Book Review: The Secret of Nightingale Wood
by Mollie McFarland, Springville Road Regional Branch Library
The Secret of Nightingale WoodLucy Strange
This is the story of a tween girl named Henry (short for Henrietta.) Her family is moving to a new home following the death of her older brother around the end of the first World War. No one in the family knows how to cope with their loss and they all have different ways of dealing with it. Henry’s father throws himself into his work and leaves his family to fend for themselves. Henry’s mother is so lost in grief that doctors are called in to intervene. They aggressively treat grief like it’s a disease, something that can be solved with chemicals and isolation. Henry is left alone with her nanny and baby sister, Piglet. The doctor who’s treating her mother becomes an invasive presence. He locks her mother away and drugs her so she sleeps for days at a time and keeps her separated from her children. How is that supposed to help anyone? With no idea where to turn, Henry finds help when she gets lost in Nightingale Wood. A woman named Moth haunts the woods, living in a camper with her scraggly cat. She fits the description of a witch or a ghost or worse, but Henry knows better. It’s up to Henry to reunite her fractured family, with the assistance of Moth and some clever thinking.
The writing in this book is exquisite. It has the feel of an old classic. It evokes the charm and whimsy of a different era. This middle grade reader has a surprisingly weighty premise, which could make it a hard sell for youngsters, but it definitely pays off. It’s similar to titles like The Secret Garden, Anne of Green Gables, A Little Princess, and The Wind in the Willows. It’s a story with a lot of heart about grief, madness, family, and trust. It’s somber and uplifting, ominous and bright. It’s like a brand new fairy tale, it feels like a classic tale that finally made it to the present. I would recommend this title for middle grade readers to adults of any age. It would be a great read-aloud for families stuck indoors on a snowy day. It’s poignant and heavy, but the subject matter stays with you. You feel like you learned something important about life and love when you finish. That’s my favorite kind of book.
This is the story of a tween girl named Henry (short for Henrietta.) Her family is moving to a new home following the death of her older brother around the end of the first World War. No one in the family knows how to cope with their loss and they all have different ways of dealing with it. Henry’s father throws himself into his work and leaves his family to fend for themselves. Henry’s mother is so lost in grief that doctors are called in to intervene. They aggressively treat grief like it’s a disease, something that can be solved with chemicals and isolation. Henry is left alone with her nanny and baby sister, Piglet. The doctor who’s treating her mother becomes an invasive presence. He locks her mother away and drugs her so she sleeps for days at a time and keeps her separated from her children. How is that supposed to help anyone? With no idea where to turn, Henry finds help when she gets lost in Nightingale Wood. A woman named Moth haunts the woods, living in a camper with her scraggly cat. She fits the description of a witch or a ghost or worse, but Henry knows better. It’s up to Henry to reunite her fractured family, with the assistance of Moth and some clever thinking.
The writing in this book is exquisite. It has the feel of an old classic. It evokes the charm and whimsy of a different era. This middle grade reader has a surprisingly weighty premise, which could make it a hard sell for youngsters, but it definitely pays off. It’s similar to titles like The Secret Garden, Anne of Green Gables, A Little Princess, and The Wind in the Willows. It’s a story with a lot of heart about grief, madness, family, and trust. It’s somber and uplifting, ominous and bright. It’s like a brand new fairy tale, it feels like a classic tale that finally made it to the present. I would recommend this title for middle grade readers to adults of any age. It would be a great read-aloud for families stuck indoors on a snowy day. It’s poignant and heavy, but the subject matter stays with you. You feel like you learned something important about life and love when you finish. That’s my favorite kind of book.
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