My Own Lightning

by Lauren Wolk

Overview

Bestselling author Lauren Wolk returns to the world of Wolf Hollow, in this sequel to her beloved, Newbery Honor–winning debut.

★ “A powerful story to electrify the soul.” –Booklist, starred review

“Deep, dark, and indelible.” —The Times of London

It’s been several months since the tragic events set in motion by bully Betty Glengarry, and the routine of daily life in Wolf Hollow has slowly returned. But for Annabelle McBride it’s hard to move forward and make peace with what feels like threadbare justice.
 
Newly warm summer days are about to bring a jolt of change on the winds of a powerful storm. In its wake, the search for her brother’s missing dog will set Annabelle on a new path that brings her to unfamiliar doorsteps and reunites her with a too-familiar adversary—Andy Woodberry, who was complicit in Betty’s most terrible acts. Growing up and blazing her own trail will soon force Annabelle to reexamine deeply felt truths—about people, about justice, about herself—that had once seemed so uncomplicated.
 
Bestselling author Lauren Wolk (Beyond the Bright Sea, Echo Mountain) returns to World War II–era Western Pennsylvania in this luminous sequel to her Newbery Honor–winning debut, Wolf Hollow, proving once again why her acclaimed novels have been celebrated as “historical fiction at its finest.”

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9798885782708
Publisher:	Gale, A Cengage Company
Publication date:	11/09/2022
Edition description:	Large Print
Pages:	348
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x (d)
Age Range:	10 - 13 Years

About the Author

Lauren Wolk is an award–winning poet, artist, and author. She is the author of Echo Mountain, Newbery Honor–winner Wolf Hollow, and Scott O’Dell Award-winner Beyond the Bright Sea. Lauren was born in Baltimore and has since lived in California, Rhode Island, Minnesota, Canada, and Ohio. She now lives with her family on Cape Cod.

Read an Excerpt

From My Own Lightning

I watched as he tipped his hat and turned toward his truck, which was parked along the edge of the dirt road that led through Wolf Hollow and out, eventually, to the hardtop and on toward places like Aliquippa with its gas stations and coffee shops and beauty salons and all the other things we didn’t have in our hills.

Compared to such places, the glen where we lived was like a cradle.

“You can always go visit somewhere else,” my father liked to say, “but then you get to come home.”

So far, home had been plenty.

But as Mrs. Taylor and I watched Mr. Graf pull away, a part of me wanted to see what else there was to see.

“He must really love his dog to go driving around the countryside like that,” Mrs. Taylor said. “And to offer such a big reward!”

“He must,” I replied.

And then, just before she shut the door, I caught sight of a boy on the other side of the road, a bit down from the schoolhouse, standing in the tall weeds, watching us.

Despite the trees casting shadows along the road, despite the way he had pulled his hat down low over his forehead, I knew who he was.

Andy Woodberry.

“What’s he doing here?” Mrs. Taylor said, and I could hear that she was frowning.

“I don’t know. He’s hardly ever in school when he’s supposed to be, but now it’s June and here he is.”

Mrs. Taylor responded by closing the door and, with it, the subject.

But I stayed where I was for a long moment, wondering what had brought Andy this way. There was nothing much along this piece of road except the school and, a bit farther down toward the flatland, our old potato house where we stored the crop until we could sell it. A distance beyond that: the Woodberry farm. Where Andy should have been.

But Andy wasn’t my business anymore. And I was not his keeper.

Editorial Reviews

★ 03/28/2022

Set in 1944, one year after her Newbery Honor–winning Wolf Hollow, in the same rural Pennsylvania community, Wolk crafts an exceptional sequel that both builds on the complexity of the previous installment and also stands on its own merit. After lightning strikes Annabelle in a sudden storm, and a “mystery hero” with rough hands restarts her heart, she suddenly becomes attuned to sensory input and the feelings of animals, including the injured and maltreated dogs nurtured by fellow hollow dweller Nora. Subsequently unraveling the truth behind canine cruelty in her community, Annabelle repeatedly encounters known bully Andy Woodberry, whose cruel actions previously led to tragedy. The narrative grapples with nuances and contradictions as Annabelle first resents Andy for the trauma he once caused, then weighs other factors, including his kind actions with animals, in reevaluating his character and motivations. With a memorable heroine, a finely honed voice, a distinctive setting, and deeply grounded relationships, this thought-provoking novel raises ethical issues about personal flaws and forgiveness. Ages 10–up. (May)

