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    Miracleville
    Miracleville
    Miracleville
    Ebook197 pages2 hours

    Miracleville

    By Monique Polak

    3.5/5

    ()

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    About this ebook

    Sixteen-year-old Ani lives in the tiny Quebec town of Ste-Anne-de-Beaupre, where her family runs Saintly Souvenirs, a tourist shop catering to the many pilgrims who come to the town seeking a miracle. The bane of Ani's existence is her hyperactive, over-sexed younger sister, Colette. Ani and her mother, Therese, are devout Catholics; Colette and her father are not. When Therese is paralyzed after a freak accident, Aniís faith is tested, but when she is confronted with something shocking in her motherís past, she has to rethink her whole existence.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherOrca Book Publishers
    Release dateApr 1, 2011
    ISBN9781459800274
    Miracleville
    Author

    Monique Polak

    Monique Polak is the author of more than thirty books for young people. She is the three-time winner of the Quebec Writers' Federation Prize for Children's and YA Literature for her novels Hate Mail, What World is Left and Room for One More. In addition to teaching at Marianopolis College in Montreal, Monique is a freelance journalist whose work has appeared in Maclean's Magazine, the Montreal Gazette and other Postmedia newspapers. She is also a columnist on ICI Radio-Canada's Plus on est de fous, plus on lit! In 2016, Monique was the CBC/Quebec Writers' Federation inaugural writer-in-residence. Monique lives in Montreal.

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    Reviews for Miracleville

    3.5/5

    15 ratings7 reviews

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    • 4/5
      Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.My Summary: Ani (named after Saint Anne) has always been the 'good' daughter - she's religious, responsible, and takes care of her out-of-control younger sister Colette. Ani's always been content with her life in the tiny town of Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupre - she's happy running the family's souvenir shop with her parents and comfortable knowing that she can always rely on her faith.That is, until the accident. Soon Ani's life is turned upside-down, and she has no idea what to do anymore - she's losing her grip on things, facing obstacles she never dreamed she'd be up against. Even worse, the people she thought she knew are starting to seem like complete strangers - her mother, her younger sister, and even her father are not who they appear to be.My Thoughts: This was a wonderful coming-of-age story, and the element of religion really tied it together nicely! As someone who grew up in a moderately religious household like Ani's, I was able to easily identify with Ani's feelings about what was going on around her. The way she felt trapped in her tiny town was also easy to relate to, and I loved the Canadian element of the story! Members of my family have actually made the pilgrimage to Sainte-Anne, and it was great getting a glimpse at the feelings of the locals. I also loved the debate over miracles between Ani and her dad - it was interesting to see how vastly different people's views could vary on the topic (I, for one, am a believer!).Mrs. Polak's writing is smooth and easy to follow, and there are enough plot twists to keep you flipping pages to find out what happens next. Her imagery and descriptions of the beautiful buildings in Sainte-Anne made it easy to picture the town and follow Ani throughout her journey.And what a beautiful book! The cover is simple but stunning, and sure to catch your eye.Final Thoughts: Miracleville was a lovely read, and I'm so glad I got the opportunity to do so! I definitely recommend it to teens who are coming of age and unsure how religion can work within society and culture nowadays. It would make a great Easter gift!
    • 4/5
      Mini Review - Lovely story. Very Catholic, well done. About a teen girl going through the usual questioning of her faith. Set in the pilgrimage town of St. Anne de Beaupre, Quebec. The family has a mother and eldest daughter who have the Faith and the father and youngest daughter who do not. I had a few issues with the theology but regardless for a secular book it presented the Faith and faithful in a moving story. I quite liked this. Read it in one sitting.
    • 2/5
      I appreciate that Monique Polak didn't shy away from addressing faith as something that was okay and even good, but it didn't work for me. Ani got on my nerves, she wasn't realistic and she just annoyed me. In fact, none of the characters were particularly likable, and Ani, Colette, and their mother were the only ones who were even vaguely well-developed. The plot tried to tackle too many issues without really focusing on any of them, and for me at least it was incredibly predictable. By the time I reached page thirty, I had already predicted (accurately) every major plot point in the novel. I hate to have to say this about any book, but this is not one that I would recommend.
    • 4/5
      I enjoyed this read. Collette is a girl struggling with what a lot of kids struggle with as they get closer to adulthood--their religion, what does faith mean, questions they have about their faith etc.I found all the characters to be extremely likable with the exception of Maxim, but the author doesn't intend for the reader to want to like the womanizing character in the book so it works. Even Collette, the ADHD younger sister grows on you as she grows up from being a self-centered, extremely immature annoyance to a more tolerable, caring human being.The plot line was rather predicatable (Collette's bilogical father), but it still made for an interesting storyline. I learned new information about this part of Canada that I didn't know before and I enjoyed the novel from cover to cover.
    • 4/5
      Overall, Miracleville was a good book. It really turned out to be more religiously-based than I had anticipated. But, the characters are distinct and deals with some modern issues that face today's families and youth. It isn't necessarily a title that I would recommend to most of my teen patrons simply because of the religious aspect. But, I definitely have some teens in mind that will enjoy this book greatly!Thank you!
    • 4/5
      "And that's when I realize that maybe it's true that the real miracle isn't when someone throws away their crutches or stops being paralyzed. Maybe the real miracle is way simpler than that. Maybe the miracle is not giving up. Maybe it's staying hopeful even when you're not sure how thing will turn out".The quote above really sums up the story about Ani and her family living in the small town of Sainte-Anne=de Beaupre where pilgrims come year after year seeking miracles. When here mom is suddenly paralyzed in a freakish accident, the whole family's, no... the whole town's faith is tested, in very different ways. Ani's mom, once steadfast in her Catholic faith, seems to grow despondent and bitter. Then with the help of long lost friends, she regains some semblance of normalcy once again. Yet, these same friends, one a priest, another a paraplegic, rock Ani's comfortable, easy world. This delightful novel mixes modern-day issues and problems with age-old beliefs about miracles and faith. Ani, her parents, and her wild sister, Colette, all falter at some point, some longer than others, but come back around to the stability and consistency that only true faith can provide. Thank you to Librarything, Monique Polak, Leslie Bootle, and Orca Book Publishers for this ARC of this timely YA novel.
    • 4/5
      When I first received the book, I was skeptical. Religion-tinged stories normally aren't my thing. I wondered if I had maybe meant to request the book above this one or below it. But after getting past the cliche first scene (unruly kid mocking the disabled, long-suffering sister telling her to behave), I quite enjoyed the family dynamics. It's more about faith/religion in general than specifically being Catholic, so it's open to all, and the problems the family faces--sexually active teen, disabled mother, fracturing relationships--are mostly universal. Sure, some parts are cliche and you could argue that all the problems get resolved far too easily, but each character shows signs of trying to work through their problems, and it's not like everything is rosy in the end. Overall, I was pleasantly surprised.

    Book preview

    Miracleville - Monique Polak

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