The War That Saved My Life meets Coraline in this âdeliciously creepyâ (Publishers Weekly, starred review) middle grade historical novel following an anxious young girl learning to face her fearsâand her ghostsâagainst the backdrop of the typhoid epidemic.
Essie OâNeill is afraid of everything. Sheâs afraid of cats and electric lights. Sheâs afraid of the silver sick bell, a family heirloom that brings up frightening memories. Most of all, sheâs afraid of the red door in her nightmares.
But soon Essie discovers so much more to fear. Her mother has remarried, and they must move from their dilapidated tenement in the Bronx to North Brother Island, a dreary place in the East River. Thatâs where Essieâs new stepfather runs a quarantine hospital for the incurable sick, including the infamous Typhoid Mary. Essie knows the island is plagued with tragedy. Years ago, she watched in horror as the ship General Slocum caught fire and sank near its shores, plummeting one thousand women and children to their deaths.
Now, something on the island is haunting Essie. And the red door from her dreams has become a reality, just down the hall from her bedroom in her terrifying new house. Convinced her stepfather is up to no good, Essie investigates. Yet to uncover the truth, she will have to face her own painful historyâand what lies behind the red door.