Michael Cart, Booklist columnist and former president, Young Adult Library Services Association An important book, sure to provoke spirited discussion. Kathi Appelt, author of The Underneath, Finalist for the 2008 National Book Award for Young People's LiteratureĬarol Lynch Williams' chilling novel of life in a polygamous sect is both harrowing in its unsparing realism and hopeful in its reaffirmation of the power that books and reading have to change and redeem lives at risk. The Chosen One is brave, its plumb is true, it's a masterpiece. Against the intertwining prism of faith and love she gives us Kyra, a young woman who meets head-on the power of both to simultaneously buoy and corrupt the human spirit. In this extraordinary story, Carol Lynch Williams probes the deepest wells of the heart.

Cynthia Kadohata, winner of the 2005 Newbery Medal for Kira-Kira I had planned to read just a few pages one evening before bed, and I ended up staying awake until four in the morning to finish it! It's a wonderful book. The Chosen One is absolutely riveting and perfectly formed. Meg Cabot, New York Times bestselling author of The Princess Diaries and Airhead One girl's poignant journey as she struggles to find herself and, ultimately, the truth. Gregory Maguire, the New York Times bestselling author of Wicked and A Lion Among MenĪ powerful and heartbreaking novel of love and hope. I could choose no other book or newspaper until I had finished the final page. Carol Lynch Williams presents a first-person narrative that gallops just behind-or perhaps in advance of-contemporary headlines about the manipulation of the innocent.

The Chosen One makes the heart race, the teeth grind, and the brow bead up in sweat. Williams' portrayals of the family are sharp, but what's most interesting about this book is how the yearnings and fears of a character so far from what most YAs know will still seem familiar and close. …this is a heart pounder, and readers will be held, especially as the danger escalates. Jenna Lamia brings the perfect tone and emotions to thirteen-year-old Kyra and enables the listeners to hear her adness, anger, and love for her family. One girl’s poignant journey as she struggles to find herself and, ultimately, the truth.” - Meg Cabot, New York Times bestselling author “A powerful and heartbreaking novel of love and hope.

“Extraordinary…brave…a masterpiece.” - Kathi Appelt, author of the National Book Award finalist “Powerful and unforgettable…will break your hear.“ - David Ebershoff, New York Times bestselling author

The chosen one by carol lynch williams