The One and Only Ivan (2012) by Katherine Applegate

 

🦍 The one and only Ivan is a silverback gorilla. He was 'picked' from his kind by humans, and currently lives at the Exit 8 Big Top Mall and Video Arcade, where humans can watch him through the glass walls of his 'domain'. Since he grew up in human's home (Mack - the owner of the mall), Ivan has been living like human. His favorite food is yogurt raisin, his favorite pastime is either watching western movies on TV (he has his own TV inside his domain), or working on his art. Yes, Ivan also likes to paint. In short, Ivan is more human than a gorilla should be. He even only vaguely remember about the jungle, and his childhood. Why, he's contented living in his domain (well, a cage really, but her prefers to call it domain). Ivan also lives with his friends - an elderly elephant called Stella, who lives at the next door cage (Ivan's best friend), and Bob, the stray dog, who loves to sleep on Ivan's belly. 🦍 Ivan's favorite human friend is Julia, the keeper's daughter, who also loves to draw and paint. In fact, Ivan gets his art supplies from her. In short, Ivan would have been living contentedly as he is, if Ruby has never come. Ruby is a baby elephant, the Mall's newest 'member', whom they have just taken from her family. They place her together with old Stella. The fact is, Stella is too old to perform anymore with her injured leg, so they need a fresh 'talent' to train. Unlike Ivan, Stella always remembers her previous life in a zoo (elephant remembers, right?), and she's used to tell the others that there are two kinds of human: the kind and the mean; humans in the zoo are the kind one. And when Ruby was 'chastised' by Mack (you wouldn't want to know the details) to learn her actions, something stirred deep in Stella and Ivan's heart. But Stella could do nothing while she's dying, so it's left to Ivan. The question is, what can he do, while he can't even save himself? (Ivan eventually understands what living in a cage means). 🦍 This book is not what I have expected when I picked it up. It has the charming aspects of funny, cute, and tender in it; but it also touches you much deeper. Applegate did a wonderful job of portraying the nature of each animal. And as I was listening to the audiobook, I would also say that Adam Grupper has been equally wonderful in giving each animal character its perfect personification - the sturdy Ivan, the foolish and constantly-chattering Ruby, the graceful Stella, and the laid-back Bob. Ivan is the perfect hero in this alright, but I think I have a soft spot for Bob, haha! On the whole, this is a bittersweet story with a vivid characterization, and also a great way to learn more, in particular, about gorilla. 🦍 I learned an even more intriguing fact from one of Goodreads' reviews, that one and only Ivan was actually derived from a real life story of a gorilla who was also called Ivan. The real Ivan, who was famous as the "Shopping Mall Gorilla", lived - or caged - in a Department Store after being kidnapped from its habitat in Congo. It was then moved - after some protests from some animal protection groups, to Zoo Atlanta, in their Ford African Tropical Forest Exhibit, which mimics the landscape of a natural habitat. You can read more about it here. Needless to say, when I said this is a bittersweet story, I believe the 'sweet' is for the young adult readers' still tender hearts. The reality is much gloomier. When Stella pictured the zoo as a dream place, and also later on when Ruby had been installed safely and happily in a zoo, my thoughts actually were: a zoo is definitely better than a cage, but it's not a place for wild animals. How do we know that they were really happy? They shouldn't have been kidnapped from the first. Now they would never have survived in the wilds. In the end, I had a lot of thinking, and I was not happy. Ah... how I wish I have read this book while I was much more innocent! :( Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2

Maniac Magee (1990) by Jerry Spinelli

🏃🏻 Jeffrey Magee had been unfortunately orphaned at about fifteen of age, and has been living with his uptight aunt and uncle ever since. The aunt and uncle had been living separately albeit in the same house. This caused unhappiness in the house, and one day, when Jeffrey has had enough of that, he ran away. By 'ran away', I mean that Jeffrey was literally running, away from home, to nowhere to be exact, as long as it's out of the home he never really felt. Jeffrey is a runner - a terrific runner - and while other people walk to travel from one place to another, Jeffrey just runs. He soon becomes a nomad, running on the streets by day, and by night sleeping in the park or the zoo, or anywhere his legs brings him to.

