Publication
August 8, 2023 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus
Penny Hope is eleven and has been struggling with an entity she calls the Fear Maker since she was seven years old and ate a candy apple left by the monster on Halloween Night. She didn't use to be afraid of everything, but now has nightmares and sees people out in public who look like they have blank eyes, although her mother doesn't seem to see them that way. She is sad that her grandmother, who had lived with the family for quite some time, is now in the Olympus Assisted Living facilty. She visits, but it's not the same. Her grandmother was the one she sought for comfort, and while the journal her grandmother gave her is helpful, she is still plagued by the Fear Maker. She meets a boy, Aarush, at her grandmother's place, and the two become friends and try to figure out the mystery of the people with blank eyes. There are some times when Penny can envision a bright, sunlit world where she doesn't have anxiety, and she gets some release from writing poetry in her notebook, but even with Aarush as a friend, she struggles, especially since more and more people in their lives seem to be changing. She and Aarush decide to go to the Fear Maker's house to confront him and hopeful get their lives back. Will they be able to?
Strengths: Penny struggles to get by while dealing on a daily basis with the Fear Maker's presence in her life, but has enough determination and support from her grandmother to try to conquer her fears. I appreciated that while the grandmother was in an assisted care facility, this was not portrayed as a horrible thing, and the grandmother was still able to support Penny. The blank eyed people around Penny will put people in mind of Gaiman's Coraline, and this had a good dose of scary moments. Penny's poetry appears frequently in the pages, for those who like verse included in books.
Weaknesses: The cover makes this look very young, and given Penny's age, this might be a more successfu book with elementary school students.
What I really think: This is a good choice for readers who like Malinenko's This Appearing House or Reynold's Izzy at the End of the World.
Strengths: Penny struggles to get by while dealing on a daily basis with the Fear Maker's presence in her life, but has enough determination and support from her grandmother to try to conquer her fears. I appreciated that while the grandmother was in an assisted care facility, this was not portrayed as a horrible thing, and the grandmother was still able to support Penny. The blank eyed people around Penny will put people in mind of Gaiman's Coraline, and this had a good dose of scary moments. Penny's poetry appears frequently in the pages, for those who like verse included in books.
Weaknesses: The cover makes this look very young, and given Penny's age, this might be a more successfu book with elementary school students.
What I really think: This is a good choice for readers who like Malinenko's This Appearing House or Reynold's Izzy at the End of the World.
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