The Stars of Whistling Ridge

by Cindy Baldwin Narrated by Reba Buhr

Overview

This enchanting story about magic, family, and the meaning of home from the award-winning author of Where the Watermelons Grow is perfect for fans of Corey Ann Haydu and Natalie Lloyd.

Ivy Mae Bloom is almost thirteen years old, her name is almost a complete sentence, and her family's RV is almost a home. That's one too many “almosts” for Ivy. She desperately wants a place to put down roots, but it's her mama's job as a fallen star to tend the magic underpinning the world-a job that's kept Ivy's family living on the road since before Ivy was born.

After Ivy steals Mama's entire supply of wish jars in the hopes of finding a place to call home, disaster strands her family in Whistling Ridge, North Carolina, with Mama's star sisters. Ivy falls for Whistling Ridge immediately-she just needs to convince her parents to stay.

But something is draining the magic from the town, and the star sisters can't pinpoint it. Ivy and her new friends find a clue in Whistling Ridge's history that might explain the mysterious threat...but if Whistling Ridge's magic is fixed, Mama will need to move on. Ivy is faced with an impossible decision: How can she help the star sisters lift the curse if it means losing her best chance at a forever home?

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

"Delightfully voice-y and atmospheric, The Stars of Whistling Ridge is a gentle and magical story about family and the true meaning of home." — Jasmine Warga, Newbery Honor-winning author of Other Words for Home

“A refreshing breath of familiar magic. The Stars of Whistling Ridge inspires readers to see the extraordinary in everyday life.” — Shelf Awareness (starred review)

“Detailed and evocative.” — Kirkus Reviews

“Baldwin deftly pens a tribute to the places called home and the rigors of growing up.” — Publishers Weekly

“Spot on.” — Horn Book Magazine

Jasmine Warga

"Delightfully voice-y and atmospheric, The Stars of Whistling Ridge is a gentle and magical story about family and the true meaning of home."

Shelf Awareness (starred review)

A refreshing breath of familiar magic. The Stars of Whistling Ridge inspires readers to see the extraordinary in everyday life.

Kirkus Reviews

2021-04-27
Ivy’s impulsive, defiant act has profound consequences for her family and a small town in trouble.

Twelve-year-old Ivy and her two younger sisters live on the road with their father, a travel writer, and mother, one of three sisters—fallen stars—who tend the world’s magic. Along their travels, Mama helps visitors to their Winnebago camper, using the fireflies she’s trapped to grant their wishes. Shy Elena, 10, and annoyingly precocious Sophie, 8, are contented travelers; creative writer Ivy is not. Longing to have privacy, put down roots, and make friends, she steals and releases all her mother’s fireflies, making her own wish for a permanent home. Soon after, Ivy has a severe asthma attack that requires resting somewhere near a hospital, and Mama senses that her sister Agatha needs her. The family heads to Whistling Ridge, North Carolina, where they find Agatha ailing and the town’s apple orchards hit by a mysterious blight. Intrigued by a local legend, Ivy wonders if it’s linked to the deepening crisis. Ivy’s a believably conflicted tween on an emotional roller coaster. While realistic elements—the setting especially, from the family’s cramped RV to the town and countryside—are detailed and evocative, the underdeveloped fantasy element of the story is not. Sophie’s astrophysics factoids only highlight this disconnect. Characters default to White.

A warmhearted family tale wrapped in a lackluster fantasy. (Fantasy. 8-12)

Product Details

BN ID:	2940176193558
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	06/15/2021
Edition description:	Unabridged
Age Range:	8 - 11 Years

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