Sweep: The Story of a Girl and Her Monster : The Story of a Girl and Her Monster

For nearly a century, Victorian London relied on "climbing boys" - orphans owned by chimney sweeps - to clean flues and protect homes from fire. The work was hard, thankless, and brutally dangerous. Eleven-year-old Nan Sparrow is quite possibly the best climber who ever lived - and a girl. With her wits and will, she's managed to beat the deadly odds time and time again. But when Nan gets stuck in a deadly chimney fire, she fears her time has come. Instead, she wakes to find herself in an abandoned attic. And she is not alone. Huddled in the corner is a mysterious creature - a golem - made from ash and coal. This is the creature that saved her from the fire. Sweep is the story of a girl and her monster. Together, these two outcasts carve out a life - saving one another in the process. By one of today's most powerful storytellers, Sweep is a heartrending adventure about the everlasting gifts of friendship and hope. "Mr. Auxier has drawn from history, mythology, and a deep well of personal love and suffering to create a stirring work of magical realism for readers ages 8 to 12.", The Wall Street Journal "Many of the most entertaining and touching scenes involve Nan schooling Charlie on everything from the alphabet to the weather. ("I broke the snow!" Charlie cries when the flakes melt against his hot cinder hands.) When juxtaposed with flashbacks of the old Sweep raising Nan, these bits add a layer of beautifully bittersweet parenthood allegory to a tale that is both uplifting and heartbreaking. When Charlie has an ‘Of Mice and Men' moment, accidentally crushing a baby bird, readers are torn between sympathy, frustration and fear for the future of this oddly beautiful little family. But as one character wisely says about caring for others, ‘If you're not afraid, you're not doing it right.'", The New York Times Book Review "A STUNNING historical fantasy novel about the power of friendship, our potential for courage, and the beauty of remembering loved ones. . .. A MUST-BUY where middle grade fantasy is in demand." - School Library Journal , School Library Journal "A BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN middle grade novel with both mystery and magic.", BookRiot "[An] engrossing fantasy set in Victorian England.", The Boston Globe