Saving Sky

November 22, 2010
Against a backdrop of war by terrorism, with suicide bombers successfully destroying refineries and wreaking havoc with the U.S. power grid, the Brightman family battles the forces of prejudice, fear, and hate in Sante Fe in the not-too-distant future. Thirteen-year-old Sky's parents have created an alternative lifestyle on their solar-powered, sustainable farm. Aiming to foster peaceful coexistence with nature, they incorporate spiritual rituals into their daily lives, such as offering blessings for the terrorists' victims and celebrating the winter solstice, when "Light will begin to drive out the darkness." Stanley (Bella at Midnight) smoothly blends old-fashioned, contemporary, and futuristic story elements: Sky rides a horse-drawn sled for fun, carries a cell phone for emergencies, and protests against the internment of Middle Eastern neighbors, which has become official government policy. The personal becomes political when Sky's mother's colleague is detained, and the family decides to hide the man's son, Sky's classmate. This thought-provoking novel explores both the frightening power of mob mentality and fear tactics, along with hopeful possibilities offered when individuals take courageous stands for justice. Ages 10–up.

September 1, 2010

Gr 5-8-Living on a New Mexico ranch, Sky Brightman and her family are largely removed from the disturbing news of the war on terror and are sheltered from images of death and destruction as suicide bombers wage war on the United States. Then, when Kareem, a seventh-grade Middle Eastern classmate, is picked on by bullies, and his doctor father is detained by federal agents, Sky resolves to stand by the boy. In a scene that stretches credulity, Sky and her mother collaborate to remove Kareem surreptitiously from school. They safeguard him in their home and build a secret place for him in the barn in case he should need one. Kareem goes into hiding when suspicious Homeland Security agents come looking for him. In the meantime, an attack knocks out the power over a good portion of the country. When Homeland Security comes again, Kareem is spotted and knows he must turn himself in; the president has ordered the DHS to hold detainees until the war ends. Four months later, at the state's Land of Enchantment essay award ceremony, Sky reads from Kareem's poignant journal and is heartened by the audience's reception. The mood of the novel is muted by the spare detail. The main characters are well rendered and likable, and, in her portrayal of the earth-centered, nurturing Brightman family, Stanley succeeds in delivering the message that hope trumps fear.-Susan W. Hunter, Riverside Middle School, Springfield, VT

Copyright 2010 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2010

In Stanley's latest, the post-9/11 future has taken a dark turn. The war on terror has gone on for years, causing food rationing and an oil shortage. Terrorists have ramped up attacks on U.S. soil, and the constant red-alert days have kept anxiety levels on high. Then it happens: Homeland Security starts rounding up "suspects"--anyone of Middle-Eastern descent--and placing them in detention centers. Standing against the fear and hatred is seventh grader Sky Brightman, whose unconventional, off-the-grid upbringing has given her a belief that love conquers all. The Brightman family's 60-acre, self-sufficient New Mexican ranch, isolated from the constant news feeds from television, radios and the Internet, is a balm, as are their ecumenical daily blessings to heal the troubled universe. When officers come after her classmate Kareem, Sky resolves to rescue him. This page-turner subtly builds an all-too-believable near future, sowing just enough clues to keep readers informed and rarely descending into blunt exposition. It skillfully captures the irrational fear of a public under siege while giving kids a modern-day, almost-just-like-them female hero who champions hope. Inspiring. (Thriller. 10-14)

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Starred review from June 1, 2010
Grades 5-8 *Starred Review* In this provocative title, award-winning author Stanley asks young readers to consider what courage might look like in an America under psychological and physical siege. Growing up off the grid on a New Mexico ranch, Sky is cocooned from the countrys escalating fears over war and terrorist attacks. Then her friend Kareem is falsely arrested at the local Home Depot, setting off a chain of events that utterly upends Skys sense of security: police arrest Kareems parents, Kareem goes into hiding, and Sky is interrogated by the police about her role in Kareems disappearance. As fears mount, the U.S. slips deeper into anarchy, and foreign-born American families pay the price as they are rounded up and interned. Sky and her family fight back the only way they canby hiding and protecting Kareem on their vast, isolated ranch. To categorize this novel solely as science fiction would be wishful thinking, and parallels to our contemporary times appear on every page. The recognizable adult characters, from the truly good to the fearful to the insidiously evil, are drawn straight from todays headlines, while the young people manifest a courage few can emulate. Readers will have much to discuss after finishing this beautifully written, disturbing book.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)