Waiting On…Outrun The Moon by Stacey Lee

Waiting On Wednesday is a regular feature on Pop! Goes The Reader in which I highlight forthcoming titles which I’m particularly excited about and looking forward to. This weekly event is hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine.

Title Outrun The Moon
Author Stacey Lee
Pages 400 Pages
Intended Target Audience Young Adult
Genre Historical Fiction
To Be Published May 24th 2016 by G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers
Find It On Goodreads ● Amazon.com ● Chapters

San Francisco, 1906: Fifteen-year-old Mercy Wong is determined to break from the poverty in Chinatown, and an education at St. Clare’s School for Girls is her best hope. Although St. Clare’s is off-limits to all but the wealthiest white girls, Mercy gains admittance through a mix of cunning and a little bribery, only to discover that getting in was the easiest part. Not to be undone by a bunch of spoiled heiresses, Mercy stands strong — until disaster strikes.

On April 18, an historic earthquake rocks San Francisco, destroying Mercy’s home and school. With martial law in effect, she is forced to wait with her classmates for their families in a temporary park encampment. Mercy can’t sit by while they wait for the Army to bring help. Fires might rage, and the city may be in shambles, yet Mercy still has the ‘bossy’ cheeks that mark her as someone who gets things done. But what can one teenaged girl do to heal so many suffering in her broken city?

Breakout author Stacey Lee masterfully crafts another remarkable novel set against a unique historical backdrop. Strong-willed Mercy Wong leads a cast of diverse characters in this extraordinary tale of survival.

When I had the immense pleasure of reading Stacey Lee’s 2015 debut, Under A Painted Sky, last year, I knew I had discovered something truly special. While the list of authors whom I trust implicitly and whose work I will purchase sight-unseen is relatively small – Becky Albertalli, Laurie Halse Anderson, David Arnold, Jessi Kirby, Morgan Matson, Rainbow Rowell and Amy Spalding – I now count Lee among their number. I’m largely unfamiliar with the period and event on which this novel is based, but I know the author will explore it with the same meticulous eye for detail and eloquent voice all her own that I have come to recognize as her trademark. I was fortunate enough to receive an advance reader copy of this novel and I know I won’t be able to wait much longer before delving into Lee’s sophomore release, which I have no doubt will prove every bit as bewitching, beautiful, and powerful as her first.