Behind These Hands

Behind These Hands
294 Pages
ISBN 978-1-61153-259-3

Piano prodigy Claire Fairchild, 14, has always known music would be her life. So when she has the opportunity to enter a prestigious contest, she goes all in—until she realizes she’s also competing against Juan, a close childhood friend and one of the most talented musicians she knows. It doesn’t help that her thoughts about him are turning romantic. When Claire and her family receive a devastating blow from Batten disease, her world enters a tailspin. Claire decides her musical goals no longer seem relevant. She can’t reconcile the joy that music would bring to her life while her brothers succumb to an early and ugly death. Her decision puts everything at risk: her friendship with Juan, her parents’ expectations, and her own happiness. After Claire accompanies a friend on a school newspaper assignment, she meets a centenarian with a surprising musical past and only one regret in life. Claire knows something in her life has to change before it’s too late, but she’s not sure she has the courage to take the next step.

Linda Vigen Phillips

About Linda Vigen Phillips (Charlotte, North Carolina Author)

Linda Vigen Phillips

Linda Vigen Phillips, a retired teacher, is passionate about poetry and better mental health, both of which culminated in her YA debut verse novel, Crazy (Eerdmans/2014). It was named a notable Social Studies Trade Book, listed as one of the NY Public Library’s Best Books for teens, and one of Bank Street College of Education’s best children’s books of the year, among other accolades.

Phillips enjoys presenting writing workshops in schools and libraries, and offering a message of hope and an opportunity for dialogue about mental illness to churches and community organizations. She lives in Charlotte with her husband.

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