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Healer and Witch by Nancy Werlin (2022)

9/27/2022

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By Ella

"On a warm April morning, a week after the terrible day on which Grand-mère Sylvie died, Sylvie walked away from her home...She did not look back and she did not cry. She did not deserve tears. 

​She had made a terrible mistake."

                                     -
from Healer and Witch 

Sylvie's Grand-mère has always had a strange, unaccountable gift for healing, able to save lives when Sylvie's mother cannot. But Sylvie has never seen this ability--or even the stranger power she herself has inherited--as witchcraft, or even as dangerous. Not until, in the wake of Grand-mère Sylvie's death, she seeks to heal her mother's grief, and instead steals her memories of Grand-mère Sylvie--and of Sylvie herself. 

​Sylvie is determined to find someone to teach her how to properly use her gift so that she might return her mother's memories. With Martin, the farrier's son, by her side, Sylvie sets off into the world beyond her tiny, rural hometown. But sixteenth-century France is a dangerous place for a girl with odd powers, full of questions and inquisitors and those who would use her gift to their own ends. Sylvie must decide what life she is willing to lead--and who, in all the world, she can trust to show her her way. 

Healer and Witch is an exquisitely written, beautiful historical fantasy novel that weaves many disparate threads into a single, stunning storyline. Although I initially picked up this book for its lovely cover, Werlin's writing pulled me in instantly:  simple and unadorned, it perfectly evokes the time and Sylvie's character as a girl who is far from naive, but nonetheless is largely ignorant of the world. Sylvie's journey toward understanding, self-discovery, and in a way independence in a land that would rather stifle, confine, and condemn her for her abilities and simply for being a woman weaves the heart of this book, giving the story an emotional depth and complexity that truly make it shine. The setting also feels particularly well-imagined, including the characters who Sylvie meets along her way. Overall, I highly recommend Healer and Witch ​to readers ages ten and up, particularly those who like historical fantasy or enjoyed the depth and writing style of The Troubled Girls of Dragomir Academy. 

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Those Kids From Fawn Creek by Erin Entrada Kelly (2022)

9/17/2022

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By guest reviewer Jo March

​​No one new every comes to Fawn Creek, Louisiana. The same thirteen kids have been in the same class all the way through seventh grade. Twelve, now that the infamous Renni Dean has left. And now another change is on the horizon: Orchid Mason, the new girl.

Soon, everyone in school is talking about Orchid. Orchid wears a flower in her hair. Orchid has lived in New York, Paris, and Venice, places the kids from Fawn Creek could only dream of. Orchid goes to the woods every day after school. No one knows where she lives.

Nothing every changes in Fawn Creek. Will Orchid be the thing that breaks that spell?

This is definitely one of the books I'll remember reading this year. Erin Entrada Kelly paints a true picture of the humid, leafy Louisiana town, and creates a lovably flawed and complex cast of characters. This book is about a single event that will change their lives forever; and its ending is so sweet and ambiguous that you'll feel that whatever happens to the characters next, it will be something that they make for themselves. Definitely recommend to anyone ages 9-14 (and older!).

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Alliana, Girl of Dragons by Julie Abe (2022)

9/12/2022

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By Ella

Alliana has been raised in her stepmother's inn, relegated to menial chores. For years after her father's death, she was able to keep dreaming of fairy tales with the support of Grand-mother Mari, whose tapestries and stories showed Alliana a world beyond their tiny village. But now a year has passed since Grandmother Mari's death, and the only magic left in Alliana's life is the baby nightdragon she discovers she can talk to. She knows better than to think her stepmother will let her attend the Farmlands Ball, her only chance of escaping her small hometown and to be enrolled in the Royal Academy.

​But everything changes when she meets Nela, a young witch who needs her help. For the first time since Grandmother Mari's death, Alliana has a chance to reach the future she's always dreamed of--but if her stepmother finds out, it could doom her to a life trapped at the inn.

Will Alliana be trapped beneath her stepmother's power forever? Or can she still find her own happily ever after?

Alliana, Girl of Dragons is a prequel/companion book to the Eva Evergreen duology (Eva Evergreen, Semi-Magical Witch and Eva Evergreen and the Cursed Witch)​​, and if you liked Eva Evergreen, you'll definitely like Alliana too--they share a magical, whimsical world, strong writing, and brilliant characters. I particularly enjoyed how Abe reshapes the Cinderella fairy tale into a story that fits perfectly with the Eva Evergreen books, including several prominent overlapping characters. Once again, the small details of the worldbuilding make the setting come alive, and I felt fully engrossed in Alliana's adventure. I recommend Alliana, Girl of Dragons ​to readers ages ten and up.

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Author Interview: Diana Farid

9/5/2022

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Diana Farid is a poet and award-winning author. Her debut novel in verse, Wave, tells the story of thirteen-year-old Ava, who must draw on every bit of hope and resilience within her to help her best friend fight for survival. Eloquent, heart-wrenching, and tender, we absolutely loved Wave, so we were thrilled to inter-view Diana Farid for this month's feature! 


Rapunzel Reads: One of the things that makes Wave such a standout is the gorgeous free verse it's written in. What's it like to write a novel in such spare lines, and what influence did that format have on the story as you were developing it? Was it a challenge to create such emotional depth with so few words?

Diana Farid: Writing a verse novel in free verse with spare lines was a wondrous experience. It required me to hone in on the heart of the story and find the most powerful and direct words that would transmit that heart. I developed most of the story before I started writing WAVE. So when I went to put words to paper that would eventually become the book, I knew what I wanted to say. What was left to work out were some of the more creative poetic questions like, “What should a poem that says [insert feeling or plot point] look like?” or “How will I show dialogue here that will show the action and underlying themes?” and one of my favorites, “How can I be the most honest about what the experience I’m describing feels or sounds like?” Writing WAVE was one of the most challenging things I’ve done, because of the
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Author photo credit: John Thomas Leppert

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    Book Reviews By & For Kids

    Everyone knows that Rapunzel spent her early years locked up in a tower. We’d like to think she read plenty of books to while away the time, and that she’d appreciate our own favorites.

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