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Summary
Summary
Quila MacFarlane is devastated by the death of her mother, especially now that it's just her and her father on Devils Rock where her father is the lighthouse keeper. They can't leave and almost no one ever comes to visit them. But the morning after a storm, something floats ashore that changes their lives forever: Two small mattresses strapped together, and inside, a baby! They name her Cecelia, which means "a gift from the sea," and call her Celia. She makes them a family again-and helps heal the hurt left by Quila's mother's passing. Two years later, though, another stranger arrives, one who changes everything all over again: A woman named Margaret, come looking for the final resting place of her sister, whose ship had gone down in a storm two years before. Her sister's baby had never been found, either, she explains, and now she has no family of her own. Could this be Celia's aunt? Will Quila have to give up Celia so Margaret can have her own family back? This is a gripping tale full of love, loss, and healing.
Author Notes
Natalie Kinsey-Warnock is the author of many wonderful books for young readers.
Reviews (5)
School Library Journal Review
Gr 4-6-Quila MacFarlane's father tends the lighthouse on Devil's Rock, a remote island off the coast of Maine, and when her mother dies, the lonely 12-year-old assumes the role of cook and housekeeper. One day, after a ship goes down, she finds two small mattresses tied together. Inside is a baby. Now the girl has more work than ever, but Celia brings new life to the island, even giving some joy to Quila's grieving father. But then a woman arrives, wanting to say good-bye to her sister who died in a shipwreck, and Quila and Papa realize that she is Celia's aunt. Quila is torn between hating this stranger who threatens to take the child away, and loving her for the friendship she brings. Similar in theme and style to Patricia MacLachlan's Sarah, Plain and Tall (HarperCollins, 1985), this is a lovingly drawn portrait of a girl and her father struggling to cope with a devastating loss. Quila's ever-shifting feelings of resentment, guilt, and love toward her father, Celia, and Celia's aunt are perfectly captured and believable, as are her conflicting desires to be responsible and to be free to enjoy her childhood. Interspersed throughout the novel are details of the lonely, difficult life as a lighthouse keeper in 1858. Pedersen's stylized, almost folksy pencil drawings appear throughout the text. This is a compelling novel, with small suspenseful moments to draw readers in, and a brave and thoughtful heroine.-Ashley Larsen, Woodside Library, CA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
Inspired by the true story of a mid-19th-century lighthouse keeper who found a baby washed ashore, this atmospheric historical novel focuses on the keeper's 12-year-old daughter. Quila, the narrator, has never lived anywhere but Devils Rock Island. She and her father are having trouble coping with the death of Quila's mother, but the arrival of baby Cecelia (whose name means "gift from the sea") helps bring them back to life. Two years later, Cecelia's aunt Margaret comes to the island in search of her niece, and Quila tries to escape with the baby and nearly drowns. Kinsey-Warnock (The Canada Geese Quilt) gives a touching picture of the broken family's isolation and loneliness on the rocky island and their gradual healing, but there are flaws. The well-researched period details compete with the often modern-sounding narration. And a fantasy-like sequence as Quila is drowning seems out of place in an otherwise realistic novel: just as Quila sinks "down, down to where the fishes would feast on [her] bones," she and Celia are miraculously rescued by a pod of seals and, perhaps, by the ghost of Celia's mother. These problems notwithstanding, readers will be comforted by the author's emphasis on warmth and family, and are likely to admire Quila's sturdy independence and resilience. Final artwork not seen by PW. Ages 10-up. (June) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Horn Book Review
Since her mother died, life on Devil's Rock has been lonely for Quila MacFarlane, the twelve-year-old daughter of a Maine lighthouse keeper. When she rescues a baby adrift on the waves, Quila begins to rebuild a family. Inspired by a true story, this tale paints a compelling picture of the difficulties and pleasures associated with the isolated life of lighthouse keepers and their families during the 1800s. From HORN BOOK Fall 2003, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
A gently predictable story about a mid-19th-century girl living in a lighthouse. Quila is 12 when her mother dies, leaving her and her father alone off the Maine coast in the lighthouse that he tends. A shipwreck washes ashore a small bundle made of two mattresses, and there's a baby in it. They name her Celia, and Quila's grief at missing her mother becomes bound up in the endless care a baby takes. When a plucky Irish immigrant named Margaret comes looking for some information on her sister lost at sea, it's discovered that her sister may be Celia's mother. Margaret spends six months at the lighthouse, learning to love the place while Quila frets over the coming loss of Celia to Margaret. Predictably, Margaret and Quila's father fall in love and decide to marry, with promises of trips to the mainland for Quila to see all the things her mother promised her. Much atmospheric description of the flora and fauna--but not much to challenge the imagination. (Fiction. 10-12) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Gr. 2-5. This quiet, somewhat predictable historical novel takes place in what seems to be the eighteenth-century fictional setting of a Maine lighthouse. Narrator Aquila, 12 when the story opens, mourns her mother, who has just died, but finds solace in Celia, the baby she rescues after a ship sinks. Two years pass before the baby's aunt arrives and threatens to take the child away. Aquila cannot bear to part with Celia and risks both their lives before everything works out for the best. Details about the island, the upkeep of the lighthouse, and everyday tasks that derive from life during days gone by create an effective backdrop for a story that offers just enough action in 12 short chapters to keep children involved. Like the author's Lumber Camp Library0 (2002) and A Doctor Like Papa0 (2002) ,0 this tale with a strong girl protagonist and a happy ending will appeal to historical fiction fans ready for something a shade more challenging than the original American Girl books. --Kathleen Odean Copyright 2003 Booklist