BUTTERMILK HILL

This sensitively narrated story explores how poetry empowers the writer. Ten-year-old Piper Berry’s idyllic life in a North Carolina town falls apart when her parents divorce. Her father marries a woman with two sons, whom he seems to favor. It all comes to a head when Piper, who longs for a horse, learns that her stepbrothers have been given their own horses. But through writing poetry Piper finds her voice, resolves her conflicts, and achieves resolution. Nancy Wu’s narration is just right as she draws the listener into Piper’s viewpoint while shifting smoothly among characters. She captures a girl’s sense of wonder, as well as the matter-of-factness that often masks a young person’s hurt. Further, her apt reading of Piper’s poems adds emotional resonance to the listening experience. E.S. © AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine [Published: AUG/SEP 05]