I have loved these Shannon Hale books. The characters touch my heart and fuel my imagination. There are plenty of surprises and crafty plot twists but there is a smoothness to the telling that I find delightful. These are great books to recommend. Plenty of depth to go with the coming of age adventure and inventive fantasy of quarry speech and the linder stone culture of Mt Eskel. Miri could be a modern day Heidi, only more appealing to today’s kids.