Back to the Bright Before

by Katherin Nolte (Author) Jen Bricking (Illustrator)

Reading Level: 4th − 5th Grade

A magical adventure about two brave siblings determined to find a treasure that could save their family.

When eleven-year-old Pet Martin's dad falls from a ladder on their family farm, it isn't just his body that crashes to the ground. So does every hope her family had for the future. Money is scarce, and Pet's mom is bone-tired from waiting tables at the local diner, and even with the extra hours, it's not enough for a third surgery for Pet's dad. Her five-year-old brother, Simon, now refuses to say anything except the word "cheese." Worst of all? The ladder accident was Pet's fault.

She's determined to fix things--but how? Good old-fashioned grit...and maybe a little bit of magic.

When a neighbor recites a poem about an ancient coin hidden somewhere on the grounds of the local abbey, Pet forms a plan. With her brother, a borrowed chicken, and a stolen pony, Pet runs away from home. If she can find the coin, Daddy can have his surgery, Momma can stop her constant working, and Simon might speak again. But Pet isn't the only one who wants the coin...which means searching for it is more dangerous than she ever imagined.

This dazzling debut novel filled with magic, family, and adventure is sure to be an instant classic.

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Paperback
$8.99

Kirkus

A diverting, warmhearted, unusual fantasy.

ALA/Booklist

Like Oz or Narnia, the landscape will enchant readers looking for an eventful adventure.

Publishers Weekly

After 11-year-old Perpetua "Pet" Martin's woodcarver father falls from a ladder and is unable to work, her mother takes on long shifts waitressing to make ends meet, and her nearly five-year-old brother Simon stops saying any word but cheese. Pet, meanwhile, carries significant guilt about her own involvement in the incident. When Pet hears a poem about a rare, valuable coin whose sale would pay for their now-depressed father's needed third surgery, she comes up with a brilliant plan to find it on the nearby sprawling grounds of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Abbey. But a neighbor's menacing adult son wants the treasure, too, and the siblings' adventure involves both borrowing a pony and keeping adults none the wiser, even as three enigmatic figures assist them. Debut author Nolte incorporates religious imagery and Latin vocabulary into a fantastical quest about a winningly indomitable protagonist who remains devoted to her family and mission. If some questions remain unanswered, a sweetly mystical vibe comes through as the story touches on themes of community care, familial alienation, and parentification. Most characters cue as white. Final art not seen by PW. Ages 8-12. Agent: Kerry Sparks, Levine Greenberg Rostan. (May)

Copyright 2023 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

Review quotes

 
Katherin Nolte
Katherin Nolte received an MFA from the Iowa Writers' Workshop, where she was a Truman Capote Fellow. Her fiction has appeared in dozens of publications and won multiple awards, but it was a late-night ER visit with her four children that inspired her to write Back to the Bright Before. An Ohio native, she currently lives with her family in Iowa.
Classification
-
ISBN-13
9780593565131
Lexile Measure
660
Guided Reading Level
-
Publisher
Random House Books for Young Readers
Publication date
June 04, 2024
Series
-
BISAC categories
JUV039060 - Juvenile Fiction | Social Themes | Friendship
JUV001000 - Juvenile Fiction | Action & Adventure
JUV013000 - Juvenile Fiction | Family | General
Library of Congress categories
Lost and found possessions
Lost articles
Adventure and adventurers
Adventure stories
Families
Family life
Siblings
Novels

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