Description:
Emma and Thalia Holden are separated when Emma follows opportunity. When tragedy strikes, Thalia embarks on a journey north, battling prejudice and nature, hoping to save her family.
Brief description: John M. McIlveen is the author of GIRL GONE NORTH, which was shortlisted for the Wilbur and Niso Smith Foundation Award, and the bestselling paranormal suspense novel HANNAHWHERE, which was nominated for the Bram Stoker Award for a first novel. He has also authored three collections, JERKS, INFLICTIONS, and A VARIABLE DARKNESS. He works at MIT's Lincoln Laboratory and is CEO and founder of Haverhill House Publishing. He lives in Massachusetts with his wife, Roberta Colasanti.
Review Quotes:
Shortlisted for the Wilbur & Niso Smith Foundation Award
"I was deeply touched by this story of a strong, caring black family in America in the 1960s and how Thalia, pushed by personal tragedy, decides to travel and find her way in a country that is not only dangerous for a young girl but exceptionally menacing for a black girl. McIlveen writes with such heart, energy, and tension that I was on the edge, desperately turning each page to travel on this journey with Thalia."
--Linda D. Addison, award-winning author of "How to Recognize a Demon Has Become Your Friend" the first African-American recipient of the HWA Bram Stoker Award(R) and HWA Lifetime Achievement Award winner.
"' It had never occurred to Thalia the colossal difference between one and zero and how easy a step it could be to go from something to nothing.' A powerful sentence from GIRL GONE NORTH, which shares the stories of sisters Emma and Thalia, African American teens living in New Orleans who, for different reasons, seek escape to the North. Yet gripping challenges and dangers are no less than in the South. Set in the 1960s during a time of great racial upheaval, this novel is beautifully deeply explored and beautifully written; McIlveen has created characters I ached for and rooted for. This is not to be missed."
--Elizabeth Massie, Bram Stoker Award-winning author of DESPER HOLLOW and HWA Lifetime Achievement Award winner.
If you want facts, read a reputable newspaper.
If you want to understand human nature, read a novel.
If you want powerful fiction, read John McIlveen.
McIlveen's writing can be so intense that you will need to put the book down and, quite literally, walk away to process what you have just read.
If you plan to read only one book this year, make it this one! And a word to the wise - there aren't enough tissues in the box...
--Madelon Wilson - "Mad about Books"
"There are a few books that stay with you long after you've read them: TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, THE PRINCESS BRIDE, BOY'S LIFE.... Add GIRL GONE NORTH to that exclusive stack. A story of courage and determination against almost insurmountable odds. At its heart, this book is about the love and unbreakable bond between sisters."
--J. Edwin Buja, author of KING OF THE WOOD and THE CONSORT
"Once again, John M. McIlveen creates strong characters who could easily step off the page and live among us in the real world. They might be shocked to find that not much has changed in the years between 1961 and now, but maybe they could share some of the wisdom they gained while witnessing the infancy of the Civil Rights Movement."
--Michelle Renee Lane, Bram Stoker Award Finalist and author of INVISIBLE CHAINS