🏃🏻 One day he came across some boys playing baseball, joined in the game, and successfully played it to the astonishment of everyone. That's the beginning of a legend Jeffrey is shaping his life into - or 'Maniac', as people are beginning to call him. Besides running and playing baseball, Jeffrey has the knack of untying knots - from shoestrings to yo-yo, you just name it. But that are all practical things. What Jeffrey astonished, not only children or teenagers, but adults also, was his indifference to racial distinction at that time. At Two Mills, the town where he lives, people don't just go casually from East End to West End. East Enders are where the blacks live, while the whites live in the West End. However, to Jeffrey, the two Ends are just locality, and the blacks and whites are just skin colors. He interacts and mingles with both residents without feeling any barrier.

🏃🏻 What is it that Jeffrey has been seeking during his runaway? At first it was not clear. He lives in several temporary homes - even a buffalo pen at the zoo - but he always runaways when things go not as he expected. So, what was his expectation? It became clear near the end. It is love and acceptance that would make Jeffrey call a house home. It is that character, and his love of human being that surpasses racial barrier, that makes Jeffrey an exemplary figure for middle-grader readers. It was clever of Spinelli to attract his readers first with some of Jeffrey's 'heroic' acts - at least from middle-grader's point of view: brilliant baseball player, fast runner, courage in facing bullies, and his overall good manner and helping hands. From then on, it is easier to interest them (the readers) to the racial issues. Overall, it's an interesting read, with unusual main character and some funny scenes intermingled with the moral lesson slipped gently and unobtrusively between the lines.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐1/2

Walk Two Moons (1994) by Sharon Creech

🔴 Walk Two Moons is narrated by Salamanca Tree Hiddle (or Sal), a thirteen year old Native-American girl, on a mission to bring her mother back home. After giving birth to a still-born baby, Sal's mother had gone to depression. One day she just went away from home, and her last postcard to Salamanca was sent from Idaho. Hitherto Sal has been tormenting by guilt (was her fall from the tree the cause of her mother's miscarriage?), and by loneliness (does my mother not love me enough to leave me?) Then Sal's grandparents take her on a cross-country road trip, tracing Sal's mother's steps to Idaho, from where Sal hopes of bringing her home.

🔴 During the road trip, Sal entertains her grandparents with stories about her school friend Phoebe Winterbottom, whose mother has also disappeared from home; about her annoyance about Mrs. Cadaver, to whom her father seems to be attached lately; about Ben Finney, a boy with whom Salamanca begins to be attracted. The farther they leave Euclid, Ohio (Sal's current home), the more her story unfolds. We get to learn about her happy life with her father and mother back in Bybank, with the animals and the trees she's grown to love. And of course, the mystery of anonymous messages Phoebe's family has been receiving; and the best part of the mystery, which is about the "lunatic". A young man had been coming to Winterbottom's house and looked for Mrs. Winterbottom. Phoebe concludes that it was him who has sent those letters, and that he is a lunatic. Moreover, after her mother's disappearance, Phoebe's convinced that the lunatic has kidnapped her. At some point, Phoebe (and Sal) even believe that Mrs. Cadaver might have done something bad to Mrs. Winterbottom. 

🔴 At first, Salamanca feels that Phoebe's story is related to her own story; their mother were both disappeared. But the more she tells Phoebe's story, the more she realizes that it's not so. Gram and Gramps (Sal's grandparents) try hard to cheer Salamanca up during the trip by visiting some landmarks. But when Gram is having a stroke when they're near their destination, Sal must drive the car by herself ever so slowly to Lewiston, Idaho, for four hours. What will she find at the destination? Will her mother come home? 

🔴 As is indicated by the title, Walk Two Moons is a novel about passing judgement to others. 'Walk two moons' is derived from an aphorism that Sharon Creech found in a fortune cookies, 'Don't judge a man until you've walked two moons in his moccasins.' It reminded me instantly to Atticus Finch's advice to his children in To Kill a Mockingbird. But beyond that, this novel's also dealing with coping with one's loss, building new relationships, and accepting and being proud of one's identity. All in all, it's a touching story with a twist in the end.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐1/2

Chasing Vermeer (2004) by Blue Baillett

 

👨🏻‍🎨 First of all, I was quite surprised by the mixed reviews this book gets on Goodreads. There are many two stars, but also four stars. I always liked books where people either love or hate. This book has average stars of 3.72, not that bad. So, why not? Thought I. In the end, I'm glad I have decided to read it. It was an entertaining story about art theft (Vermeer's A Lady Writing painting) and coincidences, full of puzzles and codes, and some suspenseful actions; not mentioning the history of art (particularly Vermeer), that this story induces to middle grader. What not to enjoy?

