66 pages • 2 hours read
Wait Till Helen Comes
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Summary and Study Guide
Overview
Mary Downing Hahn’s eerie middle grade novel Wait Till Helen Comes (1986) is a ghost story that explores themes of family, friendship, and the emotional toll of death and guilt. Wait Till Helen Comes received a starred review from Booklist and was awarded the Texas Bluebonnet Award in 1989. The novel was also adapted into a Lifetime movie titled Little Girl’s Secret (2016), with Hahn making a cameo appearance in the film as the town librarian. Pagination in this study guide refers to the Clarion Books edition.
Plot Summary
Creative and impressionable, 12-year-old Molly loves reading and writing, while her 10-year-old brother, Michael, is a natural science enthusiast. Their artist mother recently remarried a potter named Dave and merged their two families. However, Dave’s daughter, Heather, resents Dave’s affection for Jean. Heather passionately declares that she hates Molly, Mom (Jean), and Michael and wishes they were dead. To sow discord between Dave and Mom, Heather lies that Molly and Michael are cruel to her, which protective Dave categorically believes. Molly and Michael are hurt by the accusations and the fact that Mom often takes Heather’s side. Mom and Dave urge Michael and Molly to be more understanding: Heather’s mother died in a fire when Heather was three.
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