Whichwood

September 15, 2017
In this sequel to Furthermore (2016), kindhearted Alice and friend Oliver travel from Ferenwood to wintery Whichwood with the assigned task of saving "a very strange" girl from a terrible fate. Since her mother's death and her father's departure, 13-year-old Laylee has become Whichwood's only mordeshoor with magical skills to "wash and package the dead destined for the Otherwhere," a ghastly, grueling, unappreciated task, sapping her body and soul. Watching her bronze skin, amber eyes, and chestnut hair turn silver, Laylee hopelessly realizes she's "irrevocably ill." Shocked and offended when Alice arrives suddenly and announces she's come to "fix" Laylee's "problem," Laylee spurns her well-meaning visitors who try to help her launder the dead. When it becomes obvious that Laylee's dying, Alice applies her own special magic in an effort to save her. Meanwhile, unattended ghosts of Whichwood's dead avenge Laylee by wreaking havoc on the town, igniting terrible repercussions. Initially failing in her task, Alice eventually relies on her heart to "fix" her new friend. In deliciously descriptive prose, the confiding, familiar narrator directly engages the "dear reader" with witty asides, explanatory footnotes, and cautionary warnings as Laylee's woeful tale unfolds. As she did in Furthermore, Mafi uses her built world to interrogate norms and relationships in our own while never losing sight of her story. Memorable new characters experience the restorative power of friendship in this darkly fascinating, somewhat ghoulish sequel to Furthermore. (Fantasy. 10-14)

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October 1, 2017

Gr 5-7-Mafi expands the vibrant world she created in Furthermore with this striking companion novel. Laylee Layla Fenjoon has inherited the magical talents and responsibilities of mordeshoor at the all-too-young age of 13, when her mother's death drives her father to madness. Rather than play with other children and go to school, she washes the bodies of the dead to ease their transition into the afterlife for the ungrateful Wichwoodians. As the stress takes its toll, Alice and Oliver (characters from Furthermore) arrive to help-if only they can make it past Laylee's prickly shell. Another boy with his own bit of magic, Benyamin, joins the group and the romantic pairings are inevitable but also appreciatively complex. Drawing heavily from Persian culture and featuring a heroine of color, this fantasy novel feels both fresh and classic. The cadence may be initially difficult to get into for some readers, but the story pushes forward and those who stick with it will be rewarded with a complex and layered tale. A couple of aspects of the book seem a bit disjointed: the pacing is interrupted and flags a bit in the middle. Time also seems to rearrange itself on occasion in order to serve the plot, rather than flowing organically from the decisions of the characters. Nevertheless, fantasy fans looking for something new will find much to enjoy here. VERDICT A pleasing selection for precocious middle grade and middle school readers.-Erin Reilly-Sanders, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from September 15, 2017
Grades 5-8 *Starred Review* This companion to Mafi's prismatic Futhermore (2016) takes a darker turn as readers enter Whichwood, where Laylee, the local mordeshoor, is overrun with corpses. It's her job to wash and bury the dead and transition their souls to the next world. Once an honored vocation, mordeshoors have become pariahs, and Laylee performs the backbreaking, thankless work alone in a shabby jewel-and-blood-encrusted gown. She is frighteningly beautiful, but her work is taking its toll, slowly draining her of magic, color, and strength. Such is the state of things when Futhermore's protagonists, Alice and Oliver, appear, tasked with helping Laylee. As Alice endeavors to discover how her magic can help the embittered mordeshoor, it becomes apparent that Laylee's health is fading fastand with no one else to soothe the dead, the death of the mordeshoor would be a terrible thing. More focused than Furthermore, but no less imaginative, this story paints Laylee's inner world as richly as it does her ghost-plagued town. Her character is subtly brushed with Persian heritage, from the traditional poetry she reads to her headscarf and brown skin. Genuinely chilling scenes and grotesque imagery might upset sensitive readers, but those with a morbid streak will be in their element. However, it's Laylee's personal transformation that shines brightest, giving Mafi's singular fantasy an equally unforgettable heroine.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)