Ettie lives with her grandma and enjoys spending her days wandering in the woods; however, as she gets older, the desire to wander further away and to be more adventurous is increasing. When her wandering leads her to meet Cora, things take a very different turn. Although Cora has injured her ankle, she doesn't want Ettie to tell anybody she is there, instead she encourages Ettie to bring her things she needs and to keep their meetings secret. Then she leads her to a hidden quarry pool. But why is Cora so determined to keep everything secret and why is Ettie's grandma so keen for her to stay close to High Fell House?
On the face of it, Ettie And The Midnight Pool is a gentle book that has an air of calm about it; however, underneath that there is an element of mystery and darkness that lurks and lures you in and this keeps you reading long after you should be in bed and I loved that.
Ettie and her grandma clearly get along well together but Ettie feels the pull of wanting to be more grown up and independent, and Cora provides that. Having her mum leave her with her grandma years ago clearly prays on her mind and leaves her needing to belong but to also be herself and not compared to anybody else. Her grandma is obviously doing her best and tries to put a positive spin on everything, but there are secrets lurking that are influencing the way she is bringing Ettie up. Cora represents freedom and adventure, and this is what Cora is craving.
The book beautifully weaves growing up, finding yourself and the power of secrets into a hauntingly powerful read. With illustrations from Pam Smy that perfectly compliment the writing, I know that Ettie And The Midnight Pool is going to be popular in school.
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