Night Cry (Night Cry CL Nrf) [Hardcover]

Phyllis Reynolds Naylor (Author)

Book Description

Series: Night Cry CL Nrf

Ellen had never been out of the low hill country of northeastern Mississippi. Since the death of her mother many years before, and the death of her younger brother only a year or so earlier, she and her father had shared their cabin and five acres of land alone. Except for Sleet, the horse that-because he feared lightning and thunder-had thrown and killed her brother.

Ellen was terrified of Sleet. It was summer. Ellen's father's newest job-he had had many-was as a calendar salesman, so he was gone a great deal of the time. Her only contact with the outside world was through the telephone and news programs on the TV. The family's nearest neighbor was Granny Bo, an old woman full of stories of days past and dark forebodings about the present and future, which she read from signs and portents she clearly accepted as true. Ellen believed and shared Granny Bo's fears even when she did not want to.

Then, stirring events in the nearby town, a stranger and his wife living in a nearby abandoned house, a kidnapping, and deeper and deeper questions in Ellen's mind about everyone she knew-including her father and Granny Bo-conspired to make Ellen face her fears and find her courage, just when it was most needed.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Ellen had never been out of the low hill country of northeastern Mississippi. Since the death of her mother many years before, and the death of her younger brother only a year or so earlier, she and her father had shared their cabin and five acres of land alone. Except for Sleet, the horse that-because he feared lightning and thunder-had thrown and killed her brother.

Ellen was terrified of Sleet. It was summer. Ellen's father's newest job-he had had many-was as a calendar salesman, so he was gone a great deal of the time. Her only contact with the outside world was through the telephone and news programs on the TV. The family's nearest neighbor was Granny Bo, an old woman full of stories of days past and dark forebodings about the present and future, which she read from signs and portents she clearly accepted as true. Ellen believed and shared Granny Bo's fears even when she did not want to.

Then, stirring events in the nearby town, a stranger and his wife living in a nearby abandoned house, a kidnapping, and deeper and deeper questions in Ellen's mind about everyone she knew-including her father and Granny Bo-conspired to make Ellen face her fears and find her courage, just when it was most needed.

From the Inside Flap

There are all kinds of fearful night noises on the backwoods farm where Ellen lives, often by herself because her salesman father travels a lot. But more than anything, Ellen is terrified of their horse, Sleet, who had thrown her brother a year ago and killed him.



Then a local boy is kidnapped, and to Ellen the woods are full of devils and demons. One morning she is awakened before dawn by a cry--is it a "night cry" or the cry of the kidnapped child? Does Ellen have the courage to venture out into the dark and find out? --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 168 pages
• Publisher: Atheneum; First Edition edition (January 1, 1984)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 068931017X
• ISBN-13: 978-0689310171
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.7 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,307,604 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I guess I've been writing for about as long as I can remember. Telling stories, anyway, if not writing them down. I had my first short story published when I was sixteen, and wrote stories to help put myself through college, planning to become a clinical psychologist. By the time I graduated with a BA degree, however, I decided that writing was really my first love, so I gave up plans for graduate school and began writing full time.

I'm not happy unless I spend some time writing every day. It's as though pressure builds up inside me, and writing even a little helps to release it. On a hard-writing day, I write about six hours. Tending to other writing business, answering mail, and just thinking about a book takes another four hours. I spend from three months to a year on a children's book, depending on how well I know the characters before I begin and how much research I need to do. A novel for adults, because it's longer, takes a year or more. When my work is going well, I wake early in the mornings, hoping it's time to get up. When the writing is hard and the words are flat, I'm not very pleasant to be around.

Getting an idea for a book is the easy part. Keeping other ideas away while I'm working on one story is what's difficult. My books are based on things that have happened to me, things I have heard or read about, all mixed up with imaginings. The best part about writing is the moment a character comes alive on paper, or when a place that existed only in my head becomes real. There are no bands playing at this moment, no audience applauding--a very solitary time, actually--but it's what I like most. I've now had more than 120 books published, and about 2000 short stories, articles and poems.

I live in Bethesda, Maryland, with my husband, Rex, a speech pathologist, who's the first person to read my manuscripts when they're finished. Our sons, Jeff and Michael, are grown now, but along with their wives and children, we often enjoy vacations together in the mountains or at the ocean. When I'm not writing, I like to hike, swim, play the piano and attend the theater.

I'm lucky to have my family, because they have contributed a great deal to my books. But I'm also lucky to have the troop of noisy, chattering characters who travel with me inside my head. As long as they are poking, prodding, demanding a place in a book, I have things to do and stories to tell.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Night Cry Summary, January 14, 2002

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Night Cry (Night Cry CL Nrf) (Hardcover)

For all you readers out there,I would like to tell you a short summary of the book Night Cry by Phliss Reynolds Naylor.Night Cry is a book about a very bravy little girl who gets over a big fear of hers,the girl uncovers a mystery while overcoming her fear of a horse who killed her younger brother.She is remarkablely brave.The girl also betrays a kidnapper to whitch she does not know kidnaps Jason Cory a son a of a famous actor.But this also is a tragic heroic story.I inspire all you readers out there that is into tragic mystery storys to read this book it is terrific.(At first I did not think I would like it because Iam not much of a reader but i really enjoyed it.)

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Literary Analysis of Night Cry, March 31, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Night Cry (Night Cry CL Nrf) (Hardcover)

This is a tragic /heroci story of a girl who befriendsa kidnapper, to which she doesn't know, kidnaps Jason Cory a son of a famous actor. {The importance of the setting and Naylor's use of literary divices makes this book a must read for everyone who loves heroic stories.} The stumps farm is the setting of this heart thumping story. Naylor whote about the farm, "The land was enclosed by a wall of vine so dense and dark that trees leaned with its wait". This sentence alone lets you picture it in your mind. Naylor's use of literary devices adds richness to this story. "Vines so heavy it's like a wall all around the place," uses a simile to show how thick the vines must really be. Naylor writes, "The dark horse tossed ghis head eagerly as the breeze fanned his nostrils, and Ellen patted his neck. Sjkhe would ride him again tomorrow. Tomorrow she would pick the last of the buckberries and take them to Granny Bo." Naylor uses a metaphor, "Suspicions mounted in her mind until there seemed a pyramid of doubt pushing through the top of her head," to show the suspicion Ellen has against her father. Phyllis Reynolds Naylor shows extreme talent when using very descriptive literary devices and does and excellent job explaining the setting. If you haven't read this book once already, be sure to pick up a copy because you'll reas it over and over.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Exciting & intriguing Mystery!For any kind of book lover, April 2, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Night Cry (Paperback)

This tells of a brave young girl who uncovers a mystery while overcoming her fears of a horse that killed her brother. She finds her inner self aswell as her Remarkable Bravery.