The Nest
CBC Books | CBC | Posted: March 6, 2017 3:12 PM | Last Updated: July 11, 2017
Kenneth Oppel, illustrated by Jon Klassen
In this beautiful, menacing novel, perfect for fans of Neil Gaiman's Coraline, an anxious boy becomes convinced that angels will save his sick baby brother. But these are creatures of a very different kind, and their plan for the baby has a twist. Layer by layer, he unravels the truth about his new friends as the time remaining to save his brother ticks down.
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With evocative and disquieting illustrations by Caldecott Medal and Governor General's Literary Award–winning artist Jon Klassen, The Nest is an unforgettable journey into one boy's deepest insecurities and darkest fears. (From HarperCollins)
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The Nest won the Canadian Library Association's Best Book of the Year for Children award.
From the book
I'd never told any of my friends about this, ever. That I was scared of the dark. That I had nightmares. That I'd sometimes slept in my parents' bed.
The night after the wasp sting, I could feel the nightmare coming on in my sleep, like a thundercloud gathering on the horizon. A dark shape assembled itself at the foot of my bed, and just stood there, watching me.
But then the most amazing thing happened. There was a sound, a kind of low musical trill, and with it, points of light. I knew because I looked; for the first time ever I turned in my dream and looked. More and more tiny little bits of light surrounded the dark shape and landed on it, and the darkness started to dissolve and disappear, and I felt such relief.
Suddenly I was in a bright cave-like space, lying on my stomach, and in front of me was her voice.
"We've come because of the baby," she said. "We've come to help."
From The Nest by Kenneth Oppel, illustrated by Jon Klassen ©2015. Published by HarperCollins.