Critics' Opinion:
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Published Apr 2016
264 pages
Genre: Literary Fiction
Publication Information
Gripping and poetic, This Is the Story of You is about the beauty of nature and the power of family, about finding hope in the wake of tragedy and recovery in the face of overwhelming loss.
On Haven, a six-mile long, half-mile-wide stretch of barrier island, Mira Banul and her Year-Rounder friends have proudly risen to every challenge. But then a superstorm defies all predictions and devastates the island, upending all logic and stranding Mira's mother and brother on the mainland. Nothing will ever be the same. A stranger appears in the wreck of Mira's home. A friend obsessed with vanishing disappears. As the mysteries deepen, Mira must find the strength to carry on - to somehow hold her memories in place while learning to trust a radically reinvented future.
"Starred Review. This beautifully written book works on many levels and is rich in its characterization, emotion, language, and hint of mystery." - School Library Journal
"Starred Review. A masterful exploration of nature's power to shake human foundations, literal and figurative." - Kirkus
"Kephart (One Stolen Thing) establishes relatable characters and a poetic style that artfully blend the island days before and after the storm. 12 and up." - Publishers Weekly
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Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Photo: Mike Matthews
Beth Kephart is the author of 10 books, including the National Book Award finalist A Slant of Sun; the Book Sense pick Ghosts in the Garden; the autobiography of Philadelphia’s Schuylkill River, Flow; the acclaimed business fable Zenobia; and the critically acclaimed novels for young adults, Undercover, House of Dance, and Nothing but Ghosts.
Kephart is a winner of the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts fiction grant, a National Endowment for the Arts grant, a Leeway grant, a Pew Fellowships in the Arts grant, and the Speakeasy Poetry Prize, among other honors. Kephart’s essays are frequently anthologized, she has judged numerous competitions, and she has taught workshops at many institutions, to all ages. Kephart teaches the advanced nonfiction workshop at the University of ...
... Full Biography
Author Interview
Link to Beth Kephart's Website
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