Here in the Real World

Starred review from November 25, 2019
When Ware’s grandmother falls and breaks her hip, the idle summer that the relentlessly scheduled 11-and-a-half-year-old was looking forward to is canceled. His parents make last-minute arrangements for him to attend a community center camp, instead, a prospect that prompts “the familiar contracting retreat of the thing that lived deep in his chest, which must be his soul.” Impulsively, Ware escapes to the rubbled remains of a nearby church—the perfect place for the Middle Ages–obsessed boy to build his own medieval refuge while pretending to attend camp. The space is already occupied, however: prickly Jolene has claimed it as a garden to grow papayas that she’ll sell to make up for her aunt “drinking the rent.” The two establish an uneasy truce, agreeing to share the space at a distance, until they must join forces to prevent the intrusion of the real world by way of a looming crisis. Pennypacker’s humane tale is written with straightforward grace and populated with exquisitely layered characters; vulnerable, imaginative Ware’s journey to self-acceptance is particularly skillfully rendered. Ages 8–12. Agent: Steven Malk, Writers House.

Narrator Noah Galvin's dreamy tones depict the introversion of 11-year-old Ware, who enters medieval worlds more readily than he takes part in the "normal" life that surrounds him. Faced with a summer of attending a chaotic rec program, Ware discovers peace and quiet in a deserted church next door. It doesn't remain peaceful for long. He soon meets the cynical Jolene, a girl who has been hurt by the background she hides. Galvin captures the dynamic between the pair as artistic Ware's visions conflict with Jolene's accusations that his thinking is not of the real world but of "Magic Fairness Land." Gradually, tenderness grows between the two as they create a garden and a refuge for migrating birds, despite the threat of developers. The mix of graceful plot and deep feelings creates a good family listen. S.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award � AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine