Butterfly — Sonya Hartnett

In masterful prose, the author of SURRENDER tells a quiet but powerful tale about the shifting bonds and psychological perils of adolescence.

Plum Coyle is on the edge of adolescence. Her fourteenth birthday is approaching, when her old life and her old body will fall away, and she will become graceful, powerful, and at ease. The strength of the objects she stores in a briefcase under her bed -- a crystal lamb, a yoyo, an antique watch, a coin -- will make sure of it. Over the next couple of weeks, Plum's life will change. Her beautiful neighbor Maureen will begin to show Plum how she might fly. The older brothers she adores will court catastrophe in worlds that she barely knows exist. And her friends, her worst enemies, will tease and test, smelling weakness. They will try to lead her on and take her down. BUTTERFLY is a gripping, disquieting, beautifully observed coming-of-age novel by an acclaimed author at the top of her form.