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Where the Heart Should Be
CCBC Review:
In fictional Ballinkeel, Ireland, in 1846, Nell (white) has just started work as a scullery maid in Lord Wicken’s “Big House.” Her meager pay becomes her family’s sole source of income when her father, a tenant farmer, finds his potatoes black, slimy, and inedible. A blight has struck Ireland’s crops, and families like Nell’s struggle to survive. The residents of the Big House, however, have more than enough; Wicken is even stockpiling food to sell overseas. The childless Wicken has just named his nephew, John Browning, heir to his estate and invited him to join him from London. Johnny, as he asks Nell to call him, is disarmingly friendly; he shows an interest in Nell, and they discover a shared love of poetry. Considering their respective stations, Nell knows their budding romantic relationship is ill fated, but everything about Johnny is appealing, from his good looks to his generous spirit and humble nature. When tragedy befalls Nell’s family, Nell finds herself torn between Johnny and her father, who joins a group of men planning to steal some of Wicken’s stockpile—and who needs Nell’s help to pull it off. Written in free verse, this engaging romance offers a glimpse into the lives of both working Irish and well-to-do landowners during one of the worst periods in Irish history. ©2026 Cooperative Children’s Book Center
CCBC Age Recommendation: Age 13 and older
Age Range:
Grades 6-8 (Ages 11-13)
Grades 9-12 (Age 14 and older)
Format:
Novel
Subjects:
Class Issues
Economic Hardship and Poverty
Grief and Loss
Historical Fiction
Irish and Irish Americans
Love and Romance
Novels in Verse
Publishers:
Greenwillow, HarperCollins
Publish Year: 2025
Pages: 381
ISBN: 9780063384910
CCBC Location: Fiction, Crossan