By Frances Hardinge
Illustrated by Emily Gravett
Amulet Books / Abrams, 2025
120 pages
978-1-4197-7778-3
Ages 8-12
Perched atop the Wall, an ancient structure many miles long that protects humans from the ever-encroaching Forest, the community of Greyman’s Gate shares a single spyglass used to spot approaching beasts. When Feather (white) meets a traveler named Merildun, she swipes the glass so that Merildun can use it to help her make a map of the surrounding area. But she misjudges Merildun’s character; he steals the spyglass and pushes Feather off the Wall. Unwilling to return without her community’s treasured tool, Feather pursues Merildun along the treacherous Wall into unknown territory. His destination is the sea, which he hopes to cross in search of a Forest-less land. Along the way, Feather passes through other small communities, each of which has its own strengths and weaknesses; while Feather sometimes shares knowledge (like how to collect fresh water in dew-funnels), she also learns from others (such as how to travel via zip wire and cultivate hanging gardens). When she and Merildun reach the coast and encounter a boy who belongs to a nearby island community with wisdom of its own, their paths diverge. Feather returns to Greyman’s Gate with new knowledge and a proposal that the long-isolated communities along the Wall will be stronger if they work together. Pencil illustrations creep amply about the pages, adding to this well-paced novel’s atmosphere of ever-present danger as courageous Feather risks her life for her community. ©2025 Cooperative Children’s Book Center