Turning

by Irene Bennett Brown, Stephanie Brush (Reader)

Sixteen-year-old Ben Larsson is angry. His mother is dead. His estranged father has dragged him to England, hoping that a fresh start in a new country will repair their damaged relationship. Ben is determined that this will never happen. Then, Ben's life is consumed by unexplained events. A complete stranger attacks him. The school outcast, a strange girl named Yvonne who talks to herself, follows him around like a stray puppy, insisting that Ben has been "marked." He finds a bizarre twig image of himself on his doorstep. What is happening? Who or what is behind this? Meanwhile, an ancient force is luring Ben into the woods nearby. Will the knowledge he finds there bring back order to his life or complicate it in ways unimaginable?

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Childrens

Audio Cassette

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

I was born in Topeka, Kansas but from the age of nine, Oregon’s Willamette Valley has been home. As a child in one-room schools where I was often the only student in my class, I read, reread, and lived vicariously books like HEIDI, CADDIE WOODLAWN, MAMA’S BANK ACCOUNT, and LITTLE WOMEN. Jo in LITTLE WOMEN and Katrin in MAMA’S BANK ACCOUNT, writing away in their dusky attics, fueled my own dream to be a writer.

Author William Least Heat Moon is surely correct when he says “our passions at age 12 will always be with us and indicate our intended career.”

A writer who can’t not write, I pounded out my first seven books on a manual typewriter borrowed from a neighbor. Payoff for sore arms from throwing the carriage was national publication of my children’s books: in hardcover by Atheneum, E.P. Dutton, Thomas Nelson and David McKay, and in paperback book club editions by Viking Penguin, Scholastic, and Junior Literary Guild. Awards and honors include a Spur Award from Western Writers Of America and nomination for the Mark Twain Award for BEFORE THE LARK, the Evelyn Sibley Lampman Award for significant contribution to children’s literature, and inclusion on several best books’ lists.

THE PLAINSWOMAN, published originally by Ballantine, was my first novel for adults and a Western Writers Of America Spur Award finalist. Other novels include my Women Of Paragon Springs series from Five Star Cengage: LONG ROAD TURNING, BLUE HORIZONS, NO OTHER PLACE, and REAP THE SOUTH WIND. A love story set in Oregon’s Hells Canyon, HAVEN, a single title, was also published by Five Star. My historical novel, THE BARGAIN, was released by my own company, Riveredge Books, in 2007. WHERE GABLE SLEPT, the first book in my Celia Landrey mystery series, followed in 2010 and WHERE DANGER DANCED in 2012. All are now published by Riveredge Books and are also available as Kindle and Nook ebooks.

When not following my favorite pursuits, writing and reading, you’ll find me enjoying travel and exploring historic places with my husband, Bob, a retired research chemist, and spending time with our growing and busy family.

Reviews

[Magda · Rating 1 out of 5]

Unsettling and unsatisfactory.

[Alex · Rating 1 out of 5]

I picked out this book to read for English class in the ninth grade, and I bitterly regret this choice. The writing wasn't necessarily bad; it was the flat plot that made this book a chore to read. When I read the summary at the back of the book, I was intrigued at the possibilities of what the "ancient force in the woods" could be. The beginning of the book was a bit of a drag, but I continued on, waiting for the peak of the book, for something exciting to happen. Yet for me that never came. In my opinion, the execution of this book wasn't nearly as good as it could have been. The book seemed to drag on, and when I finally got to the end the first thing I thought t0 myself was "what just happened?" Honestly, the only good thing that came out of me reading this book was that I got a 97% on the essay I wrote about it.

[Dalia · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn’t like this book at all I read the first page and thought. It was actually interesting being about a boy who is seeing supernatural shadows. Out in the middle of a forest but then discovers that someone or. Something is following him but it actually was really boring it had. No suspense or drama which are things I sometimes look for. In books but this book didn’t catch my attention and I would not recommend.

[Tara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loved this book up to the last few chapters. The final "battle" through to the end were disappointing. But a lot of the earlier bits of the book were really intriguing. I was planning to save it for my son in a few years, but now that I've got to the end, I decided to pass it on, instead.

[Joey Teal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gut wrenching and whimsical.

[Mir · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've come across a few other recent novels referencing the Green Man mythos -- is this a fad? It would be interesting if it were, as the Green Man was also popular in the 19th century. This story isn't otherwise particularly historical; it is set in the present and deals with specifically Northanglian folklore. For the rest it is a standard YA fantasy of blood specialness and contact with the supernatural realm. Overall it was pretty good, and would be a 4-star if it had about 40 more pages to flesh out the final third, which seemed needlessly rushed.

[Addison · Rating 2 out of 5]

I grabbed this book from the library because it seemed like it would be a quick and interesting read so I was surprised by how much difficulty I had getting through it. The story seemed to drag on and on despite only being about 200 pages long.

This book was okay. It started out interesting, began to drag in the middle and was basically unraveled at the very end. Not really worth the time it took me to get through it.

[Goldie Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Was really weird at first, but I ended up loving it and enjoying it.

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very, very interesting book. Lots of magic and suspense.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent story that pulls its readers into a magical and completely believable world.