The Same Stuff as Stars

2013 Laura Ingalls Wilder Award

Angel Morgan needs help. Daddy is in jail, and Mama has abandoned her and her little brother, leaving them with their great-grandmother. Grandma is aged and poor, and doesn’t make any attempt to care for the children—that’s left up to Angel, even though she is not yet twelve. The only bright spot in Angel’s existence is the Star Man, a mysterious stranger who appears on clear nights and teaches her all about the stars and planets and constellations. “We’re made out of the same stuff as the stars,” he tells her.

Eventually, Grandma warms to the children and the three begin to cobble together a makeshift family. Then events in Angel’s life take yet another downturn, and she must once again find a way to persevere.

Katherine Paterson’s keen sensitivity and penetrating sense of drama bring us a moving story of throwaway children, reminding us of the incredible resilience of childhood and the unquenchable spirit that, in spite of loss, struggles to new beginnings.