The Newbery Medalist Patricia MacLachlan is at the top of her game with this poignant, powerful novel about finding purpose and an outlet for grief at a shelter for animals.
A flawless, reflective and ultimately redemptive novel [that] gently addresses loss, grief, hope and healing in the very best of ways.
★ “MacLachlan is the master of quiet books that pack an emotional wallop. My Father’s Words finds the author in her element. MacLachlan provides a beautifully nuanced portrait of one family’s recovery after tragedy. This book feels as direct and true as a dog looking you straight in the eyes.
The New York Times Book Review
★ “Newbery Medalist MacLachlan is known for writing heart-tugging stories in spare style, as she did in Sarah, Plain and Tall . And that’s what she does here as readers meet Fiona and Finn. Deeply moving and uplifting in unexpected ways.
Booklist (starred review)
Patricia MacLachlan is the master of quiet books that pack an emotional wallop. She's also a die-hard dog lover who's written several novels celebrating the healing power of her favorite creatures. Her latest, My Father's Words , finds the author in her element…And though the premise might seem way too sad…MacLachlan turns it into something remarkable…In this slim book, MacLachlan provides a beautifully nuanced portrait of one family's recovery after tragedy…Written in the solemn voice of Fiona, an observant girl who seems to have inherited her father's instinct for listening, the book feels as direct and true as a dog looking you straight in the eyes.
The New York Times Book Review - Catherine Hong
★ 08/27/2018Sarah, Plain and Tall ). Life as Fiona has known and loved it comes to a screeching halt over runny eggs one morning when Fiona’s psychologist father—her guiding light, singer of “Dona Nobis Pacem” and player of driveway basketball—dies in a car accident after swerving to avoid hitting a child. Since her overwhelmed mother has been pursuing a degree, it falls to Fiona to keep her suddenly withdrawn younger brother, Finn (and herself), afloat over the summer. She receives rock-solid help from Luke, a remarkably intuitive neighbor; Emma, the rescue dog to whom Finn reads and sings at the local shelter; and one of her father’s former patients, who pays the doctor’s kindness forward by calling Fiona for two minutes each week and passing on her dad’s indelible sayings (“Let the whole thing float down the river on a little boat”). MacLachlan masterfully mingles core themes in this slim volume: the power of words and song, memories and family, the mutually redemptive human-canine bond, and “the eternal fitness of things.” Ages 8–12. Agent: Rubin Pfeffer, Rubin Pfeffer Content. (Oct.)
★ “MacLachlan is the master of quiet books that pack an emotional wallop. My Father’s Words finds the author in her element. MacLachlan provides a beautifully nuanced portrait of one family’s recovery after tragedy. This book feels as direct and true as a dog looking you straight in the eyes.” — The New York Times Book Review
★ “Newbery Medalist MacLachlan is known for writing heart-tugging stories in spare style, as she did in Sarah, Plain and Tall . And that’s what she does here as readers meet Fiona and Finn. Deeply moving and uplifting in unexpected ways.” — Booklist (starred review)
★ “Key relationships in her own life inspired this characteristically taut and resonant novel by Newbery Medalist MacLachlan. MacLachlan masterfully mingles core themes in this slim volume: the power of words and song, memories and family, the mutually redemptive human-canine bond, and ‘the eternal fitness of things.’” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
★ “With her customary precise, spare language, infused with emotional intelligence, MacLachlan takes readers from shocked grief to a way to live again, fundamental truths dropped carefully and delicately for young readers to comprehend in their own time. A flawless story about resilience, hope, healing, and the eternal fitness of things.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“A gently flowing story. This heartwarming title from an acclaimed author is a solid choice for school and public libraries seeking new bibliotherapy titles for children on loss and grief.” — School Library Journal
“The Newbery Medalist Patricia MacLachlan is at the top of her game with this poignant, powerful novel about finding purpose and an outlet for grief at a shelter for animals.” — Washington Parent
“A flawless, reflective and ultimately redemptive novel [that] gently addresses loss, grief, hope and healing in the very best of ways.” — Port Huron Times Herald
“Simple prose conveys emotions with gentle humor and beautifully chosen words. A family or classroom read-aloud full of insight for all.” — Providence Journal
Praise for THE POET’S DOG: “Magical. A quiet, elegant, poignant story suffused with humor, heart, and goodness.” — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“A spare, moving tale. Using simple words that even youngest readers will understand and enjoy, MacLachlan tackles subjects such as death and mourning with understated grace.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Readers will find their own jewel in this gem of a book.” — Booklist (starred review)
Praise for THE TRUTH OF ME: “Brief but emotionally intense...MacLachlan demonstrates her mastery of elegantly unfolding a tale and gently plucking at readers’ heartstrings without taking a maudlin tone.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
Praise for KINDRED SOULS: “MacLachlan handles a familiar theme with grace, providing a lens into an uncanny intergenerational bond, as well as the kindness and generosity of love.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
Praise for WORD AFTER WORD AFTER WORD: “Showing great respect for her readers and her craft, Newbery Award winner Patricia MacLachlan makes every word count in Lucy’s smooth-flowing, economic narrative.” — Booklist (starred review)
★ “Newbery Medalist MacLachlan is known for writing heart-tugging stories in spare style, as she did in Sarah, Plain and Tall . And that’s what she does here as readers meet Fiona and Finn. Deeply moving and uplifting in unexpected ways.
Booklist (starred review)
07/01/2018
Narrator Imani Parks brings a gentle and compassionate voice to the tender story of recovery following the sudden death of Fiona’s dad. How can she; her younger brother, Finn; and their mother recover? It takes a village—in this case, the patients of the late Declan; neighbors, each touched by the words that Declan shared with them; and the staff and dogs at the local animal shelter. Parks’s narration is even and quiet. Her voice lifts with Fiona’s growing understanding of the accident and the impact her father had on people and alternately brightens and falls in sync with Finn’s changing emotions. When the words and actions take one’s breath away, Parks’s voice quietly fades, and she elongates the pauses between events, heightening their impact. Listeners have much to consider in this listening experience. A.R. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine
NOVEMBER 2018 - AudioFile
Narrator Imani Parks brings a gentle and compassionate voice to the tender story of recovery following the sudden death of Fiona’s dad. How can she; her younger brother, Finn; and their mother recover? It takes a village—in this case, the patients of the late Declan; neighbors, each touched by the words that Declan shared with them; and the staff and dogs at the local animal shelter. Parks’s narration is even and quiet. Her voice lifts with Fiona’s growing understanding of the accident and the impact her father had on people and alternately brightens and falls in sync with Finn’s changing emotions. When the words and actions take one’s breath away, Parks’s voice quietly fades, and she elongates the pauses between events, heightening their impact. Listeners have much to consider in this listening experience. A.R. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine
NOVEMBER 2018 - AudioFile
★ 2018-07-16
