Nest
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- £3.99
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- £3.99
Publisher Description
I run all the way to my tree, so that once I get there, my body’s nice and warm. Most people would say it’s too cold now to hang out in a salt marsh, even with the sun and even with a baby blanket wrapped around me, but I’m not most people.
Eleven-year-old Naomi ‘Chirp’ Orenstein and her family live an idyllic life on Cape Cod on the east coast of America. Surrounded by sandy beaches, fresh air and wildlife, Chirp is free to roam as she pleases. But when Chirp’s mum is diagnosed with a life-threatening disease, her happy little world begins to collapse around her.
Chirp finds solace in her beloved birdwatching, and her friendship with mysterious outsider Joey. Chirp and Joey take on the world together, dreaming up a host of daring adventures. They explore the woods and the salt marshes – they want to see everything they can. But Chirp cannot keep running forever.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
First-time author Ehrlich's achingly realistic depiction of family love and loss is set on Cape Cod during the early 1970s. Chirp Orenstein's mother, Hannah, is a vivacious, talented dancer until a leg ailment forces her to slow down. When Hannah is diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, she falls into a deep depression, fading to an almost unrecognizable shadow of her former self. No one not Chirp, not her older sister, not their psychiatrist father can make Hannah feel better. Chirp keeps her sadness and feelings of helplessness to herself except when she's with her friend Joey, a neighbor who spends a good deal of time trying to avoid his violent father and seems to understand what Chirp is going through. Ehrlich's novel beautifully captures the fragile bond shared by Chirp and Joey and their growing trust for each other in a world filled with disappointments and misunderstandings. Allusions to songs and trends of the era and references to Chirp's strong Jewish heritage accentuate and ground the story. Ages 8 12.