Wenny Has Wings

by Janet Lee Carey

Book Overview

In the fight with the truck barreling toward them, Wenny and Will lost big. Wenny lost her life. Will lost a sister -- and lost faith in himself.
But then Will starts writing letters to Wenny. He tells her all about the secret of his near-death exper

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 068986759X
• ISBN13: 9780689867590
• Release Date: June 2004
• Publisher: Aladdin Paperbacks
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.1" x 7.6"
• Age Range: 8 to 12 years
• Grade Range: Grades 3 to 7

Customer Reviews

Wenny Has Wings

This book is written in a journal form. It's about a boy who writes to his dead sister after she has died from when they got hit by a truck. When she dies her brother starts writing in a journal that a man gave him. He writes down how many days shes be dead and tells her everything that happened that day. When they get hit by the truck he stays alive but has a shattered shin and their cat as to have a cast put on her leg. After awhile he gets to go home. His mom is about to have a baby and his parents are fighting. His dad thinks it's his fault that Wenny died. He pretty much locks himself in his office and doesn't come out. Finally they get in such a big fight that he leaves to go to a friends house. Will they fix their problems before the new baby arrives? If you like emotional books and want to find out if they fix things read Wenny Has Wings to find out.

beautiful and eloquent

In a beautiful and eloquent series of letters to his sister Wenny, eleven year old Will North relates his near death experience after the accident that has taken his younger sister's life, landed him in the hospital with broken bones, and devastated his father. As guilt-stricken Will moves through the grieving process and begins to cope with his loss and his unusual experience, the reader is moved to catharsis as well.The tone of the young narrator is mostly believable as that of a thoughtful and emotional preadolescent who doesn't always have the words to describe what he is seeing and feeling; occasionally, Will wavers from sounding too young, such as when he first explains his experience, and too old, such as when he and his friend are surfing the Internet. In spite of sounding young, the narrator's near death experience sounds authentic. The falling apart of the family, especially with the mother newly pregnant, is heartbreaking and ultimately hopeful. The author manages to balance the sorrow of the book with day-to-day goings on, and even with humor. This is a sad story, but passages will evoke smiles as well.This is a timely book in many ways: a study was recently released that concluded the near death experience is just a misfiring of the electrical impulses of the brain. This could also be used to put September 11th into some context and generate a discussion on loss and coping with tragedy and death.

I almost cried in the bookstore

I flipped through some pages at ... bookstore. I had to force myself not to cry in the middle of the crowd. This book gives a truthful insight to the relationship of siblings, loss, and love. Although Will does sound a bit more mature than his tender age of 11, this book is a must read!Hehe I bought one of 5 signed copies left in the store. The author is a NorthWest native.

"You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll crawl upon your belly...

...like a reptile!" Well, maybe not really upon your belly, but it will move you. This book could be a real downer given the subject matter, but it isn't. I laughed and cried my way through my feelings about death with this book. For me it was really good. And I'm in my mid-40s! But the target audience is YA, and just when the material is getting heavy, there is usually some age-appropriate comic relief. Think "Catherine Called Birdy" meets "Into the Light".

A transcendent tale of grief, love and resilience

Janet Lee Carey has courageously taken on one of the most difficult themes of our culture and crafted a timeless and compelling story, one that will touch and appeal to adults as well as young readers. Filled with compassion, humor and imagination, Wenny Has Wings is one of those rare books that not only uplifts but thoroughly entertains.