The Summer of Moonlight Secrets

by Danette Haworth

Overview

At The Meriwether, Florida's famous antebellum hotel off of Hope Springs, nothing is quite as it seems. Secret staircases give way to servants' quarters and Prohibition-era speakeasies make for the perfect hide-and-seek spot. Allie Jo Jackson knows every nook and cranny of The Meriwether-she's lived there her whole life-and nothing surprises her, until the first time she spots the enigmatic and beautiful Tara emerging from the springs. Tara's shimmery skin, long flowing hair, and strange penchant for late moonlight swims disguise a mysterious secret-and once Allie Jo and her friend Chase discover Tara's secret, nothing will ever be the same.
From the celebrated author of Violet Raines Almost Got Struck by Lightning comes another magical summer tale full of memorable characters and a one-of-a-kind setting.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780802722416
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication date:	06/01/2010
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	288
Sales rank:	810,204
Lexile:	610L (what's this?)
File size:	570 KB
Age Range:	8 Years

About the Author

Danette Haworth held a number of writing jobs before turning to fiction, including positions as a technical writer and a travel writer. Growing up in a military family, Danette lived up and down the East Coast and in Turkey and England; she now calls Orlando, FL, her home. Danette is also the author of Walker's Violet Raines Almost Got Struck by Lightning. She blogs regularly, and hopes that you'll visit her at www.danettehaworth.com.
DANETTE HAWORTH is the author of A Whole Lot of Lucky; Violet Raines Almost Got Struck by Lightning, which was named to the California Young Readers Medal Masterlist; The Summer of Moonlight Secrets; and Me&Jack.
www.danettehaworth.com

Editorial Reviews

Gr 5–8—Allie Jo Jackson, 13, lives with her parents in the famous, fading Meriwether hotel, near Hope Springs, FL. She is ready for a less-than-stellar summer when Chase arrives with his travel-writer dad and proceeds to break his arm while skateboarding down a hotel hall. He is soon followed by sweet Sophie and a beautiful mystery girl, Tara, whose gleaming hair, shining skin, startling good looks, and penchant for midnight swims start the others wondering about her identity. The old hotel, with its grand staircase, long halls, crumbling upper floors, secret passages, and abandoned speakeasy, is just as much a character in the book as the young teenagers, all of whom face personal problems. The cast also includes a group of mean girls who taunt Allie Jo, calling her "hotel rat," and a creepy man who insists that Tara is his runaway niece. Described in chapters that are alternately narrated by Allie Jo, Chase, and Tara, the summer flows along, filled with ordinary activities like card games and polishing the hotel's brass fittings. Then Allie Jo and Chase discover Tara's identity, but are not sure whether to believe her strange story. There is a touch of summer magic and a dollop of mystery in this compelling story.—Kathryn Kosiorek, formerly at Cuyahoga County Public Library, Brooklyn, OH

School Library Journal

Haworth takes the legend of the Selkie and gives it a modern-day twist. Twelve-year-old Allie Jo lives in Florida at her parents' famous antebellum hotel, The Meriwether. Her plans for a quiet summer are thwarted after she catches 13-year-old Chase, a guest at the hotel, skateboarding on the hotel's historic wooden floors. Despite this inauspicious beginning, the two fall into an easy friendship, with Allie Jo showing Chase the town's attractions and the charms of the hotel. When Allie Jo and Chase meet a mysterious girl, Tara, who claims she is a Selkie on the run from the man who stole her sealskin, the two friends rise to the challenge and help Tara get her skin back. The author sets a quick pace in short chapters alternating among Allie Jo, Chase and Tara. The two kids take turns narrating in a colloquial present tense, while the author maintains a magical frisson by presenting Tara's chapters in a stately, third-person voice. Although predictable, the mix of fantasy and light mystery makes for an entertaining read. Fans of Liz Kessler's Emily Windsnap will enjoy this amusing tale. (Magical adventure. 8-12)

Kirkus Reviews