A Lady Writing by Johannes Vermeer

👨🏻‍🎨 Calder and Petra, who live in London, are ordinary high school students, but with intelligent and extraordinary passions. Calder is obsessed with pentominoes that he always keeps in his pockets. Pentomino is a polygon in the plane made of 5 equal-sized squares connected edge to edge [wikipedia]. Whenever he is unsure about something, he would pull one block from his pocket, and the letter it represents would be his "guidance" to what he should do next. He and his friend Tommy even created a code using all letters from pentominoes. Petra, on the other hand, is an imaginative girl, who, at present, is obsessed with a book titled Lo, written by Charles Fort, who believes that life is not a series of coincidences but is an interconnecting web of patterns.

The Pentominoes

👨🏻‍🎨 Their class assignment required Calder and Petra to write their interpretation of art - what-makes-an-object-art kind of thing. Calder found out that the painting on the curio box he owns, was none other than Johannes Vermeer's The Geographer. He found that out when delivering books order of to a Mrs. Sharpe's house, and saw the painting. Curiously, Mrs. Sharpe is the previous owner of the book Lo, which Petra has taken from a giveaway box outside a bookstore. Stranger still, an unknown woman in lemon yellow jacket with ribbons on her hair, has appeared in her dream, asked to be rescued. Who is she?

The Geographer by Johannes Vermeer

👨🏻‍🎨 Meanwhile, more strange things are happening. Three persons in London have received a mysterious anonymous letters asking for their helps to solve an art mystery. On the other hand, a valuable painting of Vermeer, A Lady Writing, has been stolen when in transit between the National Gallery of Art in Washington DC, and The Art Institute of Chicago, where it would be exhibited. An equally strange advertisement has been published in newspapers, apparently from the thieve, claiming that he/she had stolen it for a good cause: to raise awareness that someone else painted some of what we believe are Vermeer's works. From so many coincidences - or are they 'interconnecting patterns' in Charles Fort's theory? - Calder and Petra believe it is they who must solve the mystery, and find the stolen painting. Can they do that, while FBI has failed?

👨🏻‍🎨 Needless to say, this was an exciting read for me. I always love books with art theme, especially paintings. And Vermeer is one of painters I always admire (Girl with A Pearl Earring is my favorite by Vermeer). Apart from the far-fetched dream of Petra (the Lady asked for help and guided Petra to her location), this is an educational and entertaining read for middle grader. Just as common people who don't have interest in art before, become art connoisseur, thanks to the thief's challenge, so do middle graders who read this would have been interested more in Vermeer and his works. Such a good idea from the writer! I also love the coincidence, or strange phenomenon topic in Charles Fort's book Lo, which does really exist. Is coincident real? I believe so, co-incident means more than one incidents that occur at the same time, concerning one particular object, right? So, if two people with some interest gather forces in one project, they would be focusing in the same field, and so, there's bound to be many such co-incidents happening all around them. Charles Fort's Lo also taught us to be more open minded to strange occurrences - that we cannot fathom what's happening, doesn't mean that it doesn't exist.

What an entertaining, educational, and inspirational this book proved to be!

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Dear Mr. Henshaw (1983) by Beverly Cleary #20BooksofSummer2025

✍🏼 Leigh Botts's favorite writer in the world is a children books' author, Boyd Henshaw. Since Leigh was in second grade, he has been writing letters to "Dear Mr. Henshaw". At first because of his teacher's assignment, but then he keeps writing because his mother told him too. Being a famous writer, you would think that Henshaw would ignore these childish letters; one in particular containing a list of questions that Leigh made Henshaw answer. But funnily, Henshaw wrote back with his list of questions for Leigh to answer. And composing these serial letters containing the answers are how Henshaw taught Leigh to be a good writer.

