Watch the Sky
-
- $16.99
-
- $16.99
Publisher Description
The signs are everywhere. Jory's stepfather, Caleb, says. Red leaves in the springtime. Pages torn from a library book. All the fish in an aquarium facing the same way. A cracked egg with twin yolks. Everywhere and anywhere. And because of them, Jory's life is far from ordinary. He must follow a very specific set of rules: don't trust anyone outside the family, have you rwork boots at the ready just in case, and always, always watch out for the signs. The end is coming, and they must be prepared. School is Jory's only escape from Caleb's tight grasp, and with the help of new friends, he begins to explore aworld beyond his family's desert ranch. As Jory's friendships grow, Caleb notifies Jory's mother and siblings that the time has come for final preparations. They begin an exhausting schedule, digging a shelter where they will live until the disaster is over. But as the hole gets deeper, so does the family's doubt about whether Caleb's prophecy is true. When the stark reality of what it will mean to live underground becomes clear, Jory must choose between living his own life or following behind Caleb, shutting his eyes to the bright world he's just begun to see.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Life has taken strange turns ever since 11-year-old Jory's father ran off and his mother remarried. Jory's stepfather Caleb, a veteran "of a desert war Jory didn't know much about," has instituted many rules in the name of protecting Jory, his mother, and his siblings. From what, they are not sure. Caleb insists they watch for "signs" (which could be just about anything), always wear work boots, trust no one, and remain reclusive to avoid "the Officials" he claims are trying to regulate their lives. After Caleb announces that a meteor shower is the sign they've been waiting for, he insists the family begin to dig a hole in the canyon behind their farmhouse. Readers will recognize long before Jory does that Caleb is paranoid and dangerous, but also realize how little power Jory is able to exercise. In a haunting, tense, and moving story, Hubbard (Wanderlove) spotlights the unpredictability of life with someone suffering from mental illness. Caleb's efforts to safeguard himself and his family will stay with readers, as will his tender relationship with his unspeaking, adoptive sister, Kit. Ages 8 12.
