In order to escape former boyfriend Matt's physical and mental abuse, sixteen year old Amy chooses to move to the country and live with her great-aunt Mae and her elderly German shepherd Katie for her senior year of high school. Mae's home isn't much, just a single-wide trailer nestled in a 40 acre valley of farmland, but it is safe and quiet. A place for Amy to start over and forget the troubles she had left behind.
One day while throwing sticks for Katie to fetch, Amy stumbles upon a clearing in the woods behind Mae's house. The far end of the clearing is shrouded by fog, and when Amy crosses into the mist, she feels like she is entering into another world. There she meets a boy her age named Henry, who is different from any boy she has ever met. She feels comfortable with Henry in ways she simply can't be comfortable with the other teens in the area, and as their relationship grows, she comes to realize that there is more going on than Henry just being different.
Henry lives in a world where every day is the same as the day before - literally. Frozen in time on the day of his birthday, in 1944, nothing ever changes for Henry, until Amy appears one day out of the mist. Amy's appearance in his life is at once exciting and threatening. Exciting because she brings change to the monotony of his days, but frightening because Henry is afraid that her appearance and continued presence in his reality will eventually cause his world to unravel.
As Amy and Henry's relationship grows and Amy learns more about Henry's world, she decides to investigate the situation in her own time, and the information she discovers and eventually imparts to Henry and his family changes everything. As Amy helps Henry face his personal demons and lay them to rest, she also finds the courage within herself to face her own and move forward with her life as well.
This was a beautiful story, if a bit farfetched, filled with poignant scenes of love, friendship, and healing. I enjoyed reading it, and even though some aspects of it were a bit farfetched and other aspects seemed to need more development, overall the story was intriguing and entertaining. I give this story 3.5 stars.
One day while throwing sticks for Katie to fetch, Amy stumbles upon a clearing in the woods behind Mae's house. The far end of the clearing is shrouded by fog, and when Amy crosses into the mist, she feels like she is entering into another world. There she meets a boy her age named Henry, who is different from any boy she has ever met. She feels comfortable with Henry in ways she simply can't be comfortable with the other teens in the area, and as their relationship grows, she comes to realize that there is more going on than Henry just being different.
Henry lives in a world where every day is the same as the day before - literally. Frozen in time on the day of his birthday, in 1944, nothing ever changes for Henry, until Amy appears one day out of the mist. Amy's appearance in his life is at once exciting and threatening. Exciting because she brings change to the monotony of his days, but frightening because Henry is afraid that her appearance and continued presence in his reality will eventually cause his world to unravel.
As Amy and Henry's relationship grows and Amy learns more about Henry's world, she decides to investigate the situation in her own time, and the information she discovers and eventually imparts to Henry and his family changes everything. As Amy helps Henry face his personal demons and lay them to rest, she also finds the courage within herself to face her own and move forward with her life as well.
This was a beautiful story, if a bit farfetched, filled with poignant scenes of love, friendship, and healing. I enjoyed reading it, and even though some aspects of it were a bit farfetched and other aspects seemed to need more development, overall the story was intriguing and entertaining. I give this story 3.5 stars.
Amy has just left an abusive relationship and to make a fresh start, she moves from Seattle into a small town with her Aunt Mae. There, she spends her days doing chopping wood, canning, and spending some time with her Aunt. She meets a few people in school, but finds it hard to give of herself to make any friends. But if she goes far enough into the woods on Mae's property, there is a thick mist, and if she goes through it, she enters a clearing of beautiful summer.
Henry can't believe it when he sees Amy. No one has visited the Clearing in centuries. The time is 1944 and he, his grandfather, and his mother had just gotten word that his brother Robert was Missing in Action. Devastated of what transpires that fateful summer, Henry prays that it would all just go back to how it was at the beginning of summer. And so it does, and the days replay over and over and over.
But Amy's presence touches something in those lives in the clearing, and Henry and Amy fall in love. Even though a guy at school, Jackson, has shown interest in Amy, all she can think about is going into the clearing to see Henry. But how can two people from two different times have a future?
The Clearing is a breathtaking and poignant romance. There are some real issues, abuse, drinking, and sexual relations, but they are not explicit. Amy and Henry are two characters I grew to love and wanted to see them find a happy ending. Ms. Davis twists the end, but I was happily satisfied and will recommend this heart-warming story highly.
Henry can't believe it when he sees Amy. No one has visited the Clearing in centuries. The time is 1944 and he, his grandfather, and his mother had just gotten word that his brother Robert was Missing in Action. Devastated of what transpires that fateful summer, Henry prays that it would all just go back to how it was at the beginning of summer. And so it does, and the days replay over and over and over.
But Amy's presence touches something in those lives in the clearing, and Henry and Amy fall in love. Even though a guy at school, Jackson, has shown interest in Amy, all she can think about is going into the clearing to see Henry. But how can two people from two different times have a future?
The Clearing is a breathtaking and poignant romance. There are some real issues, abuse, drinking, and sexual relations, but they are not explicit. Amy and Henry are two characters I grew to love and wanted to see them find a happy ending. Ms. Davis twists the end, but I was happily satisfied and will recommend this heart-warming story highly.
Reviewed by Lesley for TeensReadToo.com
Amy has moved in with her Great Aunt to get away from her abusive relationship with her ex-boyfriend, Matt. Now living in the middle of nowhere, Amy is having to make new friends and start over at a new high school. She finds it difficult leaving the past behind and letting her guard down with her new friends.
Seeking comfort from everything that's going on around her, she sees a misty clearing behind her Aunt's house. When she crosses the other side she meets Henry, a boy unlike the others who actually makes her feel safe.
Henry is stuck in the year 1944 with his mother and Grandfather. Nothing changes, nothing grows old; he seeks solace alone in the books he's read dozens of times. When he meets Amy, everything he knows begins to change. His mother suddenly begins to ask questions, and his grandfather begins to remember things he never had before.
Was it a mistake for Henry to bring Amy to the other side? Once Amy realizes what is going on, will she run or decide to stay with the only person who makes her feel alive?
THE CLEARING is an incredibly emotional love story. Filled with mystery, sorrow, loneliness, and heartache, be prepared to grab a box of tissues - it's a tearjerker.
Amy has moved in with her Great Aunt to get away from her abusive relationship with her ex-boyfriend, Matt. Now living in the middle of nowhere, Amy is having to make new friends and start over at a new high school. She finds it difficult leaving the past behind and letting her guard down with her new friends.
Seeking comfort from everything that's going on around her, she sees a misty clearing behind her Aunt's house. When she crosses the other side she meets Henry, a boy unlike the others who actually makes her feel safe.
Henry is stuck in the year 1944 with his mother and Grandfather. Nothing changes, nothing grows old; he seeks solace alone in the books he's read dozens of times. When he meets Amy, everything he knows begins to change. His mother suddenly begins to ask questions, and his grandfather begins to remember things he never had before.
Was it a mistake for Henry to bring Amy to the other side? Once Amy realizes what is going on, will she run or decide to stay with the only person who makes her feel alive?
THE CLEARING is an incredibly emotional love story. Filled with mystery, sorrow, loneliness, and heartache, be prepared to grab a box of tissues - it's a tearjerker.
