Book: Heart Sister

Heart Sister is a young adult fiction novel written by Michael J. Stewart and published by Orca Book Publishers in September 2020. The story covers the themes of organ donation, identity, grief and loss, depression and sibling relationships. A teacher's guide is an important accompaniment to this novel as it clarifies the facts versus fiction in the context of organ donation and transplantation as depicted in this story.

Recommended for Late middle grades and up; ages 12+

Key Curriculum Areas

• Learning areas: English, drama
• General Capabilities: literacy, critical and creative thinking

Reasons For Studying This Book

• Examining different writing styles—variations in voice, literary devices and multimodal writing
• Analyzing how language and writing evoke mood, tone, tension and characterization
• Discussing moral and ethical dilemmas
• Creating empathy for others within the community
• Encouraging critical thinking in our decisions
• Encouraging creative and imaginative writing

The novel in print and electronic form as well as digital class sets, licenses and teacher's guides can be found on the Orca Book Publisher's web site.