Dancing on the Edge

by Han Nolan

Overview

Miracle McCloy comes from an unusual family: Her father, Dane is a prodigy who published his first book at age thirteen; her grandmother, Gigi, is clairvoyant; and her mother was dead when her "miracle" daughter was pulled from her womb. Having been raised according to a set of mystical rules and beliefs, Miracle is unable to cope in the real world. Lost in a desperate dance among lit candles, she sets herself afire and comes to in a hospital. There, a young psychiatrist helps her navigate her painful struggle to take charge of her life.     Includes a reader's guide and an interview with the author.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780152058845
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	03/01/2007
Edition description:	First Edition
Pages:	272
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 7.00(h) x 0.65(d)
Age Range:	12 - 18 Years

About the Author

HAN NOLAN is the author of several books, including Dancing on the Edge which won the National Book Award and Send Me Down a Miracle, a National Book Award finalist. She lives with her husband on the East Coast.

Editorial Reviews

"Nolan does a masterful job of drawing readers into the girl's mind and of making them care deeply about her chances for the future."—School Library Journal "Exceptionally well-written . . . [A] sad, funny, and tender story."—Kirkus Reviews —

From the Publisher

Gr 6 Up--Raised in one of the world's most dysfunctional families, Miracle makes a harrowing journey to the brink of insanity before taking tentative steps to reclaim her life. A compassionate novel written with sensitivity and pathos. (Sept.)

School Library Journal

Charting the near-destruction of a child's soul at the hands of the self-centered, bickering adults around her, Nolan (Send Me Down a Miracle, 1996, etc.) dives into the mind of an emotionally disturbed girl in an intense, exceptionally well-written novel.

Miracle McCloy grows from a lonely ten-year-oldraised by her well-meaning, clairvoyant, but steeped-in-denial grandmotherto a silent and troubled teen. Her mother's death and father's abandonment make Miracle feel that she doesn't exist, so she floats through life as a nonentity, a bystander. At 14, she has a breakdown and severely burns herself. Institutionalized, with the help of a kindly doctor and heroic Aunt Casey, Miracle is forced to confront her family's secrets and uncover the truth about herself. While the characters initially seem like stereotypical Southern eccentrics, Nolan skillfully discloses their true natures, allowing them to blossom on the page. The book ends on a note of hope, as Miracle takes steps toward contentment and begins to participate fully in her own life. The shadows of truth, suffering, self-expression, and repression are examined without psychobabble in this sad, funny, and tender story.

Kirkus Reviews