Echo

Newbery Honor Book

New York Times Bestseller

Children's Literature Legacy Award Winner

This impassioned, uplifting, and virtuosic tour de force from a treasured storyteller follows three children, in three different times and places, whose lives mysteriously intersect.

Lost and alone in a forbidden forest, Otto meets three mysterious sisters and suddenly finds himself entwined in a puzzling quest involving a prophecy, a promise, and a harmonica.

Decades later, Friedrich in Germany, Mike in Pennsylvania, and Ivy in California each, in turn, become interwoven when the very same harmonica lands in their lives. All the children face daunting challenges: rescuing a father, protecting a brother, holding a family together. And ultimately, pulled by the invisible thread of destiny, their suspenseful solo stories converge in an orchestral crescendo.

Richly imagined and masterfully crafted, Echo pushes the boundaries of genre, form, and storytelling innovation to create a wholly original novel that will resound in your heart long after the last note has been struck.

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592 pages

Average rating: 8.33

36 RATINGS

Community Reviews

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spoko

Oct 21, 2024

4/10 stars

I wanted to like this book; I really did. And there were parts about it -- the opening "frame" story, for instance, as well as quite a bit of Ivy's story -- that I did really like. But most of it was just aggravating. The author seems to have very little faith in (or respect for) her reader. Every emotion a character might have is spelled out, every nuance is hammered home. Every loose end is tied up in a little bow. You are left nothing of interest to think about for yourself. There's no reason kids' books have to be this way; it's insulting to the intelligence of the average 10-year-old, much less anyone older than that.

I managed to finish this book, but it's going to take an awful lot to get me to pick up another from the same author.

margardenlady

Dec 27, 2023

10/10 stars

This fable/ fantasy celebrates music and musicianship. Through three separate storylines, Ryan tells modern day stories that support an initial fairytale. A harmonica is the thread that ties them all together. The end brings all the key people together in a way that surprised me. The audiobook was perfect- I was surprised to hear so much of the music played and sung. Delightful.

alykat1093

Jul 19, 2023

6/10 stars

I’ll be honest, I struggled at the beginning of this book. I don’t know if it was because I was in a reading slump or if it was the beginning of the book. When I got to part 2 of the book was when I really started to enjoy it. I was invested in the characters of part 2 story. I ended up really enjoying the book! It was different from what I have listened to before and that made it so wonderful!

brookelolhi915

Jun 11, 2022

8/10 stars

it was a really good book. it was about three perspectives, and they all are connected with a harmonica. a brother trying to help his brother, a son trying to help his family and trying to free his dad, who is german but against hitler, and a girl who’s dream is to play music but her brother is at war and she is forced to move to another town. they are all connected with music, and the book is just so good. main characters: mike, Friedrich, and ivy. 592 pages

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