FLIGHT #116 IS DOWN

When a 747 crashes into the deep woods on Heidi's family's estate, she at first believes herself incapable of helping the survivors; she's convinced that her every action is a disappointment to her wealthy, ever-busy parents, who happen to be out of town. But as the night unfolds and she becomes involved in a massive rescue effort and the minute details of human survival, Heidi locates a well of unexpected inner strength and shares no small part in the saving of lives. Moment-by-moment action makes this dependable author's taut suspense story feel like a chronicle of an actual disaster. The victims and survivors are a varied lot—independent of one another yet sharing similar events from their many points of view. Cooney skates deftly among their perspectives, never exploiting the horror of the event but demonstrating a genuine flair for balancing the optimism of any rescue with the cruel truths and terrible despair inherent to the work. For Cooney fans and thrill-seekers. (Fiction. 11+)