Listen to the Moon

October 12, 2015
Morpurgo (War Horse) returns to a WWI setting with an emotional tale of wreck and recovery. The year is 1915. The Scilly Isles, north of Cornwall, are somewhat sheltered from the fighting that rages on the continent, but not completely. Alfie Wheatcroft and his father find a girl stranded on the isolated island of St. Helen'sâshe is unable to speak, on the edge of death, and wrapped in a blanket labeled "Wilhelm." Alfie and his family take her in, hoping to help her regain her speech, mind, and memories. The community, however, worries that she might be a Germanâpossibly a spy, or just an enemy. In fact, "Lucy's" story is longer, stranger, and more traumatic than they could imagine, and she has good reason for her amnesia, elective mutism, and desperate fear of the water. A framing device, built around the research of Lucy's future grandson, allows Morpurgo to shift among multiple narrators as he unspools the mystery of where she came from. Along the way, Morpurgo offers powerful descriptions of shipwreck, mass drowning, and devastation, as well as healing and growth. Ages 10â14.

Starred review from July 15, 2015
War invades a peaceful English fishing community. In May 1915 a fisherman and his son, Alfie, from the Scilly Isles west of Great Britain, find a little girl near death on a deserted island, take her home, and care for her. She does not speak but clings to a teddy bear and a blanket with a German name sewn on it. Naming her Lucy Lost, Alfie and his parents and a kindly and wise doctor nurture her with love, music from a gramophone, and drawing material. Months go by, and still no one can uncover any details about her life. But World War I is raging, the British harbor fierce anti-German sentiments, and when news of the name on her blanket spreads, the family is shunned. Morpurgo returns to the World War I of his much-lauded War Horse in a beautifully crafted, multivoiced novel about the sinking of the Lusitania, the strength of family bonds, the vicissitudes of memory, and the fear and bigotry of neighbors. Alfie's third-person tale provides the main storyline, supported by other voices, including excerpts from the doctor's journal and the narrow-minded school principal's records of his horrible teaching theories. It is through Lucy's voice that all the elements of the tale weave together both beautifully and dramatically. A poignant and life-affirming story from a master. (author's notes) (Historical fiction. 10-14)

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Starred review from September 1, 2015

Gr 5 Up-The place: the Scilly Isles, off the coast of Cornwall, England. The time: May 1915, during the bleak early days of World War I when German U-boats patrol the seas and sink British ships. While fishing near a deserted island, Alfie Wheatcroft and his father hear a child crying and discover a sick, traumatized, speechless girl. "Lucy" is all she can say, and "Lucy Lost" is what she is named. Alfie and his parents take her in, and although she slowly recovers her physical health, she remains silent. Brief glimpses of who she might be-her ability to tame the cantankerous workhorse Peg, her skill at drawing, her adoration of music-tantalize the islanders. Early tales that Lucy is part mermaid or ghost, though, soon veer into suspicion that she's actually a German spy, and vicious persecution follows. Since chapters about the Wheatcrofts alternate with the recollections of Canadian American Merry MacIntyre, who is traveling to Liverpool aboard the Lusitania, readers are well aware of Lucy's real identity and root for her recovery all the way. This is a superbly written, gripping novel of friendship, family, healing, and war that is primarily geared toward middle school readers but will appeal to adults as well. By framing Listen to the Moon as a historical study, quoting fictional primary sources, and including helpful background information, Morpurgo may also inspire students to interview relatives and document their own family stories. VERDICT This is one of Morpurgo's best works to date; a first purchase for middle grade and teen collections.-Ann W. Moore, Schenectady County Public Library, NY

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Starred review from September 1, 2015
Grades 6-9 *Starred Review* Remember the Lusitania! That fateful day in May 1915 certainly won't be forgotten by 12-year-old American castaway Merry, who is saved on the Scilly Isles off the coast of Cornwall, England, by fisherman Jim Wheatcroft and his son Alfie, who heard a humanlike noise coming from the uninhabited St. Helen's Island. They bring the girl, her teddy bear, and her blanket home, where the family patiently nurses the girl back to health, though her lost speech is the most difficult affliction to remedy. Merry, known only as Lucy Lost, becomes a curiosity to the townsfolk, who begin to wonder if her mysterious origins mean that she is German. Soon they start to believe that retribution against the Wheatcrofts will show they mean business about harboring enemies. Morpurgo traces Merry's tale from New York and her trip to see her father recovering from war injuries in England to the sinking and her rescue, and always with a deliberate pace. Chapters intertwined with the narrative describing Merry's interests in music, drawing, horses, and the moon help readers understand the girl. While back matter duly describes the tale's historic and geographic significance, it is Morpurgo's finely woven tapestry of community, trust, endurance, and unconditional family love that keep the Lusitania best remembered.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)