IT'S GONNA TAKE A MIRACLE

                                     COMING SOON . . . GOD ONLY KNOWS WHEN

From multi-award-winner and New York Times bestselling author, Lesley Kagen, comes her first young readers’ novel. A cross between Counting by 7’s and Because of Winn-Dixie, It’s Gonna take a Miracle captures the essence of what it means to be poor and different, dealing with grief, the struggles of children when they are left “on their own,” and the saving grace of love.

Twelve-year-old Theodora "Teddy" Delaney’s already challenging world has further been turned upside down. Not only is she attempting to come to grips with the sudden loss of her father, her mother has been left penniless, and her “not like everybody else” sister refuses to believe their beloved dad is gone forever.

Teddy believes she played a part in her father’s death and the only way to get him to love her again is to prove that she’s worth it. And she’s prepared to do just that. She has a TO-DO list to keep her on track, her fiancé for support, a grave digger to lend a helping hand, and she’s come up with a plan to convince her sister, Queenie, that their dad really has passed away before their mother finds out and sends both of the girls to “homes.”

But with a heartless neighbor hoping to drive the Delaney sisters out of the neighborhood, and a bully threatening to cut Teddy into little pieces, she knows it’s going to take a lot more than determination to achieve her goals—“It’s gonna take a miracle and I’m not holding my breath.” 

IT’S GONNA TAKE A MIRACLE is a funny, wise, suspenseful, and ultimately inspirational story about one young girl discovering that when you think you’re down for the count, love has a way of winning the day. And sometimes when you think you’re fighting to save someone else—you end up saving yourself.

Besides writing, Lesley is a mother of two, grandmother of two, a mental health advocate, and a reading and writing coach at a local elementary school where she also instructs the members of the Comedy Club on the most effective uses of Whoopie cushions and hand buzzers.