• Age: 12 to 18
• Grade: 8 to 12
• Reading age: 12 to 18

A year ago, Rachel Bird hated it in small-town Aspen Lake. She and her little sister, Jane, had just moved in with grandparents they never knew they had. But this summer looks very different. Rachel has a best friend, a boyfriend, and she gets to ride her horse, Magic. They are all sweltering under a heat dome, and though Rachel’s heard about the dangerous wildfires, they seem very far away.
Then the grass turns yellow and Rachel smells smoke all the time. Just when she was finally letting herself settle in, her new home is in jeopardy. If the fires reach Aspen Lake, will Rachel and her family be able to make it out in time? And what will happen to everything they leave behind?

Becky Citra is the author of over twenty books for children, ranging from early chapter books to novels for young adults. She was an elementary schoolteacher for over twenty-five years and began writing for children in 1995. Becky’s books have been shortlisted for and won many awards, including the Red Cedar Award, the Diamond Willow, the Silver Birch and the Sheila A. Egoff Children’s Literature Prize. She lives in Bridge Lake, British Columbia. For more information, visit www.beckycitra.com.

Becky Citra's profile page

“Readers are led to admire the resilience of both Rachel and the Bird family as a whole…. A deliberately paced, literary coming-of-age survival tale.”

Kirkus Reviews