★ A novel that will sink into readers' bones....This is a wonderful, unique family survival story with a majestic herd of horses....Orr's latest will delight middle grade readers searching for escape and home simultaneously.--School Library Journal ★ Starred Review
The valley of horses has been a safe haven for Honey and her family for seven peaceful years, but this seemingly perfect valley has also become their prison. Trapped by a mysterious magic, and fearing for her father's life, Honey is determined to find a way out of the valley of horses.
The valley of horses is the only true place Honey remembers since her family stumbled upon it in their converted ice cream truck while escaping from the rest of the world, and the illnesses that was spreading there. Honey's parents, her brother Rumi, and her NanNan become self-sufficient, living off the land and sharing the valley with mystical horses who seem to have a wisdom of their own. But there is a magic in the valley that prevents Honey and her family from ever leaving. When Honey suspects her father has become ill, Honey knows she must find a way to escape the valley to find help from a world she only knows about through stories.
Wendy Orr, author of the award-winning Nim's Island and Dragonfly Song, creates a magical land filled with awe and mystery. Showcasing the endurance of family, and the beauty of restoration and self-sufficiency, Orr crafts a heartfelt adventure and enchanting world to fall into.
A beautifully executed, fantastical what-if tale for right now. --Kirkus Reviews ★ Starred Review
Amy lives and breathes horses, but all her horses are in books or in her head. So when she goes on a picnic with her friend Hannah's family, Hannah thinks Amy is imagining things when she says she heard a horse neigh nearby. But then Hannah hears a neigh, too What's a horse doing in the park?
With a little help from Mona at the Rainbow Street Shelter, Amy makes sure the horse is safe and sound. She almost hopes the owner never turns up, so that she could keep visiting the pony. . . .A gripping upper-middle-grade fantasy set in Bronze-Age Crete from Nim's Island author Wendy Orr
The girl has had many selves in her short life. The first she remembers is Aissa, the daughter of Mama and Dada, sister to Zufi who watched the goats. Then the Bull King's raiders came, and Mama said, Don't make a sound till I come back. And when the villagers found her she was silent as stone, because Mama never came back again.
So the villagers cursed her as back luck and made her No-Name, lowest of the servants to the Lady, the island's priestess. But there were whispers, as she grew, of another self: of the Lady's rejected first daughter, born imperfect with two extra thumbs. The silent girl looks at the scars on her wrists and wonders, but she has more pressing concerns. The villagers blame her bad luck for the tribute the Bull King now demands of them: two youths given each spring to dance with his bulls and die for his god's glory. And the servants hate and fear the unnatural way the animals all come to her. For Aissa, though, this bond with creatures of fur and scale is the first clue in finding the true self that no one else can give to her, or take away.
Wendy Orr, the author of Nim's Island, introduces a resourceful and resilient heroine for slightly older readers. Inspired by an archeological trip to the island of Crete, where frescoes show figures leaping over the backs of bulls, Orr weaves an intriguing mythological portrayal of the Bronze Age Minoan civilization. Lyrically written and refreshingly unpredictable, Dragonfly Song suggests a fascinating origin for the legend of the Minotaur and his dark tribute.
In the myth-rich culture of Bronze Age Crete, a volcano cuts short the coming-of-age training of a young priestess. When her world is shattered and her future appears lost, she must find the strength within herself to ensure the survival of her family.
Leira is about to start her initiation as a priestess when her world is turned upside down. A violent earthquake leaves her home--and her family--in pieces. And the earth goddess hasn't finished with the island yet.
With her family, Leira flees across the sea to Crete, expecting sanctuary. But a volcanic eruption throws the entire world into darkness. After the resulting tsunami, society descends into chaos; the status and privilege of being noble-born are reduced to nothing. With her injured mother and elderly nurse, Leira must find the strength and resourcefulness within herself to find safety.
A thrilling new Bronze Age survival story from the award-winning author of Dragonfly Song and Nim's Island.
A new gripping Bronze Age story from Wendy Orr, internationally acclaimed author of Dragonfly Song and Swallow's Dance
Clio can't remember a time when she didn't share a bond with the mare Grey Girl. On the whole island of Crete, she and her Trojan-born father are the only people who raise and ride horses--and she couldn't live without it. Between the freedom of the pasture and the safety of her grandmother Leira's pottery studio, Clio has always had everything she needed.
Then an accident stole Clio's ability to ride, or even to walk without a crutch. The weather changed and summers grew drier. Now raiders are preying on nearby towns. As anxiety builds, a terrible pronouncement is issued by the palace: at the spring festival, a girl between the ages of twelve and fourteen will be chosen to save the town from disaster. She will be sacrificed as an offering to the mother goddess.
In Cuckoo's Flight, internationally bestselling author Wendy Orr returns to the Bronze-Age setting of her critically acclaimed novels Dragonfly Song and Swallow's Dance. With her signature blend of striking prose and emotionally taut verse, she immerses readers in a thrilling coming-of-age story as Clio battles the political power of the palace and her own feelings of inadequacy to save her town, her horses, and perhaps even herself.
Now in paperback, a USBBY Outstanding International Book set in the myth-rich culture of Bronze Age Crete. When a volcano cuts short the coming-of-age training of a young priestess, she must find the strength within herself to ensure the survival of her family.
Leira is about to start her initiation as a priestess when her world is turned upside down. A violent earthquake leaves her home--and her family--in pieces. And the earth goddess hasn't finished with the island yet.
With her family, Leira flees across the sea to Crete, expecting sanctuary. But a volcanic eruption throws the entire world into darkness. After the resulting tsunami, society descends into chaos; the status and privilege of being noble-born are reduced to nothing. With her injured mother and elderly nurse, Leira must find the strength and resourcefulness within herself to find safety.
A thrilling new Bronze Age survival story from the award-winning author of Dragonfly Song and Nim's Island.
Raven's sister and stepfather are trapped on the mountain top and their lives depend on Raven, in a gripping wilderness-adventure by the author of Nim's Island
Raven is the first to reach the mountain top. Her sister and stepdad are still climbing the trail below. She is alone on top of the world. So she dances--a crazy, jumping, spinning dance, because if you can climb a mountain you can do anything! But then there is a rumble and the earth shakes. Rocks are falling, and so is Raven, in a terrible tumble down the side of the mountain. When she comes to, no one answers her calls. The rockfall is covering the trail where she last saw Lily and Scott. This is the dramatic story of a girl who goes beyond her limits to save her family, and along the way, discovers a mysterious bond with a family of bears and a raven.