THE MONARCHS OF WINGHAVEN

Two children discover that a love of nature can change lives.

Inherently a loner with a scientific bent of mind and a gift for writing, 11-year-old Sammie loves to explore the Field, a vacant plot of land near her New England home. Although she promised her working mother she wouldn’t go there alone, she does anyway, bringing her journal (whose pages are included effectively in the story) to record and draw the flora and fauna. One day, she encounters Bram, a boy about her age, standing in the Field with a camera. Protective, Sammie demands to know what he’s doing there, and she’s skeptical and defensive when he says he goes there every day, too, and asks about her notebook. After this rocky start, the two team up to explore Winghaven, the name they decide to give the land. They meet graduate student Pete, who’s doing an insect study, and he encourages them to participate in an Audubon Society science symposium. The new friends decide to present the project they’ve been working on—counting monarch butterfly caterpillars. This story contains genuine tension (a threat to Winghaven’s existence), as well as accurate scientific information about the plants, birds, and insects of a New England landscape; it also includes nuanced characterization and relatable themes, such as a storyline about a school bully. Perhaps most importantly, though, the ending is immensely satisfying and encouraging for readers. Characters read white.

Empowering.