The Miracle Stealer

by Neil Connelly

Overview

Andi Grant adores her six-year-old brother, Daniel, a "miracle child" who survived a fall down a mine shaft. People regularly come to him for blessings and healings -- which often seem to work -- but Andi worries about their effects on her brother, especially when she finds signs of a stalker around their home. With the help of her once-and-maybe-future boyfriend Jeff, she comes up with an audacious, dramatic plan to stop the attention on Daniel: an "Anti-Miracle" that will unravel with the slightest examination of the facts, and cast doubt on his powers foerver after.As her plan comes together, the stalker draws closer, and the clock ticks toward Daniel's star appearance at the local Paradise Days celebration, Andi finds herself wrestling with her own beliefs in God and her brother, and wondering if what she really needs is a miracle.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780545328852
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	10/01/2010
Sold by:	Scholastic, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Pages:	240
File size:	3 MB
Age Range:	14 - 18 Years

About the Author

Neil Connelly is the author of seven critically acclaimed books, among them four YA novels. The most recent was Into the Hurricane, which Kirkus Reviews called "thoughtful and provocative." He teaches creative writing at Shippensburg University in Pennsylvania and lives with his wife and their sons. You can find him on the web at neilconnelly.com.

Read an Excerpt

I guess like most of the planet, you either watched the big rescue on TV or read about it in the papers. Maybe you saw the famous cover of Newsweek with Daniel's chubby toddler body strapped to that board, his cheeks bloodied and his eyes swollen shut. As for the rumors that came later—about the fire that didn't burn him and the cripples he cured—maybe you found them on one of those nutjob websites. But stories like Daniel's take on a life of their own. Nobody really knows what happened for sure except the ones who saw it all firsthand, like me.In the hospital, near the end of everything, Leo told me that seeing something happen only makes you an observer. To qualify as a witness, he explained, you've got to offer testimony. So I'll tell you all I saw and did, plain as I can, and you'll come to your own conclusions about what to belive. I guess I'll start with the night about a year back when, if you trust the rumors, my brother Daniel walked across the waters of Paradise Lake.

Editorial Reviews

Big questions of faith, vocation, the power of prayer, and the possibility of miracles weave throughout this provocative and suspenseful tale, in which inexplicable occurrences in nature and interpersonal relationships lead individuals and communities to deep spiritual longings. How could a three-year-old boy survive being buried alive for three days? Why would a loving father abandon his family? Did a long-dead woman's curse cause a lake's fish to die? Nineteen-year-old Anderson narrates her rationalistic battle against her mother and the townspeople of Paradise, Pa., who blend superstitious beliefs with testimonial-based, community-led Christian worship, and perceive Daniel's astonishing rescue as a miraculous sign. When neighbors begin attributing healings and transformations to her brother, now six years old, and demanding his prayers, Anderson reminds Daniel, "you ain't special." Increasingly frightened for Daniel's safety and well-being, she undertakes a plan to dispel belief in Daniel's "special" powers, at great personal risk. Deftly avoiding stereotypes and caricatures, Connelly (Michael's Scales) creates an alternately ominous and wholesome atmosphere in which the mysteries of friendship, hope, sacrifice, love, and prayer reveal a community's spiritual complexity. Ages 14–up. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

Andi is a remarkable protagonist… Connelly writes with such calm assurance–never too much, never too little–that what could have been an overwhelming epic is instead a slim book that reads with miraculous speed.” — Booklist, starred review“A thought-provoking examination of the power of faith and the human desire for a savior.” — Kirkus Reviews“Deftly avoiding stereotypes and caricatures, Connelly (Michael's Scales) creates an alternately ominous and wholesome atmosphere in which the mysteries of friendship, hope, sacrifice, love, and prayer reveal a community's spiritual complexity.” — Publishers Weekly“Andi's internal journey from faith to cynicism and back again (sort of) is handled with exceptional skill. It's a rare and welcome portrait of a girl trying to navigate teenage angst, family dysfunction, and religious belief.” – Horn Book“Connelly's depiction of Andi's crisis of faith as she questions her own religious upbringing and the beliefs of those around her is both sensitive and genuine. Her anger with God and those who, in her mind, are abusing their authority feels authentic and will resonate with many teens who have similar questions. . . . The ending is satisfying, offering hope while acknowledging that not all questions can be answered.” — VOYA

From the Publisher

Gr 7 Up—When Andi Grant's brother, Daniel, was three, he survived being buried for three days after falling down an old well. The residents of Paradise, PA, have prayed together for his life, rejoiced and praised God when he was recovered alive, and the townspeople slowly begin to believe that he could perform miracles. Andi, a teen who has always had solid faith, sees it begin to crumble as the pressures grow for Daniel to intercede with God. She is happy to see the mania stop after Daniel's prayers are unable to save a dying woman, but three years later, he "assists" in the birth of a baby, and it starts again. This story is complicated, but Connelly paces it well. However, the novel might have a problematic religious stance for some readers. A few elements seem to suggest that Andi was punished by God as she and her boyfriend were considering having sex for the first time when Daniel fell down the well. An avid runner, she loses her leg during an attempt to stage an accident to debunk her brother. The main characters lack believability. Daniel's mother has no problem with her three-year-old son being pressured into interceding for an entire town. Andi has little internal dialogue as she wrestles with her beliefs. Nor does she attempt to talk with anyone about the possibility of miracles. Daniel, as both a three- and a six-year-old, seems to be unfazed by the scads of believers who flock to him seeking help. If readers are not bothered by the lackluster attention paid to the deep questions raised and focus solely on the action, they could be satisfied.—Emily Chornomaz, West Orange Public Library, NJ

School Library Journal

Can religious fervor spur economic development? And should it? Three years ago, the citizens of the small town of Paradise, Penn., witnessed a miracle—or at least they chose to believe they did—when three-year-old Daniel was pulled from a collapsed well after being trapped for three days. Following Daniel's rescue, cancers were cured, adoptions approved and babies conceived—all miracles attributed to Daniel. Fast-forwarding three years, Paradise has fallen on harsh times, and Daniel is called to pray at the bedside of a pregnant woman with a history of difficulties. A baby named Miracle is born, and news of the birth spreads across the country, attracting pilgrims seeking Daniel's intercession to Paradise. At this story's core is Daniel's teenage sister, Andi, the clear-voiced narrator who is determined to protect Daniel from the pilgrims' fanaticism, and those in the town hoping to benefit from his fame. A thought-provoking examination of the power of faith and the human desire for a savior. (Fiction. 12 & up)

Kirkus Reviews