Graveyard Girl - Softcover

Graveyard Girl
Anna Myers

It is 1878 and a yellow fever epidemic has turned the boisterous city of Memphis solemn and fearful. The fever has taken Eli's mother and sister and driven his grieving father away. All alone, he vows to harden his heart against further loss.

Yet Eli is soon drawn to Grace, an angelic, otherworldly girl. People call her the Graveyard Girl, for she tolls the bell for each new dead soul at the cemetery. Sometimes it seems to Eli that Grace is the one good thing left in a city drowning in despair, and her kindness and warmth slowly begin to thaw his resolve. When Eli is sought out by Addie, a little girl even more vulnerable than himself, the Graveyard Girl urges him to let go of his own grief and open his heart to her. But even the Graveyard Girl may not be able to help when the ghosts of loved ones begin to visit Eli and Addie.

Anna Myers's insight and warmth make Graveyard Girl a deeply moving portratit of three young people and their struggle to persevere in the face of tragedy.

Anna Myers's first novel was the award-winning Red-Dirt Jessie. She has since written Rosie's Tiger, and Graveyard Girl is her third work of historical fiction for young readers. Anna is an eighth grade teacher who lives with her family in Chandler, Oklahoma.

Awards and Honors for Red-Dirt Jessie

Kirkus
School Library Journal
Oklahoma State Book Award
Parents' Choice Award: A Storybook Honor
100 Titles for Reading and Sharing-- New York Public Library

and Rosie's Tiger
Oklahoma State Book Award (Finalist)

"Tears ain't my problem. Eli Mahoney don't cry." He jammed his hands hard into his pants pockets. He could feel her looking at him. He wished she were a boy. He would fight any boy who made him feel so uncomfortable.

"You don't cry Eli Mahoney?" Her face suddenly looked very sad. "You don't cry. What a pity." She turned and walked away then. "I need the list," she called to Victor. "Any unknown bodies this time?" Eli stood very still and watched the Graveyard Girl cross the grass. He wanted to dislike her but there was something about her, something that beat against the wall he was working to build around himself.

Also by Anna Myers

Red-Dirt Jessie
"Myers writes with rare understanding of a young girl's highs and lows .... The simplicity of the language goes right to the heart."-- Kirkus Reviews (pointer review)

Rosie's Tiger
"This perceptive story of a girl wrestling with raging jealousy-- Rosie's tiger-- provides intriguing insights into family dynamics and the power of friendship."-- Horn Book