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McAllister, Margaret
THE OCTAVE OF ANGELS
Grand Rapids, MI : Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2001
IL 5-8
ISBN 0802852459
Calum has mixed emotions about his family's upcoming move.  His father has lost his job and they cannot afford the house any longer.  So, they are moving in with Aunt Dorcas in a nearby town.  Calum has spent lots of time in the town but has no friends there.  The move turns out to be better than he expects as he meets some of the children in the town.  He is also looking forward to the upcoming Octave of Angels.  This is a yearly festival that takes place in the small town.  Hundreds of years ago, a young boy came to town and was shunned.  He spent  days begging the townspeople for help but no one would help him.  The young boy was finally brought to the abbey, but it was too late,   The abbot was so angry at the villagers for turning the boy away that he ordered the town to have eight days of fasting and prayer every November in memory of the young boy.  The child who carried the boy to the abbey stayed on and was called Brother Angelus.  Thus began the tradition of the Octave of Angels.  Now Calum will be part of this important festival.
SUBJECTS:     Prejudices -- Fiction.
                        Festivals -- Fiction.
                        Secrets -- Fiction.
                        England -- Fiction.

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