A Little Bit of Spectacular

March 2, 2015
Eleven-year-old Olivia is desperate for something to distract her from the realities of a dead father and a seriously ill mother when a mysterious message on a restaurant’s bathroom wall has her trying to crack the code of the “Plantagenet,” be they aliens, a line of kings, or something more pedestrian. Along the way Olivia befriends a frog-keeping girl named Amelia, creating her first real connection in Birmingham, Ala., aside from kindly coffeehouse cashiers and the phantom scrawler. Phillips (The Hidden Summer) crafts a touching exploration of love and loss, told through the perspective of a child enduring adult responsibilities thrust upon her. Instead of bowing to pressure, Olivia is resilient, wise, and shrewd, while retaining childlike sensibilities, including a belief that anything is possible. Even as her mother’s health improves, Olivia wishes that she will never get sick or old, and the message suggests that there’s a way to make it so. The idea of living forever takes on a more poignant and attainable meaning by the time the two girls solve the mystery behind the riddle. Ages 10–up.

February 15, 2015
An enigmatic message on a bathroom wall intrigues a lonely 11-year-old girl who decides to investigate, making a friend in the process.As her mother's operation has sapped the family's finances, the once-outgoing Olivia and her still ailing mom move in with Olivia's grandmother, a woman Olivia barely knows. As her father died suddenly when she was little, Olivia is terrified her mother will die as well, and this fear has left her so emotionally frozen that she's unable to loosen up and make friends in her new community. A message Olivia sees on a bathroom wall captures her attention: "We are Plantagenet. We are chosen." Determined to figure out what it means, she enlists the help of a quirky classmate her grandmother introduces her to, and together the girls investigate. Although this oddball and somewhat repetitive puzzle drives the plot-other messages appear, and the girls try to figure out who or what (ETs?) wrote them-both the focus and theme of this leisurely paced story centers on Olivia's emotional life. The unexpected explanation to the mystery helps Olivia develop a perspective that allows her to relax and participate more fully in life. Although the story could use more dramatic pull, readers should enjoy its sympathetic protagonist and offbeat mystery element. (Fiction. 9-13)

January 1, 2015

Gr 4-7-Olivia, 11, and her seriously ill mother have moved to Alabama to live with Olivia's grandmother, who she barely knows. A new city and school have left Olivia disorientated, and she finds herself friendless and uncertain of the future. When she begins to see cryptic messages in bathrooms all over town, they prove a welcome distraction. Then Gran sets Olivia up on a "playdate" with a girl from the same school, and she not only finds a friend but also someone eager to solve the mystery with her. The puzzling messages are introduced at the beginning of the book, but as the story unfolds, the emphasis shifts away from a traditional mystery and more to a gentle tale about family, friendship, and facing the future with hope. The ending is unexpected-finding the message-writer does not result in the exciting discovery the girls (and readers) had hoped for. It is, however, life-affirming, and all the loose ends are tied up. The book features believable characters in challenging situations and would best suit readers who are ready for something requiring a little reflection. While unlikely to fly off the shelves, this is still a useful addition for young teens who are not emotionally ready for more serious issue-driven YA fiction.-Michelle Anderson, Tauranga City Libraries, New Zealand

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 1, 2015
Grades 5-8 In the follow-up to her children's debut, The Hidden Summer (2013), Phillips stays in the same vein with another emotionally charged, contemporary coming-of-age story set in Alabama. Olivia still hasn't settled into her life in Birmingham, a move prompted by her mother's cancer treatment, but when a strange message posted on the bathroom wall about Plantagenet catches her eye, she opens herself up to some exciting possibilities. What is Plantagenet, after all? And why are intriguing messages about it scrawled over all sorts of walls? Despite Olivia's search for answers about Plantagenet, the pacing of this book never quite matches up to its mystery-heavy premise. Instead, it settles into a more contemplative space, as reluctant Olivia is softly prodded outside her comfort zone and into the world where not every possibility includes a scary twist. Phillips deftly explores how a parent's illness can so easily shatter a child's sense of comfort in the world, even after the parent is healed. Hand to fans of Cynthia Lord and Linda Urban.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)