Towers Falling

Author(s): Jewell Parker Rhodes

YA Fiction

When her fifth-grade teacher hints that a series of lessons about home and community will culminate with one big answer about two tall towers once visible outside their classroom window, Deja can't help but feel confused. She sets off on a journey of discovery, with new friends Ben and Sabeen by her side. But just as she gets closer to answering big questions about who she is, what America means, and how communities can grow (and heal), she uncovers new questions, too. Like, why does Pop get so angry when she brings up anything about the towers? As the fifteenth anniversary of September 11th nears, Towers Falling explores the thought-provoking question of how kids born after 2001 can find meaning in events they have no personal memory of, but which still have a monumental impact on their families, educators, and communities. In the tradition of her revered body of middle grade work including Ninth Ward, Sugar, and Bayou Magic, once again Jewell deftly weaves historical and socio-political layers into a story that is at its heart about friendship, family, and finding your way in a complicated world.


Product Information

"Rhodes approaches a complex, painful topic with insight and grace, providing context to an event distant to the book's audience." Publishers Weekly"

Jewell Parker Rhodes is the author of Ninth Ward, a Coretta Scott King honor book, Sugar, winner of the Jane Adams Peace Association book award, and Bayou Magic. She has also written many award-winning books for adults. Jewell lives with her family in Arizona.

General Fields

  • : 9780316262224
  • : Little, Brown & Company
  • : Little, Brown Young Readers
  • : July 2016
  • : United States
  • : July 2017
  • : books

Special Fields

  • : Jewell Parker Rhodes
  • : Hardback
  • : 813.6
  • : 256
  • : 20 Illustrations, black & white