A poetic sensibility shines through this coming-of-age mystery from McKinlay (Duck for a Day), first published in Australia. Twelve-year-old Cassie feels like a fifth wheel in her family, having been born eight years after her older siblings. Cassie was also the first baby born in the Australian town of New Lower Grange, which was established after the intentional flooding of the previous town to accommodate a dam. Cassie swims six laps every day at the local pool to keep her lungs strong (she was born eight weeks early), but she feels the pull of the forbidden lake above Old Lower Grange. There, she is joined by Liam, a classmate whose life was altered in a tragic accident, and together they search for the truth about the town’s past as its centenary celebration approaches. The weight of personal history hangs over McKinlay’s story, and she strongly evokes the claustrophobia of a small town where well-meaning people all know each other’s business. There’s also a very real sense of excitement and danger as Cassie tries to unearth the lake’s secrets, making her triumph all the sweeter. Ages 9–12. (May)
Below
Narrated by Tara Sands
Meg McKinlayUnabridged — 4 hours, 8 minutes
Below
Narrated by Tara Sands
Meg McKinlayUnabridged — 4 hours, 8 minutes
Overview
Secrets have a way of floating to the surface.... Mystery, compelling characters, and an abandoned town beneath a lake make for a compelling adventure.
On the day Cassie was born, they drowned her town. The mayor flipped a lever and everyone cheered as Old Lower Grange was submerged beneath five thousand swimming pools' worth of water. Now, twelve years later, Cassie feels drawn to the manmade lake and the mysteries it hides-and she's not the only one. Her classmate Liam, who wears oversized swim trunks to cover the scars on his legs, joins Cassie in her daily swims across the off-limits side of the lake. As the summer heats up, the water drops lower and lower, offering them glimpses of the ghostly town and uncovering secrets one prominent town figure seems anxious to keep submerged. But like a swimmer who ventures too far from shore, Cassie realizes she can't turn back. Can she bring their suspicions to light before it's too late-and does she dare?
Editorial Reviews
A poetic sensibility shines through this coming-of-age mystery from McKinlay.
—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
A 12-year-old girl discovers a town secret hidden under thousands of gallons of water in this earnest, thematically rich exploration of the relationship between history and truth.
—Kirkus Reviews
[R]eaders will hold their breath as [Cassie] challenges herself, swimming far into the forbidden side of the lake as the story unfolds. Her voice is convincing as she and Liam glimpse more of the drowned town. ... Readers will enjoy spending time with Cassie and Liam and will appreciate the satisfying resolution.
—School Library Journal
The mystery is within plausible bounds, and it leads to a secret that’s tragic but ultimately freeing. This makes the beautifully eerie seem everyday, an impressive feat that makes for an easy booktalk and an inviting read.
—Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
McKinlay’s prose is the perfect balance between the terse, sarcastic tone of a 12-year-old and the lyrical language that keeps a reader turning the pages. .... This is a story about many things; overcoming adversity, finding friendship in unlikely places, and how history has a way of retelling itself without all its parts.
—Library Media Connection
Below weaves the lives and stories of all these residents together, creating a narrative that is compelling, suspenseful and unique. Combining aspects of a mystery and a coming-of-age story, Below offers readers an opportunity to look beneath the surface and discover what lies below.
—BookPage
[C]ompelling.
—Booklist Online
[A] memorable and suspenseful novel for 9- to 14-year-olds.
—The Wall Street Journal
[A]n intriguing, mysterious and suspenseful book. ... The characters are true-to-life and the story realistic and genuine.
—KidsReads.com
09/01/2013
Gr 5–7—Arriving eight weeks premature with underdeveloped lungs, Cassie was the first baby born in the town of New Lower Grange. Her birth caused her family to miss out on the "drowning" of the former town of Old Lower Grange. Twelve years later, Cassie, who swims laps in the town's pool to continue strengthening her lungs, befriends a schoolmate named Liam, also a swimmer. After becoming increasingly curious about the former town that remains under 200 feet of water, Cassie begins swimming in the "lake" under which Old Lower Grange is hidden. Liam, who discovers that she is swimming in the forbidden part, tags along to discover the secrets hiding under the water. McKinlay's mystery (Candlewick, 2013) will hold the attention of listeners. Tara Sands's expressive reading brings Cassie to life. A fine purchase for school and public libraries, especially for reluctant readers.—Beth H. Green, Wappingers Junior High School, Wappingers Falls, NY
Cassie harbors an obsession with the town her family used to live in, which was drowned in the construction of a new reservoir on the day she was born. At first, the story itself nearly drowns in its beautiful descriptions of mysterious watery depths. But, despite the slow start, Tara Sands’s narration is lively from the first word. Her rich characterizations of the entire quirky cast make it easy to dive into the story. Eventually two compelling developments emerge for Cassie: a friendship with a boy her age and the mystery of a luxury car they find submerged in the reservoir. The story takes place in Australia, a setting that comes as a surprise as the narration is done with American accents. A.M.P. © AudioFile 2013, Portland, Maine
A 12-year-old girl discovers a town secret hidden under thousands of gallons of water in this earnest, thematically rich exploration of the relationship between history and truth. Cassie Romano was the first baby to be born in the town of New Lower Grange, which replaced Old Lower Grange when Mayor Finkle "flipped the lever" turning the old town into an artificial lake and dam site. Since she was little, Cassie has been fascinated by the drowned town, which, together with New Lower Grange, is about to celebrate its centennial. Cassie's much older sister is making the celebration's centenary book, which Cassie feels whitewashes history, as it only shows the positive side of the changeover. Narrated in the first person by its likable protagonist, this quirky but thoughtful not-quite-mystery teams Cassie with Liam, a boy with an unfortunate personal history of his own. Together, the two kids swim on the side of the lake that is closed to the public, where dropping water levels reveal hazy but tantalizing impressions of Old Lower Grange. Although the author does a masterful job of making sure all the pieces fit at the end, the central mystery is hard to buy. This is mitigated by a reasonably suspenseful climax, an earned family solidarity message and the lesson: that to find the truth, one must delve below the surface. A quietly intriguing meditation on history and truth. (Fiction. 9-12)
Product Details
| BN ID: | 2940169874785 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Brilliance Audio |
| Publication date: | 05/14/2013 |
| Edition description: | Unabridged |
| Age Range: | 10 - 13 Years |
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