A Northern Light

"A Northern Light" by Jennifer Donnelly
published 2004 by Harcourt

Here's another book that surprised me. Surprised me because I had never heard of it, and it's a great book. I like to think I at least hear about the good ones even if I don't get to read them all. Looking at the reviews now however, I wonder if I missed it because it is labled as a Young Adult title. Not that that is where Clift Rodgers shelves it. Nor where a lot of other libraries shelve it. This is one of those rare books who's protaganist is young therefore technically it's considered a YA, but who's story is so developed and well written that it should be with the more acclaimed Adult literature (think "Book Theif" by Zusak).

It's probably better than most of the adult fiction out there.

This is a character driven plot and for anyone who likes that, you won't find much better. Every character has a story, a tick, a secret, something that makes them unique and memorable. Pair that with a story line literally straight from the headlines and you have a great novel. If you missed this one, now is the time to go back and find it.