by Jane Gardam
First published 1998
Kit's family sees her as the timid one who shrieks at beetles and steps in cow dung by accident. Farm life presents daily challenges for a girl who startles easily. Her parents shake their heads when she jumps at small creatures or makes mistakes that older children avoid. Yet Kit surprises everyone when real danger arrives. The farm's aggressive bull breaks free from its pen, and Kit must find courage she didn't know she possessed. Between moments of fear and unexpected bravery, Kit receives news that changes everything. Someone has invited her to travel all the way to London to serve as a bridesmaid at a wedding. The prospect of leaving the familiar farm for the vast city represents the biggest adventure of her young life. Kit must navigate between who her family thinks she is and who she might become.
Genres: fiction, family-life, coming-of-age
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: London, Farm
Period: 20th-century
111 pages · Paperback · Walker Books Ltd