Marilyn Taylor McDowell
“A masterful intertwining of place and character.” —Patricia MacLachlan, author of the Newbery Award Winner Sarah, Plain and Tall
Starred Review – Booklist “McDowell reveals her love for this part of the world, savoring the language, the environment, and the traditions of mountain culture. Thoughtful readers will come to love it, and Carolina, too.”
“Impressive debut” – Kirkus Reviews “Carolina’s feisty spirit, forged in the mountain ways of faith and flexibility, helps her make her way to another special place that she can call home.”
School Library Journal - “McDowell’s prose reads easily and creates a wonderful sense of place.”
Carolina’s a runaway hiding out at Harmony Farm. Mr. Ray and Miss Latah treat Carolina as their own. For 10 years she lived easy with her parents in the North Carolina mountains. But it feels risky speaking about the accident that claimed them and her baby brother. And Carolina won’t reveal the year of living with Auntie Shen, her surrogate grandma who took ill and was taken away or how she, Carolina, had to live in foster homes. Then Russell, a troublemaker from the foster home Carolina ran away from, secretly comes to Harmony Farm. Believing he’s a friend, Carolina sneaks him food and takes the blame for his pranks, until one night, when something so terrible happens that Carolina runs away again.
- Letter of Merit – Carolina Harmony was one of ten finalists in SCBWI Work-in-Progress- Grant Award
- Carolina Harmony received a starred review in Booklist Online
- Carolina Harmony on list of Top 10 Historical Fiction for Youth: 2009 (Jan-April)
Carolina Harmony is available at