✍🏼 Leigh's parents were divorced, and he lives with his mother who can barely support for both of them. His father is a delivery-truck driver who's always on the road (the reason why his wife divorced him), and his support checks often came late. Leigh misses him, and is always waiting for his father's calls (that are almost always late too). The one thing that helps Leigh is writing a diary, as encouraged by his favorite author Mr. Henshaw. And through this diary, and occasional letters to Mr. Henshaw, Leigh grew up towards adolescent, slowly realizing that his dreams of normal life of a family might never came true, and that he could actually be a writer someday!

✍🏼 All in all, it is a heartwarming epistolary novella, with a lovely main character. I loved how Mr. Henshaw, though we knew nothing of him, and his writings to Leigh were never actually revealed, has become the lighthouse of Leigh's otherwise bleak existence. Through his silence, rather than over-indulgence, Mr. Henshaw has built in Leigh, courage, resilient, and self confident. He was what Leigh's father lacked of, continual presence and guidance. Thanks to his suggestion of writing a diary, Leigh could pour out his frustration and disappointments into writing, and with that, he also sharpens his skills to be a writer.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2
  

Read for:

20 Books of Summer 2025

hosted by Annabel and Emma

The Upside Down River (2000) by Jean-Claude Mourlevat #ParisInJuly2025

 

🚣 While searching for an audiobook of Garlic, Mint, & Sweet Basil - an essay by Jean-Claude Izzo - I've planned to read for #ParisInJuly2025 (it's a satisfying essay to read, by the way), I came across this audiobook by another Jean-Claude - a middle-grade fantasy story. And it turned out to be a gem, I loved it! The Upside Down River is a two-parts story. The one I listened to is the first, which is subtitled: Tomek's Journey. 

🚣 Tomek is a seventeen year old orphan boy who runs a store that sells everything. By everything, it means everything you can name. One day, a girl of his age came to the store, buying some barley sugar. When the girl asked for a drop of water from river Qjar, Tomek realized three things: one, that his store doesn't sell everything after all; two, that he's actually been bored for a long time, and longed for an adventure; and three, that he's fallen in love with the girl, whom he didn't have chance to ask the name.

🚣 From an old man whom he always calls grandfather, Tomek learned more about river Qjar - it's a magical river; an upside down river that runs from sea, up to the mountain. And drinking a drop of water for that river is believed to make the person immortal. Tomek was intrigued, he wanted to meet the girl, whom he knew would be on the quest of river Qjar, and he also wanted to bring the old grandfather a drop of its water. So, off he went for his journey one fine day. And what a journey and adventure it would proof to be, and what interesting characters he would meet on the way! My favorite is Marie, a widow who travels with her cart and a donkey that farts a lot :)). He met her just at the edge of Forest of Oblivion, inside which one would forget everything that happened before entering, but right after leaving, the memory would return. Not mentioning the colony of huge bears that lived in the forest, and who were blind, but had sharp hearing. Marie was a good travel company, and it's she who give Tomek encouragement to go on his journey.

🚣 But the most exciting of all, is perhaps when Tomek finally met Hannah - the girl who bought barley sugar - and they'd go together to the river Qjar. But not before Tomek went into a sort of comma after smelling a poisonous big blue flower, and got rescued by a group of farmers; and several others strange adventures. But would Tomek and Hannah succeeded to find the river Qjar? And would they get the drops of water from it, up on the summit of the mountain, to bring home? Hannah wanted to save her most beloved bird, I forgot to mention. 

🚣 All in all, it's a short read, but packed with fun adventures. Jean-Claude Mourlevat is, surely, a great fairy tale, fable and fantasy books writer! I might perhaps get to read (or listen) the second part of this book someday (Hannah's Journey), but for now, it's my last read for #ParisInJuly2025, and a very satisfying one to wrap it up! Thank you for Emma for hosting it this year. Au revoir!

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2

Read for:

Paris in July 2025

hosted by Emma @ Words and Peace

Bud, Not Buddy (1999) by Christopher Paul Curtis

🔵 Bud Caldwell was named Bud by her mother, and before she died, she thought him to not let anyone call him Buddy. From this only, I could imagine that Bud was brought up finely by his single parent, despite of being poor. But where was Bud's father? We could only guess from Bud's point of view, of which this story was written, that he had left his wife and son on the lurch - a fact that his mother was often angry of.

🔵 Another stuff that his mother left Bud before she died was some posters of a band, her portrait, and some pebbles with dates scribbled on it. All these, and a blanket, were all of Bud's treasured belongings, put inside a worn suitcase, which he always carries with him wherever he goes.

