THE PATRON SAINT OF BUTTERFLIES

Agnes fasts and self-mutilates to emulate the martyrs depicted in her copy of The Saints’ Way, while orphaned Honey would rather contemplate the beauty of butterflies than the religious rhetoric they have been forced to follow from their oppressive leader, Emmanuel. Despite their differences, these 14-year-old girls share an unbreakable bond, having spent their entire lives as Believers at Mount Blessing, a religious commune in Connecticut. When Agnes’s Nana Pete pays a surprise visit, she learns about the girls’ treatment in the Regulation Room and witnesses Emmanuel’s “miraculous healing” of Agnes’s little brother, Benny, when tragedy strikes. As the three children escape with Nana Pete, Agnes and Honey discover their true beliefs and a secret that will unite them forever. Although debut author Galante, who was also born and raised in a religious commune, leaves a few inconsistencies in her writing, her dramatic storytelling will pique teens’ curiosity. Readers will be amazed by Agnes and Honey’s strength to enter a brave new world of Big Macs and automatic doors—and independence and unconditional love. (Fiction. 12-16)