by Kate Seredy
First published 2015
Michael clutches a single acorn from the ancient oak near his family's castle in Chestry Valley. World War II has shattered his world in Hungary, taking away everything he knew. His father stands proud and brave even as their lives crumble around them. His beloved Nana comforts him through the darkest moments. When Michael must leave everything behind, he carries that acorn across an ocean to America's Hudson Valley. There, a kind American soldier and his family open their home to this displaced boy. Michael plants his acorn in foreign soil, hoping it will grow as he learns to call this new place home. Through it all, he remembers Midnight, the magnificent black stallion who once danced for royalty back in Hungary. The horse embodied all the fire and grace of the world Michael lost, yet somehow that beauty lives on in memory and in the promise of new roots taking hold.
Genres: historical-fiction, 20th-century, war, adventure
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: Chestry Valley, Hungary, America's Hudson Valley
Period: World War II
254 pages · Paperback · Purple House Press
Content warnings: war