🔵 Bud had stayed in an orphanage, then in a foster home, where he was showered by injustices, that he had had enough. Her mother also taught him that 'when one door is closed, another will open'. Bud didn't understand at first about this closing and opening of doors - he's just a ten years old boy anyway. But now that he's thirteen he began to understand. It's like when he had had enough being bullied at the foster home, that he ran away. That was closing of one door, and sure enough another door was immediately opened.

🔵 One more thing that Bud began to realize, is that the man playing saxophone in the band posters, was definitely his father - though he couldn't understand why her mother was always angry when she saw those posters (but we knew, of course). And now Bud is sure that he must find his estranged father. Can he? Is his father still a musician? And if - big if - Bud could find him, the bigger question is, would he accept Bud as his son?

🔵 I loved this book. Its strongest attraction is Bud's personality, which was built finely with love and dignity by his late mother. He's an intelligent, optimistic and funny lad, and quite self-sufficient too - no doubt due to his mother's undivided love and trust. What a simple, tender, and satisfying read it has been, set in Michigan in the 1930s during Great Depression.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2

From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler (1967) by E.L. Konigsburg

👼 Claudia Kinkaid was restless and yearned for something exciting happening to her, beyond being an obedient eldest daughter taking care of her brothers. So, she ran away. But it's not an impulsive one like any kids used to do. She planned it carefully for weeks; from the financial side (she saved her daily money, skipping Sunday's fudge), to the practical side like where she'd stay in hiding (Metropolitan of Arts Museum - a genius choice, isn't it?), and how to hide clothes she'd need to bring unnoticed, and many little details.

👼 Lastly she carefully chose which brother she'd choose to be her partner-in-crime: Jamie. He's the 'wealthiest' of them all for one thing. And he's the craftier too. So off they went for the carefully planned runaway adventure. No one suspected them, and for a few days they lived 'comfortably' at the Museum. Claudia has thought all the tricks, while Jamie's only task was as a treasurer.

👼 Then they saw a marble statue called Angel, which is believed to be made by Michelangelo, but no one had the proof. The museum bought it cheaply from an art collector, Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. Since they practically lived in the museum, Claudia and Jamie accidentally found a clue to the true maker. Will Claudia be a heroine who found the clue to Michelangelo's unknown masterpiece? Will she come home a different Claudia than the one who ran away? Because that's the whole point of running away, isn't it?

👼 I loved this book. Not only adventurous, it's also educative. Who wouldn't be thrilled to live in an art museum - free to roam around and look at one's favorite art at leisure without being jostled here and there by the crowd? Most interestingly, the story is told as letters and files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler to her lawyer. We know this from the start, and it creates a bit of mystery how she would meet the Kinkaid children. All in all, it's a cheerful and funny middle grade story, a wonderful read.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Greenglass House (2014) by Kate Milford

❄ It's few days before Christmas, and twelve year old Milo had expected a quiet holiday with his parents (foster parents, since he was adopted) at their inn, the Greenglass House. But to his great dismay, one guest arrived, then another, then another, until there are five guests staying in the house, plus the cooks who are helping. Christmas holiday is practically ruined. Or so thought Milo, before he found a strange map, and a girl his age, the cook's daughter Meddy, who invites him in a role play game.

❄ Greenglass House is not a regular inn. It had belonged to a famous smuggler, and to that day, smugglers are among the inn's frequent guests. The building itself is a unique one. Five stories high, with colorful glass windows, and located on top of a steep hill. To reach it from the bottom, the guests must use a rail car. I have been to Paris in the 2000, and I imagined this rail car is like more rustic model of funicular I took to reach Sacré Coeur in Montmartre.

❄ Milo found an usual map, like a navigator's one but with strange pictures, on the snowy ground, that one of the guests must have dropped. But whose is it? And what is the map about? It was to solve this mystery that Milo and Meddie started the game in the first place. Then some guests belongings begin missing, and one of them is seen entered another's room suspiciously. Is there a thief in the house? They also notice that the guests seem secretive; their reasons of coming to Greenglass House aren't for holiday, but for their own, which are related to the house's history. What's happening? Who's the thief, and what's the motive?

