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The Ogress and the Orphans

by Kelly Barnhill

A town in decline, a community tested

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AlbakiReads Editorial

A town in decline, a community tested

Stone in the Glen’s troubles reach back to the burning of its library, and now a missing child gives the town a new target for its fears: an Ogress living on its outskirts. The children of the Orphan House know she is being blamed unfairly, so they set out to clear her name and investigate the town’s decline. Kelly Barnhill’s fantasy links that mystery to questions of trust, scapegoating, and how a community responds to hardship. Books, generosity, and shared responsibility are woven into the story’s concerns, alongside the danger of letting a leader’s promises shape whom a town blames.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Children ages 9–12 interested in fantasy and mysteries involving a community in trouble.
  • Readers who enjoy stories featuring orphaned children and an Ogress.
  • Those interested in themes of books, generosity, trust, and shared responsibility.

Themes

Community and mutual careScapegoating and trustBooks and generosityLeadership and responsibility

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

A National Book Award finalist and instant fantasy classic about the power of community, generosity, books, and baked goods, from the author of the beloved Newbery Medal winner The Girl Who Drank the Moon.

The town of Stone in the Glen used to be lovely, but it hasn't been so in a very long time.

Once a celebrated town with a vibrant town square, prosperous businesses and families, and educated, happy children, Stone in the Glen has fallen on hard times. Since the expansive and beloved Library burned with other buildings in a time of terrible fires, the town has been plagued by droughts, blight, and destruction.

But the people have continued to put their faith in the Mayor, a dazzling fellow with a bright shock of golden hair and brilliant white teeth who promises that he alone can solve their problems. And he is a famous dragon slayer! Or at least, no one has ever seen a dragon in the Mayor's presence...

But somebody is to blame for the town's problems, not only the fires and the decline that followed them, but the child who has gone missing from the local Orphan House. And with a little helpful suggestion from the Mayor, all eyes turn to the Ogress who has come to live at the far edge of town.

Only the children of the Orphan House know the truth. Together, they must clear the Ogress's name and solve the mystery of the town's destruction before their home of Stone in the Glen is destroyed by its own people.

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