This is the latest novel from Middle Grace novelist Kimberly Behre Kenna, who previously worked as a breakfast cook, a detective’s assistant, a martial arts instructor, and a teacher.
Sixth grader Jett Jamison wants nothing more than a little peace and quiet. It’s bad enough that she’s living in a small house in the tiny town of Wisteria with obnoxious twin brothers, but she has voices buzzing around in her head about bits of a bad memory, and they’re getting louder every day. While looking for some tranquility in the peaceful gardens outside the local church, she befriends a nun who recommends a book that may help bring her some comfort. When she ventures to the local library, the book is missing pages, and its pages have been written all over. Moments later, the book completely disappears. When she questions the librarian and others about getting her hands on another copy, nobody wants to talk about it.
After more investigation, Jett realizes that the book has been pulled from the shelves of all local libraries and is being censored. Enraged, Jett is determined to fight the censorship to allow the book’s story to be shared and rallies her friends to plan a peaceful protest. When the protest backfires and the town goes berserk, Jett realizes that peace isn’t always quiet, and she’ll need to heal herself before she can restore calm to Wisteria. With the help of her clever pet bunny, Felix, a grey cat in the church’s garden, and the ghost of an author in the library, she’s finally got the tools to face the noise in her head and tackle it head-on.
This is a very unique middle-grade novel with some powerful messages. One of the prominent messages of the book is about the dangers of censorship and book banning. If people are not given the opportunity to read books about difficult subjects, especially ones they can relate to from personal experience, they are being robbed of a chance to know they’re not alone, so they can tell their own stories and release their pain. The book also touches upon issues of physical abuse and mental health in a carefully crafted manner, making it suitable for a middle school audience. The strong messages that are presented in these subjects may help better prepare students for adolescence and adulthood.
Throughout the book, Jett is battling a horrible internal conflict that she doesn’t quite understand. Her constant need to keep things in order and her hypersensitivity to noise are highly suggestive of her self-consciously suppressing memories and emotions from past trauma. Not only does she not understand the root cause of her distress, but the other students view her as odd and make fun of her “abnormal” behavior. Unfortunately, Jett’s problems are quite commonplace in today’s hectic society, much more so among adult women, and so this book gives a universal message of hope for healing and recovery. The strong message of utilizing natural healing methodologies is also wonderfully presented in the book: healing tinctures, the peaceful garden, the pet bunny, and the mystical grey cat all play a role in Jett’s path towards self-discovery and healing.
Narrator Candace Fitzgerald is a great choice for this book, as her youthful, exuberant voice coupled with a sensitive tone are the perfect combination for bringing Jett to life. Fitzgerald demonstrates the versatility and mastery of her craft by also convincingly portraying the adult characters and making them uniquely stand out, especially when portraying the darker moments of the nun’s story.
This may not be your typical middle-grade feel-good novel, but it’s one with unexpectedly powerful messages that translate across generations and one that can provide hope to those suffering. It’s books like these that are the catalysts of an evolving society, one that is learning from its past mistakes and better preparing the future generation for struggles ahead.