Mourning Song (One Last Wish) [Paperback]

Lurlene McDaniel (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 1992 | Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up | Series: One Last Wish (Book 2)

You don't know me, but I know about you.... I  can't make you live longer, I can't stop you from  hurting. But I can give you one wish, as someone did  for me.



It's been months since  Dani Vanoy's older sister Cassie has been diagnosed  as having a brain tumor. And now the treatments  aren't helping. Dani is furious that she is  powerless to help her sister, and she can't even convince  her mother to take the girls on the trip to  Florida that Cassie has always longed  for.



Then Cassie receives an anonymous letter and  check. Dani knows she can never make Cassie well, but  against all odds she dares to make Cassie's dream  come true.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 6-8--Dani's older sister has an inoperable brain tumor. When the doctor gives Cassie only a few weeks to live, Dani and her mother argue about the right way to care for her, and they don't tell her that she is fatally ill. Then Cassie receives a check for $100,000 from an anonymous donor, and Dani makes up her mind that her sister will get her last wish, to see the ocean. Without permission, the sisters and Dani's friend Austin drive to the Florida coast. Dani calls her mother when she learns that Cassie knows the truth about her condition. In the last pages, readers see Dani and her mother continuing their lives without Cassie, both with budding love interests, and watching the loggerhead turtles move towards the ocean in an affirmation of life. The plot is trite and overly sentimental, with obvious twists and a predictable ending. The characters are stock types, and never developed fully.
- Tina Smith Entwistle, Oakley Park Elementary School, MI
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From the Publisher

You don't know me, but I know about you.... I can't make you live longer, I can't stop you from hurting. But I can give you one wish, as someone did for me.

It's been months since Dani Vanoy's older sister Cassie has been diagnosed as having a brain tumor. And now the treatments aren't helping. Dani is furious that she is powerless to help her sister, and she can't even convince her mother to take the girls on the trip to Florida that Cassie has always longed for.

Then Cassie receives an anonymous letter and check. Dani knows she can never make Cassie well, but against all odds she dares to make Cassie's dream come true.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Laurel Leaf (April 1, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0553298100
• ISBN-13: 978-0553298109
• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 0.6 x 6.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,144,690 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Lurlene McDaniel is known for her poignant inspirational novels. She lives in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Touching, June 12, 2002

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Mourning Song (One Last Wish) (Paperback)

Lurlene McDaniel sure ought to be proud of herself for writing such a sensational book. In Mourning Song, Dani, sister of brain tumor possessing Cassie, takes her from the hospital where she is receiving treatments to Florida so that she can see the ocean after her sister's negative prognosis. McDaniel uses plenty of emotion to get her point across: Live each day to the fullest: it may be your last chance. One turnoff was the characters. I found them to be extremely annoying and irritating, but this is a small price to pay for such a magnificent novel. The story was very sad, tears rolled down my face all day when I thought not only of poor Cassie, knowing that these were her last days alive, but of how their mother payed tousands and thousands of dollars so that her daughter had some hope. I thought of Dani, risking arrest as well as her mother's anger and hysteria to bring Cassie to Florida. And I thought of Austin risking the same as Dani. I thought of how grateful I'd be if people were that nice. This book is so touching. Read it!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book is a must for all McDaniel fans!!, April 29, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Mourning Song (One Last Wish) (Paperback)

I have and have read nearly all of Lurlene's books, and this one is by far the best. Mourning Song is about a girl (Cassie) who has a brain tumor, and is going to die, it's just a matter of time. Cassie has always wanted to go to Florida, but her mother won't let her go. One day, Cassie receives an anonymous letter, and with it a check for $10,000. Cassie decides to tell Dani (her sister)about the letter, and when Dani finds out about the letter, she decides to sneak Cassie out of the hospital and take Cassie to Florida. While the sisters are in Florida, they're mother has no clue where they are, until they call her, and when they're mother comes to Florida, she brings Cassie's doctor, and if you want to find out the rest, you know what to do...

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A book about a dying sister and her fight to stay happy., October 20, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Mourning Song (One Last Wish) (Paperback)

This book is awesome. It touches your heart and soul, and makes you think about life, and to appreciate it. My one wish is to meet Mrs.McDaniel. She has inspired to go on and live life in the fullest. My mother has a brain tumor ( I am 12 years old) and it shows me I should give my all to make her happy. This book is a dying girls last wish before she passes on, and how it comes true.