Crow has always been keenly aware that the local residents keep her at a distance. Crow is happy with her life on Cuttyhunk but has many questions about her past and as she gets older, the yearning to find answers grows and grows until one day she makes a discovery. Although the two adults have no outward romantic relationship, they work as a team to parent young Crow, functioning as her mother and father. Miss Maggie, a neighbor on Cuttyhunk island. Osh, the man who found the newly born Crow tied into an old skiff, raised her. It follows the narrator, twelve-year-old Crow, on a journey to discover her family roots as she comes to terms with her own understanding of what defines a family. Vivid and heart-wrenching, Lauren Wolk's Beyond the Bright Sea is a gorgeously crafted and tensely paced tale that explores questions of identity, belonging, and the true meaning of family.Beyond the Bright Sea by Lauren Wolk is a historical fiction novel for young readers. Soon, an unstoppable chain of events is triggered, leading Crow down a path of discovery and danger. Abandoned and set adrift in a small boat when she was just hours old, Crow's only companions are Osh, the man who rescued and raised her, and Miss Maggie, their fierce and affectionate neighbor across the sandbar.Ĭrow has always been curious about the world around her, but it isn't until the night a mysterious fire appears across the water that the unspoken question of her own history forms in her heart. Twelve-year-old Crow has lived her entire life on a tiny, isolated piece of the starkly beautiful Elizabeth Islands in Massachusetts. The moving story of an orphan, determined to know her own history, who discovers the true meaning of family. ★ ' Crow is a determined and dynamic heroine.' - Publishers Weekly Wolk unfolds with uncommon grace.' - The Wall Street Journal 'The sight of a campfire on a distant island.proves the catalyst for a series of discoveries and events-some poignant, some frightening-that Ms.

Winner of the 2018 Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction -įrom the bestselling author of Echo Mountain and Newbery Honor-winner Wolf Hollow, Beyond the Bright Sea is an acclaimed best book of the year.Īn NPR Best Book of the Year - A Parents' Magazine Best Book of the Year - A Booklist Editors' Choice selection - A BookPage Best Book of the Year - A Horn Book Fanfare Selection - A Kirkus Best Book of the Year - A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year - A Charlotte Observer Best Book of the Year - A Southern Living Best Book of the Year - A New York Public Library Best Book of the Year