Echo Mountain

A young girl living in a remote mountain area must go on a journey to try and find a treatment for her father's accident.

1933. When Ellie and her family lose everything, they flee to Echo Mountain to build a new life. Ellie runs wild, exploring the mountain's mysteries. But the one she can't solve is who's leaving the gifts for her: tiny, beautiful wooden carvings of animals and flowers, dotted around the mountain for her to find.

Then Ellie's father has a terrible accident. Now he lies in a coma, while Ellie shoulders the blame for what happened. When she sets out to find a cure for him, she discovers Cate, the outcast witch, and Larkin, a wild mountain boy. From them she learns about being a healer, being brave - and about how there can be much more to a person than first meets the eye.

NOTE: Carnegie Medal Shortlist 2021

NOTE : There is spot-foiling on the front cover and spine.

Ellie and her family have to go and live on Echo Mountain when they lose their home due to the Great Depression. Life is hard, but they manage just fine until her father has a terrible accident. Then Ellie must use all her intelligence and grit to wake him up from his coma.

The engaging plot is fleshed out with lyrical descriptions of the beautiful natural world, and Ellie's burgeoning gifts as a healer. A plucky and endearing character, Ellie deals with not only missing her beloved father but a mother and sister who don't understand her love of the wild place they now call home. The links between Ellie's family and that of the mysterious characters living higher up the mountainside are gradually revealed, and the plot comes to a satisfying and heart-warming conclusion.

Fans of the author's award-winning first novel, 'Wolf Hollow' will be pleased that this is a return to form. Historical fiction readers who haven't encountered Wolk before are in for a real treat. A fantastic read.

• Shortlisted - Carnegie Medal 2021