March 18, 2025 by HarperCollins
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus
In this novel in verse, Nina decides to attend an art camp in Paris ostensibly so that she can visit her Aunt Renee, but really because it is intolerable to stay at home with her parents after the death of her sister Lily. Her aunt is glad to see her, since the family usually visited every year, and makes arrangements for the daughter of a friend who is also attending the camp, Sylvie, to travel with Nina to class. Nina is struggling with several things, not the least of which is missing her sister and having regrets about things that she did and didn't do with her. Every year, Lily would make a list of "12 things to do before she turned 12", but she never even got to complete the 13th thing on her list. Even though Lily always gave Nina a hard time about copying her, Nina is determined to do all of the things on the last list. She and Sylvie get off to a rocky start, but Nina slowly picks up more French, takes her art more seriously, and convinces Sylvie to do some stereotypically touristy things with her. She develops a crush on Sylvie and isn't quite sure what to do about it, especially since the only person she's ever discussed the fact that she likes girls with is Lily. Eventually, she and Sylvie hold hands and kiss hello and goodbye, even though their time together is limited. After a falling out with Sylvie, and a lack of e mails from her parents when she asks them questions about Lily, Nina wanders off in Paris on her own. She comes across her sister's favorite place, and starts to heal a little bit. When she returns to her aunt's, her parents are there. Since everyone is upset because Nina was unaccounted for, when everyone simmers down, they are able to have some important conversations. Nina also talks to Sylvie, and is able to get some closure in that relationship as well.
I am classifying this as a fantasy, because Nina has very vivid, realistic dreams about the past, and at one point has a conversation with the spirit of her sister.
Strengths: This was a nice, light romance set against the very picturesque background of Paris. It was especially intriguing to see that Nina had a pretty good grasp of French, and was familiar with a lot of the city. There are lots of landmarks that are described, which will delight young readers who might one day like to go there. Like Schroeder's My Secret Guide to Paris, there is the undercurrent of dealing with death in the family, for readers who enjoy that. It was nice that Aunt Renee gave Nina a lot of freedom, and taking an art class in Paris would be quite the experience.
Weaknesses: While it creates more dramatic tension for parents to throw themselves into their work and ignore their remaining children after the death of an offspring, I think it's more common to get the child into therapy and spend a lot of time with them trying to help them cope. Why middle grade fiction so often draws grieving parents in this negative light, I will never understand.
What I really think: This is a good choice for readers who can't get enough of stories about the death of siblings like Condie's Summerlost, Dooley's Free Verse, Gale's The Other Side of Summer, Guterson's The Einsteins of Vista Point, Holt's From Me to You, O'Connor's Halfway to Harmony, Warga's The Shape of Thunder, Gemeinhart's The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise, Redmon's The Miraculous, Stoddard's Right as Rain, or Saunders' The Land of Neverendings.
Weaknesses: While it creates more dramatic tension for parents to throw themselves into their work and ignore their remaining children after the death of an offspring, I think it's more common to get the child into therapy and spend a lot of time with them trying to help them cope. Why middle grade fiction so often draws grieving parents in this negative light, I will never understand.
What I really think: This is a good choice for readers who can't get enough of stories about the death of siblings like Condie's Summerlost, Dooley's Free Verse, Gale's The Other Side of Summer, Guterson's The Einsteins of Vista Point, Holt's From Me to You, O'Connor's Halfway to Harmony, Warga's The Shape of Thunder, Gemeinhart's The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise, Redmon's The Miraculous, Stoddard's Right as Rain, or Saunders' The Land of Neverendings.
No comments:
Post a Comment