❄ This story has everything you'd want to read during the season - adventures, mystery, snowy nights, smugglers, big house with attic full of interesting stuffs, and a tiny touch of gothic (which I won't reveal so as not to spoil the story). And last but not least... the surprise. It is so unexpected, yet I should have known from the first - the clues are there from the start. Anyway, this is the only Christmas-themed story I'd read this year, and I'm glad I had. It's satisfying, heartwarming, and full of fun. I loved how Milford delving into a mildly serious issue of  Milo's insecure related to his being orphan. It added a bit of depth into the already satisfying read. This will also be my last reviewed book of this year.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐1/2

The Cryptid Files: Loch Ness by Jean Flitcroft #WitchWeek23 #NovNov23

🦕 It's been four years since Vanessa's mother died, and unlike her twin brothers Luke and Ronan, who's getting on with life nicely, Vanessa's heart is still gripped with anger and grief she's unable to cope with. Her father's growing intimacy with his girlfriend Lee doesn't make it any easier. Now her father's proposing a family holiday in Scotland, which Vanessa would've accepted gratefully, if his father hadn't mentioned that Lee is coming too. Not only coming along, she realized later on that they are staying at her house! What a preposterous idea!

🦕 On the other hand, visiting Scotland would be exciting for the twelve year old Vanessa. She might be able to complete her mother's search about Nessie, the Loch Ness monster. Like her late mother, Vanessa is fascinated with this Cryptid creature. She has even met Nessie in her dream when she's fainted near the bank of the loch.

🦕 When she's taking the boat to the loch alone (her father and Lee, who had promised to take her, don't show up), the boat overturned, and Vanessa is drowning into the deep dark water. When she's awake, she finds herself lying in a sort of cave. Inside her head she hears a soothing voice telling her to scrape moss from the wall under the cave, and eat it! Strange as it is, Vanessa eats the moss anyway, and just like the voice said, it makes her stronger, and enable her to swim deep in the water without breathing air: "Swim down deep enough and you'll find me" said the voice. And she swims on.

"She was aware now of a large shape glowing at a distance beyond her.... A huge object moved slowly towards her.... As it approached her, the glow grew more intense and the water warmer... She found herself face to face with large real-life eyes, only a couple of inches away from her. [...] 'Put your arms around my neck and I'll show you my Loch.'"

🦕 Vanessa did as she's told, and with that, a strange unlikely friendship between two creatures is cemented. Like Vanessa, Nessie had lost her mother when they came through the lock-gate many years ago. They were stuck, and couldn't come out to the sea. Nessie's mother crushed by boat when they swam under it while the water got shallow. That is what draws them together - that, and the fact that Vanessa believes in Nessie. And that believe, in turn, saved her from death. But how about returning up the land, back to her family? Could Nessie help Vanessa one more time?

🦕 This was unexpectedly a poignant and heartwarming novella. I have just lost my father three months ago, and I can imagine how hard it would have been for a twelve year old girl to cope with losing her mother. The safety and comfort of having a mother is too acute for teenage girl at that age. Though it is a fantasy story, I'm so relieved that Vanessa found Nessie's presence soothing. It might not replace a mother's love, but at least it might soothe her wounded heart a little. From then on Vanessa would be able to accept the lost of her mother, but from time to time she might perhaps relapse into sadness when something reminds her of her mother. Well, at least that's what I've been having with my late father...

🦕 I loved how each chapter starts with snippets of articles about Nessie's history and sightings. It helps elevating Nessie into the spotlight. Unlike some stories where Nessie are indicated in titles or subtitles only but her role is insignificant, this story keeps a nice balance between the humans and monster. Nessie here isn't a cute childish creature, but graceful and elusive, worthy of its legendary status.

🦕 On the whole, it is a middle grade fantasy that also touches a sensitive issue of grief, told poignantly to remind us about the true value of love, family, and friendship. It is short but wholesome, fantastic but down to earth.

Favorite quotes:

   "Life without adventure is no life at all."

   "There's nothing like imagination to get you through life."

Rating: 5 / 5

I read this book for:

Witch Week 2023 (Cryptozoo)

hosted by Chris @ Calmgrove & Lizzie @ Lizzie Ross

Novellas in November 2023

hosted by Cathy @ 746 Books & Rebecca @ Bookish Beck