The Blood LIe

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by Shirley Reva Vernick

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Price: $15.95

ALA Best Fiction for Young Adults, 2012

2012 winner of the Simon Wiesenthal Once Upon a World Children's Book Award

2012 Skipping Stone Honor Book

2011 Langum Prize for American Historical Fiction, Directors Mention

2006 Sydney Taylor Book Award

Latent hostility against the Jews erupts in a blood lie when Daisy, a young Gentile girl, disappears in the woods.

Product Details

10-digit ISBN	1-933693-84-3
13-digit ISBN	978-1-933693-84-2
Format	Hardback
Language	English
Page Count	224
Product Dimensions	5 1/2 x 8 1/2
Publication Date	August 10, 2011
Rights	All Rights Available

It’s September 22, 1928, Jack Pool’s 16th birthday. It's the Sabbath. In the synagogue that morning, he feels restless, stuck in a remote little whistle-stop town in upstate New York. But he doesn’t realize exactly how stuck he is until his little sister’s Gentile friend Daisy gets lost in the woods and he's accused of killing her.

Read about the real-life events The Blood Lie is based on in an interview with author Shirley Vernick from Massena's Daily Courier-Observer: New Novel on Massena's Bloody Past: "I remain optimistic that good things can come from the telling of the story...at least I hope positive things can come from a conversation about it."

More about Shirley's research for The Blood Lie here, Barbara Bietz' blog Jewish Books for Children blog.

For more resources about blood libels, visit the book's companion site: BloodLibel.org

Booklist

Vernick’s novel is a scathing indictment of anti-Semitism…it is an important book that reminds us of the imperative need to remember lest we find ourselves repeating the horrors of the past.

- November 15, 2011

Lauren Myracle, author of Shine

"A powerful—and poignant—reminder that no person can live freely until all people can live freely."

Association of Jewish Libraries

The evolution of how an anti-Semitic lie spread throughout this community is convincingly portrayed in this story...[and] the troubling issues that the book raises are sure to give readers a sense of the fragility of Jewish-Christian relations and the challenges posed by ignorance. Highly recommended for all libraries.

- September 22, 2011

full review >>

Kirkus Reviews

"Effectively mines layers of ignorance, fear, intolerance and manipulation."

- August 1, 2011

full review >>

Publishers Weekly

"...tackles the weighty issue of anti-Semitism with uncompromising clarity."

- November 14, 2011 Visit Website

Midwest Book Review

The Blood Lie is a riveting and hard to put down novel of small town life and the viciousness that lies in some people.

- December 27, 2011