Harmony - Softcover

Parkhurst, Carolyn

Softcover

ISBN 10: 034097818X ISBN 13: 9780340978184

Publisher: Sceptre, 2016

Synopsis

How far will a mother go to save her family? The Hammond family is living in Washington DC, where everything seems to be going just fine, until it becomes clear that the oldest daughter, Tilly - a mix of off-the-charts genius and social incompetence - is on the autistic spectrum. Once Tilly is kicked out of the last school in the area, her mother Alexandra is at her wits' end. The family turns to Camp Harmony and the wisdom of child behaviour guru Scott Bean for a solution. But what they discover in the woods of New Hampshire will push them to the very limit.

Told from the alternating perspectives of Alexandra and her younger daughter, eleven-year-old Iris, this is an unputdownable story about the strength of love, the bonds of family, and how you survive the unthinkable.

About this title

Review:

Gorgeously written and patently original (Jodi Picoult)

Parkhurst confounds expectations. If this novel is part Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time and part We Need to Talk About Kevin, it also contains shades of Lord of the Flies. For this, young Iris is the perfect narrator . . . A fascinating novel, at once challenging and compassionate, thrilling and thoughtful. It asks tough questions about what happens to people who don't fit predetermined patterns, and what it means to be normal (Katy Guest Guardian)

Parkhurst writes movingly and with real compassion . . . [she] effortlessly manages to mix difficult social questions with riveting storytelling (Irish Independent)

A moving and compassionate literary dive straight into the heart of a frantic parent. . . shatteringly immediate. . . touchingly real. (Helen Schulman New York Times Book Review)

Parkhurst cements herself as a writer capable of astonishing humanity and exquisite prose (Washington Post)

Propulsive . . . Everything from the parents' desperation to the camp's creepy vibe feels vividly real, and this provocative page-turner also invites important, broader conversations about autism. (People, Book of the Week)

Darkly funny and suspenseful, with a palpable sense of dread that propels readers toward anticipatory horror . . . [Parkhurst] writes Tilly profoundly, as an audacious girl fascinated by a world that will not bend to her. (USA Today)

[Parkhurst's] terrific prose is matched by compassion and a sense of humor . . . the beautifully written Harmony is her best work, a haunting, creepy but ultimately moving story of love and family (Miami Herald)

Suspenseful, moving, and full of inspiration and insight (Kirkus Reviews)

[A] gripping, timely novel (Kim Edwards)

Book Description:

By the author of two New York Times bestsellers, a heartwrenching and tense drama about a troubled family, who give up everything to join an experimental 'family camp' - with life-changing consequences.

About this edition

• Publisher: Sceptre
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 034097818X
• ISBN 13: 9780340978184
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 288