Legend of the Lighthouse Moon by Helen Edwards
Title: Legend of the Lighthouse Moon
Author: Helen Edwards
Genre: Historical Fiction, Fantasy
Publisher: Riveted Press
Published: 2nd October 2024
Format: Paperback
Pages: 224
Price: $17.99
Synopsis: It’s the 1970s and on Kangaroo Island, Mona McKenna and her brother Albert live with their grandparents at Cape Willoughby Lighthouse. For five long years they have mourned their mother and longed for their missing father to return. Since being diagnosed with type 1 diabetes a year earlier, Mona has been increasingly acting in ways that make her hate herself. While she loves the rugged beauty of their isolated sanctuary—and dearly loves her grandparents—she yearns for her parents and finds her diabetes frightening and confusing. Mona finds solace in the treasures she collects along the island's shores. But when she encounters a mysterious sea lion pup, Neo, the world as she knows it is forever changed. The two siblings embark on a journey that leads them to uncover secrets hidden within their family's past. As they bond with Neo, Mona and Albert's quest for truth takes them deeper into the heart of Kangaroo Island. With the fate of their beloved lighthouse hanging in the balance, they must summon courage and resilience to protect their home and the endangered sea lions who call it their own. Rich with folklore and brimming with adventure, Legend of the Lighthouse Moon is a captivating tale of family, resilience, and the enduring magic of the sea. Join Mona on a journey of self-discovery where the whispers of the past guide her towards a future filled with hope, love, and legends brought to life
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Thirteen-year-old Mona McKenna has been living with her grandparents and younger brother, Albert, for five years. Ever since a fire ripped through their own lighthouse home, killing their mother, whilst their father has been missing ever since. They long for him to return, and Mona’s world has just been turned upside down – in her view – with a recent diagnosis of diabetes. And since then, Mona has been doing things she doesn’t like, that make her dislike herself as a way of gaining back some control over her life. A life dictated by blood sugars and insulin, and diets and regimented eating. She’s frightened and isolated, and spends her days walking along the shores of Cape Willoughby, colleting treasures.
The discovery of a sea lion pup, Neo, and a special necklace unlock something new for Mona – a chance to find out what happened to her father, and enter a mystical world as she uncovers secrets from her family’s past. Secrets that have long been suspected, but never talked about. So, Albert and Mona set out to find out more as they explore Kangaroo Island, fight for the lighthouse they call home, and seek to protect the sea lions as well. As the central character in this book, Mona tells the story, and we see it through her eyes, and learn about things as she discovers them. Her reluctance to open up is understandable – she doesn’t know what she’s finding, and has been told her whole life that some things are just myths and stories. Things that are from long ago and perfectly explained in the 1970s. And yet, even as the book begins, there is a sense of another world bubbling below the surface, a fantasy world that lives alongside the real world and is under the same threats as the sea lion world.
So, whilst grappling with her diabetes, isolation and an overprotective family with her best interest at heart, Mona is drawn to this world and mystery. Especially if it means finding out more about what happened to her father and why he never came back for her and Albert. Mona’s past and disability are constantly on the page in this #OwnVoices book that evokes the feelings that many people with an invisible illness or disability have. Looking fine outside, but knowing something isn’t the same inside, and dealing everything that comes with it – medication, tests, doctor’s appointments and much more. Mona’s experience with her diabetes is as important as the lighthouse and sea lion story, and they’re all intertwined to show that living with an illness or disability is always going to be part of who you are, but that it doesn’t need to rule your life – it just means there are some adjustments that need to be made.
Legend of the Lighthouse Moon also cements an historical setting amidst the fantasy, showcasing the role lighthouses have had along the treacherous coastline of Australia, and the pivots they have had to make to embrace change and tourism. These themes are explored in the novel, and when Mona’s sea lion discoveries come out, they too are an integral part in the fate of Mona and Albert’s home. It’s as much about preservation as it is about progress and working with the times, and making compromises to ensure the best of everything, including keeping Mona safe whilst also allowing her the freedom she relishes to explore. The wilderness and isolation of Cape Willoughby reflects the emotions of the characters at times, and they’re allowed to feel things, allowed to be human. In doing so, readers get to see them for who they are and gain an understanding of what an isolated life is like – whether that’s due to physical isolation, or feeling isolated due to a disability like Mona’s. People have always had these feelings, and in highlighting the impact that they can have on people, and the power that finding something you love and can fight for has to help you find your way. This is a very special book that will hopefully be widely read.