Publishers Weekly

Wolk writes like a fever dream while raising questions about our capacities for forgiveness. Deep, dark, and indelible.” —The Times of London
 
★ “A powerful story to electrify the soul.” —Booklist, starred review

★ “With a memorable heroine, a finely honed voice, a distinctive setting, and deeply grounded relationships, this thought-provoking novel raises ethical issues about personal flaws and forgiveness.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review
 
“Historical fiction for middle-grade readers who relish a warm family story with an energetic plot; a character who comes into her own; and a fully realized, sensory-rich setting.” —The Horn Book
 
“Poignant. Tugs at the heartstrings while gently guiding readers to explore understanding complicated people, what’s true, and what matters.” —Common Sense Media
 
“My Own Lightning teaches young readers that although tragedy shapes us, it does not have to define us.” —The Historical Novel Society 
 
“Steeped in themes of growth and acceptance, a solid continuation of an impactful first installment.” —Kirkus Reviews


ACCLAIM FOR LAUREN WOLK'S WOLF HOLLOW —A Newbery Honor Book

• An NPR Best Book of the Year• A Booklist Best Book of the Year• An Entertainment Weekly Best Book of the Year• A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year• A Shelf Awareness Best Book of the Year• A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year• A Wall Street Journal Best Children’s Book of the Year• An ALA Notable Children’s Book

“The honesty of Wolf Hollow will just about shred your heart, but Annabelle’s courage and compassion will restore it to you, fuller than before. This book matters.” —Sara Pennypacker, New York Times bestselling author of Pax

“An evocative setting, memorable characters, a searing story: Wolf Hollow has stayed with me long after I closed the book. It has the feel of an instant classic.” —Linda Sue Park, Newbery Medalist and New York Times bestselling author

“Wrenching and true. . . . comparisons to Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird will abound. But Wolk gives us her own story—one full of grace and stark, brutal beauty.” —New York Times Book Review

“This exquisite debut confronts injustice and doesn’t flinch.” —People

From the Publisher

Emily Rankin, who narrated WOLF HOLLOW, also performs the sequel to Annabelle’s first-person story. A year after the events of the first book, Annabelle is still dealing with her grief and the difficulties of life during WWII. Then she is struck by lightning, and her heart is restarted by a mysterious stranger. Rankin’s matter-of-fact delivery gives listeners room to feel the tenderness of a girl whose heightened senses reach beyond time, her rural environs, and her loving family. A mystery involving missing dogs adds to the tension of this audiobook, as does the discovery of their horrible mistreatment. Both blend well with Rankin’s warm tone, which projects the caring that Annabelle and others show for one another. S.W. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine

MAY 2022 - AudioFile

Emily Rankin, who narrated WOLF HOLLOW, also performs the sequel to Annabelle’s first-person story. A year after the events of the first book, Annabelle is still dealing with her grief and the difficulties of life during WWII. Then she is struck by lightning, and her heart is restarted by a mysterious stranger. Rankin’s matter-of-fact delivery gives listeners room to feel the tenderness of a girl whose heightened senses reach beyond time, her rural environs, and her loving family. A mystery involving missing dogs adds to the tension of this audiobook, as does the discovery of their horrible mistreatment. Both blend well with Rankin’s warm tone, which projects the caring that Annabelle and others show for one another. S.W. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine

MAY 2022 - AudioFile

2022-03-16
Difficult life lessons are learned against a backdrop of rural America during World War II.

In this sequel to 2016’s Wolf Hollow, Annabelle is still processing the grief and guilt of the previous year’s events. After she befriended Toby, an anti-social veteran, both of them became the targets of a vicious young bully and her accomplice, an escalating dispute that resulted in two tragic deaths. Now, as Annabelle struggles to understand the nuances of her grief, she experiences a lightning strike that upends her world yet again. With dim memories of aid rendered by a mysterious stranger, Annabelle knows she is lucky to be alive. She is physically healthy despite the brush with death but finds that all of her senses are heightened—including her ability to interpret the body language and signals of animals. Annabelle falls into old habits of suspicion and deception but with good cause: Several dogs have gone missing in the community, and neighbor Andy, one-time sidekick to her former tormentor, is behaving oddly. Annabelle may be the only person equipped to help the missing dogs. Written with warmth, Wolk’s complicated characters keep readers guessing. Annabelle learns tough lessons about making assumptions and building trust on the path to forgiveness. All characters are assumed White.

Steeped in themes of growth and acceptance, a solid continuation of an impactful first installment. (Historical fiction. 9-14)

Kirkus Reviews