Description
Newbery Honor Book
New York Times Bestseller
Children's Literature Legacy Award Winner
This impassioned, uplifting, and virtuosic tour de force from a treasured storyteller follows three children, in three different times and places, whose lives mysteriously intersect.
Lost and alone in a forbidden forest, Otto meets three mysterious sisters and suddenly finds himself entwined in a puzzling quest involving a prophecy, a promise, and a harmonica.
Decades later, Friedrich in Germany, Mike in Pennsylvania, and Ivy in California each, in turn, become interwoven when the very same harmonica lands in their lives. All the children face daunting challenges: rescuing a father, protecting a brother, holding a family together. And ultimately, pulled by the invisible thread of destiny, their suspenseful solo stories converge in an orchestral crescendo.
Richly imagined and masterfully crafted, Echo pushes the boundaries of genre, form, and storytelling innovation to create a wholly original novel that will resound in your heart long after the last note has been struck.
About the Author
Pam Munoz Ryan is the recipient the NEA's Human and Civil Rights Award, the PEN Center USA Award, and the 2024 Children's Literature Legacy Award for her body of work. She was the 2018 US nominee for the international Hans Christian Andersen Award. She received a Newbery Honor Medal and the Kirkus Prize for her New York Times bestselling novel, Echo. Her other celebrated novels, Esperanza Rising, The Dreamer, Riding Freedom, Becoming Naomi Leon, Paint the Wind, and Mananaland, have received countless accolades, among them the Pura Belpre Award, the Jane Addams Children's Book Award, and the Americas Award. Her acclaimed picture books include Amelia and Eleanor Go for a Ride and the Sibert Honor book When Marian Sang, both illustrated by Brian Selznick, Mice and Beans illustrated by Joe Cepeda, and Tony Baloney illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham, as well as a beginning reader series featuring Tony Baloney. Ryan lives near San Diego, California, with her family.
Reviews
Awards and Praise for Echo: A New York Times Notable BookA Publishers Weekly Best BookAn ILA Notable Book for a Global SocietyAn ALA Notable Children's BookWinner of the 2015 Kirkus Prize for Young Readers* "The story of Otto and the cursed sisters honor timeless and traditional folktales [and] Ryan has created three contemporary characters who, through faith and perseverance, write their own happy endings, inspiring readers to believe they can do the same." -- School Library Journal, starred review* "A grand narrative that examines the power of music to inspire beauty in a world overrun with fear and intolerance." -- Kirkus Reviews, starred review* "Each individual story is engaging, but together they harmonize to create a thrilling whole." -- Publishers Weekly, starred review"A masterpiece." -- Christopher Paul Curtis, author of Newbery Medal-winning Bud, Not Buddy"Daring and beautiful." --Linda Sue Park, author of Newbery Medal-winning A Single Shard