WRATH

A friend’s disappearance impels a teen to contemplate the state of the world.

It’s the beginning of the summer holiday in Scotland, the pandemic lockdown has just lifted, and 15-year-old Cassie Cotton has disappeared. As Fitz tries to recall any information that might be helpful to the police in their search, he thinks back over the conversations and events that led up to Cassie’s disappearance. She and Fitz have been bandmates for just over a year and have taken to talking or texting about the state of the world. Over the past six weeks, Cassie has been aware of a humming that nobody else can hear, and she’s convinced that the Earth is breathing. Classmates ridicule her. Meanwhile, Cassie’s father, a climate change activist, worries that humans have passed the point of no return. Fitz is an introspective narrator, sprinkling in observations about atmospheric phenomena that mirror the unrest and anger of the world. As his stream-of-consciousness narration jumps between past and present, readers get a fuller picture of the events leading to Cassie’s disappearance—and Fitz realizes that he may hold the key to finding her. The main characters in this evocative story are cued white. The dyslexia-friendly layout, writing style, and short page count ensure broad appeal.

An accessible and compelling story about isolation, climate anxiety, anger—and hope.