The Beckoners
- Publisher
- Orca Book Publishers
- Initial publish date
- Mar 2007
- Category
- Bullying, Peer Pressure, Violence
-
Hardback
- ISBN
- 9781551433097
- Publish Date
- Sep 2004
- List Price
- $19.95
-
Paperback / softback
- ISBN
- 9781551437293
- Publish Date
- Mar 2007
- List Price
- $14.95
-
CD-Audio
- ISBN
- 9781743199930
- Publish Date
- Aug 2012
- List Price
- $76.99
-
CD-Audio
- ISBN
- 9781743137871
- Publish Date
- Aug 2012
- List Price
- $29.99
-
CD-Audio
- ISBN
- 9781489081735
- Publish Date
- Dec 2015
- List Price
- $19.99
-
eBook
- ISBN
- 9781554697304
- Publish Date
- Sep 2004
- List Price
- $11.99
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Where to buy it
Recommended Age, Grade, and Reading Levels
- Age: 12 to 18
- Grade: 8 to 12
- Reading age: 12 to 18
Description
A chilling portrait of the bullying and violence that is all too common in schools, The Beckoners illustrates the lure of becoming tormentor rather than victim, and the terrible price that can be exacted for standing up for what is right.
When her mother suddenly moves them to a new town, Zoe is unhappy about leaving behind what passes for a normal life. And when the first person she meets turns out to be Beck, who rules her new school with a mixture of intimidation and outright violence, she is dismayed. But she has no idea how bad things will get. Unsure of herself and merely trying to fit in, Zoe is initiated, painfully, into the Beckoners, a twisted group of girls whose main purpose is to stay on top by whatever means necessary. Help comes from unlikely quarters as Zoe struggles to tear loose from the Beckoners without becoming a target herself, while also trying to save April—or Dog, as she is called—from further torment.
About the author
Carrie Mac is an award-winning author who has moved too many times to count. For now, she lives in Pemberton, a very small town nestled in the mountains north of Vancouver. Carrie Mac's first novel The Beckoners won the Arthur Ellis YA Award, is a CLA Honour book, and is being adapted for film. Her contributions to the Orca Soundings series continue to get reluctant teens excited about reading. She is available for school and library presentations, and has been known to hold the interest of a couple hundred teens where others have failed. Maybe it's the tattoos.
www.carriemac.com
Awards
- Winner, Stellar Award
- Commended, IRA Book Award nominee
- Winner, Arthur Ellis Award
- Short-listed, CLA Young Adult Book Award nominee
- Commended, White Ravens List
- Commended, CCBC Our Choice starred selection
Excerpt: The Beckoners (by (author) Carrie Mac)
The girl was still there, on a swing, pumping hard, so high the chain slackened before letting her down. Then suddenly she stopped, digging her bare feet into the sand. She kicked herself in circles, tightening the chain until it wouldn't turn anymore. Then for a second she stared across the night between them, right at Zoe, until she let go, spinning into a dark fast blur.
Editorial Reviews
"This is a book that will be passed from teen to teen for the naughty bits, but along the way it will challenge young people to reflect on what they accept and dismiss..."
Canadian Children's Book News
"Will be one of those sleeper novels passed from hand to hand by teenagers...It will probably disappear from your library collections, the ultimate approval rating. Buy your five copies now and keep one behind the counter. Highly Recommended."
CM Magazine
"Hard-hitting...saturated with a sense of foreboding...a provocative and realistic portrayal of what it means to be a victim and a tormentor. Rated: Good."
Resource Links
"A beautifully written...terrifying, compelling book...impossible to forget."
NMRLS Youth Services
"What author Carrie Mac has managed to do is write honestly...Mac has finally deemed kids capable of handling both the nitty and the gritty."
Peak Publications Society SFU
