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SMALL MERCIES

Bridget Krone

A delightful story of resilience and community .
Mercy lives in modern-day Pietermaritzburg, South Africa with her eccentric foster aunts - two elderly sisters so poor, they can only afford one lightbulb. A nasty housing developer is eying their house. And that same house suddenly starts falling apar - just as Aunt Flora starts falling apart. She's forgetting words, names, and even how to behave in public. Mercy tries to keep her head down at school so nobody notices her. But when a classmate frames her for stealing the school's raffle money, Mercy's teachers decide to take a closer look at her home life.

Along comes Mr. Singh, who rents the back cottage of the house on Hodson Road. When he takes Mercy to visit a statue in the middle of the city, she learns that the shy, nervous "Mohandas" he tells stories about is actually Gandhi, who spent a cold and lonely night in the waiting room of the Pietermaritzburg train station over a hundred years ago. It marked the beginning of his life's quest for truth...and the visit to his statue marks Mercy's realization that she needs - just like Gandhi - to stand up for herself.

Mercy needs a miracle. But to summon that miracle, she has to find her voice and tell the truth - and that truth is neither pure nor simple.
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Published 2020-03-01 by Catalyst Press

Comments

[...] poignant, charming, perfect gem of a novel... - The Buffalo News Read more...

Tender, exhilarating, and often hilarious, Small Mercies perfectly weaves the difficult and the wonderful truths of being alive. You will root for Mercy from the very first page, and she will be in your heart long after you've read this vivid, beautifully written novel. -- Sara Cassidy, author of A Boy Named Queen and Nevers

[...] it “an offering of love. -- Kathi Appelt

UK: Walker Books; Spanish (Latina America): Panamericana Editorial;

[...] This novel has a gentle, timeless feel, complex secondary characters, and quirky humor. A heartfelt, human, and wise addition to middle grade shelves. --- School Library Journal

[...]. . . Small Mercies is a children's classic in the making . . . Satisfying, tender, funny and kind, this novel, as several other reviewers have noted, lingers after you have turned the last page. -- The Witness newspaper (South Africa) Read more...

Q&A with the author. Read more...

SMALL MERCIES has been named the Outstanding International Book List of 2021 by the US Board on Books for Young People (USBBY). Read more...

A 2022 Skipping Stones Honor Award Winner Read more...