The Secret of Nightingale Wood

by Lucy Strange

Overview

A beautifully tangled story of friendship, fairy tales, and family secrets. For those who loved Pax and The War That Saved My Life.

A Kirkus Best Middle Grade Book of 2017An Amazon Best Book of 2017A 2018 Bank Street College Best Book of the Year A Telegraph Top 50 Book of the YearEveryone is too busy to pay attention to Henrietta and the things she sees — or thinks she sees — in the shadows of their new home, Hope House. Mama is ill. Father has taken a job abroad. Nanny Jane is busy taking care of her younger sister.All alone, with only stories for company, Henry discovers that Hope House is full of strange secrets: a forgotten attic, ghostly figures, mysterious firelight that flickers in the trees beyond the garden.One night she ventures into the darkness of Nightingale Wood. What she finds there will change her whole world...

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781338312850
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	03/26/2019
Pages:	304
Sales rank:	645,008
Product dimensions:	5.20(w) x 7.50(h) x 0.80(d)
Lexile:	730L (what's this?)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Lucy Strange worked as an actor, singer, and storyteller before becoming a secondary school English teacher. She lives in Kent, England. The Secret of Nightingale Wood is her first novel.

Read an Excerpt

From The Secret of Nightingale Wood:Doctor Hardy stayed until about ten o'clock. He did not speak to me before he left, and Nanny Jane, who had brought me a cup of cocoa when she came to say good night, had not told me anything either. It was midnight now, and I was still not asleep.Why would no one tell me anything? Father had left us. Mama was so sick I hardly ever saw her. I wanted to help. I wanted to do something, but it was the middle of the night and I was all by myself and I was twelve years old. What could I possibly do? I stared out the window at the moonlit garden and the dark woodland beyond. There it was again—that mysterious wisp of smoke drifting up from the trees—that flicker of faery flame that I had seen on our first night at Hope House. There was someone out there in the darkness. Someone or something. I felt that familiar tugging sensation—a voice calling to me from among the trees . . .Doctor Hardy's instruction echoed in my mind: No big adventures for you, young lady . . .I smiled a small, angry smile.I would go.At the very bottom of the garden, where the wilderness began, I stopped and stared into the blackness. Then I took one long, deep breath and walked into the dark jaws of the forest.

Editorial Reviews

A Kirkus Best Middle Grade Book of 2017An Amazon Best Book of 2017A 2018 Bank Street College Best Book of the Year A Telegraph Top 50 Book of the YearA Waterstones Book of the Month Pick* "In an imaginative, compelling first-person narration, Henry wraps her story in fairy tales, exposing her guilt, grief, isolation, and fear as she unravels the stunning secrets of Nightingale Wood." — Kirkus Reviews, starred review* "A brave heroine propels this strong and richly layered novel, a memorable portrait of grief, resilience, and rebirth." — Publishers Weekly, starred review "From the first page, I was entirely smitten and compelled to read on until I finished this mysterious and poignant story." — Pam Munoz Ryan, author of Newbery Honor Book Echo and Esperanza Rising"Superbly balanced between readability and poetry... this is an assured debut." — The Guardian (UK)"Rich with nods to classics... this outstanding debut explores family, grief and mental illness with great skill." — The Bookseller (UK)

From the Publisher

★ 08/21/2017
Set a year after the end of WWI, this compelling debut places imaginative 12-year-old narrator Henrietta “Hen” Abbott in an impossible situation. After the death of Hen’s brother, her father moves the family from London to the countryside, only to depart to the continent for work, leaving Hen’s mother struggling with mental illness and cared for by a sinister doctor. “Suddenly I felt dangerously alone,” Hen recounts. “Mama was ill and drugged. Father was not here. Doctor Hardy thought I was going mad, and Nanny Jane had become his spy.” She finds solace in the woods and meets a supposed witch (whom she dubs Moth) living in a caravan. The mystery surrounding this woman becomes a central thread, and her character extends needed kindness to Hen, supporting her efforts to save her family. Strange effectively weaves in fairy tales, poetry, and themes common to classic children’s literature, reflecting Hen’s love of books. A brave heroine propels this strong and richly layered novel, a memorable portrait of grief, resilience, and rebirth. Ages 8–12. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

