the highly acclaimed graphic novel The Storm in the Barn, winner of a Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction; Around the World, a Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards nominee; and Bluffton. He lives in Philadelphia.

Editorial Reviews

Mutén’s consciously mannered style lends the story a quaint tone. Dickinson seems oddly charming, her whimsy leavened by warmth and appealing humor. … The illustrations... are well suited to the spare text: Phelan... wisely choose line drawing and grisaille; both eschew color. This is as it should be, when feeling comes through words.
—The New York Times Book Review

“Miss Emily” is Emily Dickinson, and Mutén’s novel, appropriately penned in free verse, presents the poet as an engaging, warm, and somewhat whimsical personality. ... Phelan successfully uses softly muted black-and-white pencil sketches to capture this suspenseful tale of a midnight adventure. They gently imbue this charming story with a wonderful mix of humor and daredevilry.
—School Library Journal

Uplifting and clever, Mutén’s tale also includes a layer of biographical detail sure to tantalize Dickinson lovers everywhere.
—Kirkus Reviews

[T]his slim verse novel celebrates the joys and troubles of a simpler time. Mutén’s free verse moves apace, capturing both the romance of the adventure and the plain beauty we associate with Dickinson’s poetry. For their part, Phelan’s graphite sketches, each identified by the line of text it depicts, convey an atmosphere of old-fashioned zeal. Based on actual relationships and events, this fantastical outing will foster curious readers’ imaginations
—Booklist

The tale has a measure of old-fashioned charm.
—Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

This charming story, based on true events, is appropriately told in free verse. ... Lovely.
—The Plain Dealer

Memorably told, a spirited, loosely fictionalized tribute to "Miss Emily" and the children she inspired every day.
—Children's Bookwatch

From the Publisher

04/01/2014
Gr 3–5—"Miss Emily" is Emily Dickinson, and Mutén's novel, appropriately penned in free verse, presents the poet as an engaging, warm, and somewhat whimsical personality. In this story, readers meet her through the eyes of her four young neighbors who gravitate to her garden for fun and adventure. Whether they must "slither like slugs" or pretend to be a band of Gypsies, Miss Emily always has surprises in store. She encourages the children to sneak out of their houses late at night because the traveling circus is coming to town. She wants them to experience the magical sight of the animals being unloaded, feel the excitement as the tents are set up, and be mesmerized by the fortune-teller. Of course, the adventure goes awry, and the children's escapades are discovered, but in the end, Miss Emily takes responsibility for the plan and saves the day. Phelan successfully uses softly muted black-and-white pencil sketches to capture this suspenseful tale of a midnight adventure. They gently imbue this charming story with a wonderful mix of humor and daredevilry. Miss Emily is a welcome middle grade novel for emergent readers as well as those who are more proficient. It draws readers in, captures their imagination, and does not disappoint. The inclusion of historical notes and a bibliography may prompt further inquiry by a new generation of Dickinson lovers. The light verse also makes for a wonderful read-aloud choice or can be used to enhance a poetry lesson.—Carole Phillips, Greenacres Elementary School, Scarsdale, NY

School Library Journal

2014-01-04
The Belle of Amherst leads some young friends on a grand adventure. Drawing on Dickinson's playfulness and delight in children, Mutén fashions this light verse story told from the perspective of young MacGregor "Mac" Jenkins, the pastor's son who lived across the street from the Dickinson residence (in real life) and was a playmate of the poet's niece and nephew. With the help of Phelan's wispy, textured drawings, Mutén imagines the famously reclusive poet playfully disguised as "Proserpina—Queen of the Night," leading her tiny band of "Amherst gypsies" on a midnight quest to spy the arrival of the Great Golden Menagerie and Circus at the Amherst train station. Both poet and children thrill at the opportunity to meet a fortuneteller and witness the unloading of exotic circus animals, but as they speed home to avoid being recognized, Mac falls and injures himself. Mac's resulting convalescence, landing him "housebound / like a winter bee in the hive," draws not only an unprecedented visit from "Miss Emily," but the chance for her to treat Mac and friends to another tale. It also gives Mutén an apt occasion to weave in a bit of actual correspondence from the poet to the children outlining her wish: "Please never improve—you are perfect now." Uplifting and clever, Mutén's tale also includes a layer of biographical detail sure to tantalize Dickinson lovers everywhere. (biographical notes, bibliography) (Verse novel. 8-12)

Kirkus Reviews