Immaculate
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- $6.99
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- $6.99
Publisher Description
A small town is abuzz with rumors of a miracle in this captivating young adult novel that will leave you pondering the power of belief.
“A bewitching and thought-provoking story about the strength and faith required to face a contemporary miracle. This one begs for a sequel.”—Deb Caletti, National Book Award finalist
“A vividly-imagined story about magic, faith, and family.”—Rachel DeWoskin, author of Blind and Big Girl Small
Mina is seventeen. A virgin. And pregnant.
Mina is top of her class, girlfriend to the most ambitious guy in school, able to reason and study her way through anything. But when she finds herself pregnant—despite having never had sex—her orderly world collapses. Almost nobody believes Mina’s claims of virginity. Her father assumes that her boyfriend is responsible; her boyfriend thinks she must have cheated on him. As news of Mina’s story spreads, there are those who brand her a liar. There are those who brand her a heretic. And there are those who believe that miracles are possible—and that Mina’s unborn child could be the greatest miracle of all.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
A strange old woman visits 17-year-old Mina one night at the restaurant where she works to deliver a cryptic message that a child will be entering Mina's life. In an attempt to shoo the woman out the door, Mina unwittingly accepts responsibility for the child, and soon she's in the throes of morning sickness, completely perplexed by the fact that she is pregnant. In this modern take on the idea of immaculate conception, debut author Detweiler focuses both on the divine implications of Mina's pregnancy and the trauma of a girl thrown into a difficult and highly unusual situation. Individuals in Mina's life react very differently to Mina's story: her mother believes her without question, while her friend and boyfriend think she is lying. Mina's eventual decision to share her story with the public invites those in disbelief to contemplate the impossible. Meanwhile, Mina reconciles her former life as a regular teenager with a renewed sense of purpose, however mysterious. It's a sincere, romantic, and secular story of birth, young motherhood, and new love. Ages 14 up.