11/01/2017
Gr 5–7—It is 1919, and 12-year-old Henrietta and her family have just moved from London to Hope House in the country after the tragic death of her older brother. Henry's mother is shut up in her room, heavily medicated, and Henry's father leaves the country on business. Nanny Jane has Henry's baby sister, "Piglet," to manage, leaving Henry alone to read her books and explore the Nightingale Wood. Following a mysterious firelight, Henry meets a wild, witchy woman named Moth who lives in the woods and seems to want to help. Meanwhile, Dr. Hardy keeps upping Mother's medication and conspires to commit her to the Helldon mental institution and remove Piglet into his own care. Henry must find a way to save her mother, bring her father home, and protect Piglet, all while she solves the mystery within the Nightingale Wood. This is a haunting gothic tale of love, courage, healing, and family. The story deals with grief, PTSD, and mental health in a tender and moving way. Henry is a thoroughly lovable character, and the setting is dark and mysterious without being too scary. Strange has a wonderful way of evoking classic fairy tales and the love of books while keeping the mystery moving along. VERDICT An excellent addition to middle grade shelves, especially where readers crave atmospheric, slightly dark stories.—Terry Ann Lawler, Burton Barr Library, Phoenix

School Library Journal

Author Lucy Strange narrates her debut novel with the sensitivity that comes from having written it. She fully dramatizes the upheavals of 12-year-old Henrietta, whose grief at her older brother’s death is multiplied by the cruelties her catatonic mother suffers at the hands of the uncaring Doctor Hardy. Strange animates Henrietta’s determination to help her family and her frustrations in doing so. The story’s post-WWI British setting in a mysterious wood provides a melancholy, mysterious backdrop. Strange gives even minor characters layered portraits. Doctor Hardy’s menacing demeanor is due to his megalomania, Henrietta’s caretakers are strict mostly for her protection, and Moth, who lives in the woods, has a kindness born from her own loss. A passion for words is always evident, and lyricism provides emotional respites in this difficult story. S.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award, 2019 Audies Finalist © AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine

DECEMBER 2017 - AudioFile

Author Lucy Strange narrates her debut novel with the sensitivity that comes from having written it. She fully dramatizes the upheavals of 12-year-old Henrietta, whose grief at her older brother’s death is multiplied by the cruelties her catatonic mother suffers at the hands of the uncaring Doctor Hardy. Strange animates Henrietta’s determination to help her family and her frustrations in doing so. The story’s post-WWI British setting in a mysterious wood provides a melancholy, mysterious backdrop. Strange gives even minor characters layered portraits. Doctor Hardy’s menacing demeanor is due to his megalomania, Henrietta’s caretakers are strict mostly for her protection, and Moth, who lives in the woods, has a kindness born from her own loss. A passion for words is always evident, and lyricism provides emotional respites in this difficult story. S.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award, 2019 Audies Finalist © AudioFile 2017, Portland, Maine

DECEMBER 2017 - AudioFile

★ 2017-08-02
Moving from London to the countryside, Henrietta, a 12-year-old white English girl, encounters mysterious secrets threatening to destroy her family.In the summer of 1919, Henry and her family arrive at Hope House, with its gardens and "wilderness of woodland," seeking a "fresh start." Unwell since her son's recent death, Henry's mother immediately collapses; local Dr. Hardy sedates and confines her in a locked room. Simultaneously, Henry's father exits abroad for his job, leaving Henry and her baby sister with their nanny. Alone, Henry spends days rereading familiar books and fairy tales and nights reliving the terrifying fire that killed the brother who haunts her. Magnetically drawn to Nightingale Wood, Henry discovers a woman called Moth living in a caravan harboring her own secrets like a "forgotten, fairy-tale princess." When Dr. Hardy commits her mother to an asylum, removes her sister, and suggests she suffers the same mental illness as her mother, a resolute Henry attempts a daring rescue, aided by Moth. In an imaginative, compelling first-person narration, Henry wraps her story in fairy tales, exposing her guilt, grief, isolation, and fear as she unravels the stunning secrets of Nightingale Wood. An evocative, beautifully written, mesmerizing debut tale with lush fairy-tale themes and a poignant exploration of mental illness—enthralling. (Historical fiction. 9-12)

Kirkus Reviews