Molly & Pim and the Millions of Stars

November 7, 2016
Both down-to-earth and ethereal, Murray’s (How to Make a Bird) novel introduces 10-year-old Molly, who lives with her mother in a house that “feel like a Gypsy caravan” inside and has “not one proper corner or straight line.” Molly conceals the “not-quite-normal” parts of her life from her practical best friend, Ellen, including her “muddled and dreaming” Mama’s preoccupations with herbs, poetry, and other projects. So when Mama concocts a potion intended to grow a tree to block them from their horrid neighbors—but instead turns into a tree herself—Molly hides this turn of events from Ellen. Instead, she confides in Pim, a reclusive boy who believes in the interconnectedness of all living things, revealing that her sentient “Mama tree” rearranges its branches to create a bed for her and bears mysterious fruit to feed her. Murray’s gentle, image-rich narrative takes on gripping urgency as Molly and Pim try to protect the tree from her neighbors’ chainsaw. Tinged with fantasy, this is a thoughtful exploration of difference, as well as the ties between friends, parents and children, and humans and nature. Ages 8–12.

October 1, 2016
When her mother is accidentally transformed by a powerful potion, Molly learns to accept the magic in her own life.Ten-year-old Molly would like an ordinary mother, not someone who collects herbs in the woods, makes healthy, homemade snacks, and picks her up from school on a bicycle built for two. But thats before her mother accidentally drinks a concoction meant to speed an acorns growth and turns into a tree. Left on her own with only her dog and disdainful cat for company, Molly makes a new friend, learns something surprising about an old one, and finds her own particular kind of light. Though magic is involved, this story of self-discovery is mainly about friendship and appreciating differences. Best friend Ellens life seems wonderfully commonplace, but Ellen worries shes boring. And, surprisingly, Molly is intrigued by Pim, the oddest boy in school. When he seems open to the strangeness of her terrible new problem, she enlists his help. The Australian setting is unobtrusively revealed by occasional mention of specific species; theres no mention of race or skin color, though the title characters are depicted as white in cover art. The authors black-and-white sketches of flowers and other important features of the story head chapters and occasionally accompany text. Molly's notebook, with illustrations and descriptions of plants and their uses, completes the package. Warm and wise for middle-grade readers who appreciate just a hint of the fantastic. (Fiction. 8-12)

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Starred review from November 1, 2016

Gr 3-6-In this Australian import, 10-year-old Molly just wants to be normal. She is jealous of her best friend Ellen's organized parents, clean house, and prepackaged muesli bars from the grocery store. Molly, on the other hand, has a space cadet mother who wanders off into the woods to gather herbs, makes potions, fills the house with odd trinkets, and prepares strange homemade food for Molly's lunch. But as annoying as her mother can be, when she accidentally turns herself into a tree, Molly is devastated-and desperate to get her back. The problem is that she's too embarrassed to tell anyone what has happened, except for Pim, a fellow misfit. When Molly's mean neighbors threaten to chop down her mother's tree, the situation becomes all the more urgent. Ultimately, Molly discovers that love, trust, and friendship matter more than being "normal." Molly and her friends are fully realized characters in a richly developed world. VERDICT Imaginative middle graders will relish this gentle story with a fairy-tale feel. A stellar addition.-Eliza Langhans, Hatfield Public Library, MA

Copyright 2016 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

November 1, 2016
Grades 3-6 At school, Molly struggles to maintain the appearance of a normal life, but she's secretly embarrassed by her mother, whose life revolves around gathering herbs, preparing herbal remedies, and engaging in magical thinking. When a sip of the wrong potion turns Mama into a tree, it's up to Molly to call upon her own previously denied skills as a healer and an herbalist to figure out how to bring her mother back. Along the way, Molly befriends an unusual classmate who offers help, acceptance, and perspective. Murray grounds the story in realistic details concerning the settings, the characters, and their emotions, making it easier for readers to accept the one enormous fantasy element at the heart of the story. The magical embellishments, such as the mother/tree fashioning a cozy bed of living branches for her daughter to sleep in and sprouting nutritious fruits for her to eat, have a certain charm, but it's the down-to-earth depiction of Molly that will keep readers involved with the story. An enjoyable third-person narrative, first published in Australia.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)