The Castle Behind the Thorns by Merrie Haskell*

Before I could read this book, my third grader grabbed it and read it!
He thoroughly enjoyed reading it and loved the adventure and suspense.
Sands wakes up in a cursed castle with its outside walls smothered in thorns.  When Sands tries to escape, the thorns reach out and pierce him, grab him.  There is no escape.  As he explores the castle, he sees that everything is sundered.  Nothing is usable.  So he proceeds to mend things he needs.
In the process he discovers a corpse and he carefully lays it in its crypt.  The corpse is resurrected. . . Perrotte, the castle's lost heir.  Together they mend the castle and realize that there is a magic occurring as the more they mend, the thorns descend and life begins to thrive within the walls.
For a complete healing, however, deeper mending must transpire . . .forgiveness.
I really liked the themes of forgiveness and friendship.
*Highly recommend.
*Borrowed from the library.
Guided Reading Level: W (6th grade)
Strategy: check for understanding (as the point of view changes often between characters/chapters; sometimes Perrotte has flashbacks to her former life and death)
Points to discuss/warnings: A dead person and a falcon are resurrected. The characters pray to the Saints and the Saints appear to talk to them and give advice/direction.  Perrotte is murdered by her stepmother (but the stepmother only meant for her to sleep a long time so she can give the inheritance to her own daughter).