How to Disappear Completely

January 1, 2020
Shortly after moving to her grandmother's tiny, rural town, a girl develops vitiligo. Emma notices the first spot, like a white freckle, on the day of her grandmother's funeral. Though she's distracted in the following days and weeks by grief and loneliness, missing the grandmother with whom she'd made up stories about fairies in the woods, Emma can't miss the new white spots on her skin, which keep appearing and spreading. Perhaps if she had her sister's and father's "buttercream" skin she could ignore it, but Emma has her mother's "much darker complexion," and the dots are unmistakable. (If Emma's biracial, nothing is made of that fact in the story.) A doctor confirms what Emma's internet search has hinted at: Emma has vitiligo, an autoimmune condition that causes the skin to lose pigment. She's perfectly healthy, she learns, as she spends a chapter reading from a medical pamphlet, relaying helpful and informative excerpts to readers. Unsurprisingly, Emma's vitiligo, combined with being a new kid in school, has led to some vicious bullying in her new seventh grade. What would Emma do without Fina, her new friend? Fina is warm, supportive, and Mexican American, providing comfort, extremely unkidlike counseling, and educational explanations about the Day of the Dead and quinceañeras. Emma's troubles and the magical stories she'd told with Gram in the forest come together in a warm and after-school-special-ish Thanksgiving in which even the bully is revealed to be good at heart. As subtle as an extremely heartwarming brick. (Fiction. 9-11)

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March 16, 2020
Seamlessly blending childhood wonder with the slow lessons of maturity, Standish (August Isle) sketches a detailed portrait of 12-year-old Emma Talbot, a girl encountering loss. A voracious reader with a boundless imagination, Emma spent every weekend with her creative Gram in the fairytale-esque town of Lanternwood until the beginning of the summer, when Gram admitted that she had terminal cancer and the Talbots moved in to help. Now living in Gram’s cottage with her parents and older sister, Emma is starting seventh grade at the local school, where she knows no one, despite her time spent in town. On top of dealing with Gram’s death and a strained familial relationship, Emma, whose skin resembles her mother’s (it’s “much darker” than her father’s “buttercream” complexion), notices white spots on her skin—spots that multiply and get bigger by the day. What follows is a season of growth as Emma learns to navigate the complexities of her newly diagnosed
vitiligo while puzzling through a few mysteries left by Gram. Though the ending feels a bit too neat, this tale succeeds in celebrating curiosity, thoughtfulness, and collaboration, centering on relatable characters who welcome readers into their world. Ages 8–12. Agent: Sarah Davies, Greenhouse Literary.

April 1, 2020

Gr 4-6-A successful blend of mystery and friendship drama whose heroine is learning to embrace her diagnosis of vitiligo. Emma begins seventh grade with a lot on her mind: Her family has moved to a small town, her beloved grandmother has died, and she just found a white spot on the light brown skin of her foot. Within a few weeks, more color disappears from her skin, and the alpha mean girl in class adds Emma's changed appearance to the list of things she taunts her about. Fortunately, the protagonist has allies in a new friend from Los Angeles, an understanding teacher, and her own originally unsympathetic mother. Woven throughout Emma's first-person narrative are excerpts from her favorite (fictional) book, The World at the End of the Tunnel, as well as notebook entries where she co-writes a magical tale with an unknown correspondent. These interjections, plus a complicated plot involving old friendships and hidden family history, slow the pace a bit; but the thoughtful protagonist and her journey to self-acceptance make for an appealing read. An estimated one percent of people worldwide have vitiligo, and accurate information within the text will leave readers better informed about this common condition. VERDICT This gentle, contemporary title is sure to strike a chord with older tweens.-Beth Wright Redford, Park Elementary School Library, Cross Plains, WI

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Starred review from November 15, 2019
Grades 5-7 *Starred Review* When Emma discovers the first spot, like a tiny bright moon on her left foot, she's sitting in church at the funeral of her grandmother, who had been her best friend as well. Soon other pale areas appear on Emma's face and hands. The diagnosis is vitiligo, a skin condition triggered by stress. When a classmate spreads a rumor that Emma has a highly contagious skin disease, she becomes a pariah, but Fina, a new friend, helps her through that painful period. Mysteriously, someone is continuing Gram's tradition of leaving original enchanted-woodland fantasy narratives for Emma to continue writing. While trying to discover the person's identity, she and Fina uncover surprising secrets from Gram's past. In addition to creating a large, multigenerational cast of three-dimensional characters, Standish knits reality and imagination together seamlessly into an absorbing story of loss, identity, and human connections. Though Emma withdraws during her worst days, she reemerges as a stronger person who is capable of reaching out to others who are in pain. The fantasy narratives, written partly by Emma and partly by her mysterious pen pal, become a distinguishing feature of the book, separate from the main story, yet integral to it. A rewarding realistic novel, illuminated by magical elements.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)