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| Photo credit: John
Berg |
Adele Griffin
Where I Want To
Be
G. P. Putnam's
Sons, a division of Penguin Young Readers Group
A
spellbinding book about two very different sisters
dwelling on opposite sides of life and death
who bravely try to overcome the void and bring
light to each other.
Adele Griffin
was born in Philadelphia and now lives with
her husband in New York City. Her work as an
assistant editor in children’s books brought
her back to reading books for children and young
adults and encouraged her to write her own.
Adele Griffin
often uses family as a metaphor for
our relationships with ourselves, others, and
society and has crafted a number of psychologically
insightful novels for young people. Her characters
are unusual and memorable, and frequently it
is the vision of the narrator that forms the
world in her works. Adele Griffin is a master
at blurring the line between what is real and
what is imagined, making her books truly spellbinding.
Her books have received
rave reviews, and her work has been described
as “searingly emotional,” “powerful”
and “riveting” by Publishers
Weekly, Kirkus Reviews and Booklist.
The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s
Books praised her, saying, “Griffin’s
work has a magnetism all its own.” Previous
books include THE OTHER SHEPARDS, about two
young people haunted by the death of the elder
siblings they were born to replace; AMANDINE,
about a girl who becomes enmeshed in a dangerous
and manipulative friendship and SONS OF LIBERTY,
about brothers banding together to overcome
their controlling and abusive father. Her books
have garnered many awards, among them ALA Best
Book for Young Adults and ALA Notable awards
as well as a National Book Awards Finalist for
SONS OF LIBERTY.
Judges' Citation
Adele Griffin’s
Where I Want to Be introduces us to
survivors of sorts months after a fatal crash;
younger sister Lily, who although alive, is
entombed by grief; Caleb, Lily’s steadfast
boy friend whose oddly colored eyes see beyond
darkness; and deceased sister Jane, who clings
to existence in being, place and memory. As
both worlds, rendered equally real shift, Lily
and Jane struggle to release the familiar and
move on. This lithe and gorgeous novel deftly
blends realm and reality. |
