The Secret Sense of Wildflower
A Young Adult Novel
Book Description
In the honored tradition of Southern Gothic, Susan Gabriel seamlessly blends the culture, the pathos, and the humor of the American south in The Secret Sense of Wildflower, her debut middle-grade historical novel.
With prose as lush and colorful as the American South, Wildflower is powerful and poignant, brimming with energy and angst, humor and hope.
Set in 1940s Appalachia, The Secret Sense of Wildflower tells the story of Louisa May “Wildflower” McAllister, whose life has been shaped around the recent death of her beloved father in a sawmill accident. While her mother hardens in her grief, Wildflower and her three sisters must cope with their loss themselves, as well with as the demands of daily survival. Despite these hardships, Wildflower has a resilience that is forged with humor, a love of the land, and an endless supply of questions to God, as defined by the preacher of their small rural church.
Johnny Monroe, the town’s teenage ne’er-do-well, begins to set his sights on Wildflower, who does her best to ignore his advances. After Johnny’s younger sister, Ruby, is found hanging dead in an oak tree, Wildflower overhears the awful secret that Ruby was “with child.” With Ruby gone, Johnny’s attention toward Wildflower becomes more ominous. What happens next will leave readers shocked, touched, and finally, as transformed as Wildflower.
The worlds of family, friendship, mourning, and love are explored in this moving, often humorous, novel about healing and hope.
A character-driven novel reminiscent of the work of Reynolds Price in its ability to create a truly original Southern voice, The Secret Sense of Wildflower is certain to be embraced by fans from Deborah Wiles (Each Little Bird That Sings) to Katherine Hannigan (Ida B) to Susan Patron (The Higher Power of Lucky).
Download first chapter here.