Thing with Feathers

Description: From Golden Heart award-winning author McCall Hoyle comes The Thing with Feathers, the story of sixteen-year-old Emilie Day, an epileptic teen leaving her safe, homeschooled life for high school on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. For the first time, Emilie must navigate classes, cliques, and crushes, all the while keeping her epilepsy a secret.

Brief description:

McCall Hoyle writes honest YA novels about friendship, first love, and girls finding the strength to overcome great challenges. She is a high school English teacher. Her own less-than-perfect teenage experiences and those of the girls she teaches inspire many of the struggles in her books. When she's not reading or writing, she's spending time with her family and their odd assortment of pets--a food-obsessed beagle, a grumpy rescue cat, and a three-and-a-half-legged kitten. She has an English degree from Columbia College and a master's degree from Georgia State University. She lives in a cottage in the woods in North Georgia where she reads and writes every day. Learn more at mcallhoyle.com.

Review Quotes: It's become very hit and miss when it comes to my liking of contemporary novels. I have to say "The Thing with Feathers" was a successful hit out of the park! It started off so funny and held that until the very last chapters. This book will rip your heart out just to put it back in and caress it with love. I am so over joyed I had the opportunity to read this wonderful story! "The Thing with Feathers" features Emilie. She's hidden away from the world ever since her dad died of cancer. She has also been diagnosed with epilepsy and she doesn't leave her room. She is homeschooled and pretty much has drawn away from the world. I felt very sad for her because she felt like she couldn't do anything because of her illness. An illness that she has no control over. Emilie grew so much in this book. I was surprised to love the one part where she attempts suicided and then decides she wants to live. As a survivor of suicide, that really touched my heart. This story is so empowering. It teaches that you shouldn't give up. You shouldn't let illnesses or anything take over your life and stop you from doing what you want to do. There is always hope! Book in a Pinch: Girl with epilepsy learns that she doesn't have to hide away from the world. Go Into This One Knowing: It involves themes of cancer, epilepsy, suicide (slight), domestic abuse (slight) and romance--Night Owl Reviews