Plucky narrator, addicting book!

In Restoring Harmony sixteen-year-old Molly McClure leaves her family’s farm in Canada and travels to the United States on a quest to find her grandparents. The year is 2041, and Molly’s adventure is riddled with hardships: strangers are untrustworthy, crime runs rampant, travel is slow-going and dangerous, and both money and food are hard to come by.

An excellent role model for young girls, Molly rises to meet these challenges. As she navigates the unfamiliar, she shows self-reliance and confidence. She’s unafraid of taking risks in order to protect herself and her friends and family. Each time Molly outsmarts her antagonists, I celebrate!

One of many perfectly-captured aspects of Restoring Harmony is Molly’s relationship to music. She’s a fiddler, and playing her instrument comforts her and gives her strength when she’s feeling homesick or unsure. And I love how busking gets her both into trouble, and out of it, too.

I also admire the tender evolution of Molly’s relationships, particularly with her grandfather and with Spill, a young man she’s not quite sure she can trust.

Every chapter in Restoring Harmony ends with a cliffhanger; it’s no exaggeration to say I was addicted to this book, and its many rewarding moments, from the first page. Tweens, teens and adults alike will relate to Molly’s struggles and victories. So buy your own copy, and a few copies for friends of all ages, too.

Please join me in congratulating Deb Joelle on her highly imaginative thrill-ride of a debut novel! Cheers to her promising future. (Clink!)

~Alicia Bessette