LIFELING

What if you had the power to stop someone from dying? What if it cost you your own life?

Twelve-year-old Lonny Quicke is a lifeling—someone with the power to heal creatures near death. Applebaum flies out of the gate, introducing readers to Lonny at the moment he decides to save a dying rabbit. Lonny makes a conscious decision to rescue the creature despite knowing that his own life will be shortened as a result. From there, Lonny and his younger brother, Midge, continue to make life-altering decisions, leaving the protective woods where their widowed father keeps them safe and journeying to the large town of Farstoke in hopes of earning some much-needed money. Farstoke, which evokes a foreboding, folktalelike feeling, holds an annual festival celebrating the supposedly mythical lifelings. Will Lonny be forced to expose his closely guarded gift? The first-person narrative dynamically reveals the action as the novel unfolds, creating gripping drama full of intense emotion. The use of onomatopoeia clearly signals the pull of the lifesaving magic when death is near. This light fantasy, set in a recognizable contemporary world with splashes of magic, will spark many philosophical discussions about values and priorities; love for friends, family, and self; and the weight of possessing power. Readers will feel the release of emotion after the satisfying ending. Characters read as White.

A thought-provoking premise musing on life, love, and sacrifices made for others.