A Mango Shaped Space by Wendy Mass

Wendy Mass is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. My son, my husband and I all read (separately) "Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life" and love-love-loved it. (We all cried. All of us.) Ever since, I've been wanting to check out some of her other books and I found the title of this one intriguing. The story did not disappoint.

Mia is an unusual girl in that she has a "disorder" called synesthesia. I put disorder in quotes for two reasons. One, at first Mia doesn't realize she is any different than anyone else and two, because the synesthesia is not a detriment to Mia. Quite the opposite. So what is synesthesia? Well, if you have it you might taste bananas every time someone sneezes. Or you might see puffs of mango-colored clouds come out of your cat's mouth every time she breaths. Apparently, synesthesia is different for everyone, but it's a connection between your senses and for Mia it means she sees letters and numbers in color, and with patterns and texture.  When she hears sound, she sees shapes in the air before her eyes. Life has always been like this for her, and she doesn't know any different. Until she realizes that nobody else in her world experiences things the way she does. And from then on, Mia thinks something is wrong with her. She struggles in school, has few friends, and finally confides in her parents. I won't give away any more of the story, because the from there on out, the story pulls you along magnificently as Mia and her family work to find out what's going on.

And of course, Mia's beloved cat Mango (named for the color of her breath) plays a pivotal role in helping Mia discover that who you are is not always defined by what you can or cannot do.

As a reader, I was fascinated with synesthesia and loved discovering this subculture of people who experience the world in such a unique way. As a pet lover, this book broke my heart. Mia is totally believable in how she deals with her only friends, her classmates and her siblings. Once I hit the end of the first chapter, I literally couldn't put the book down -- the pacing is excellent and I was completely engaged in Mia's world. A rare 4.75 bookmarks for this one and I can't wait to read Wendy Mass' other books -- look for upcoming reviews on Leap Day and Heaven Looks A Lot Like The Mall.

Savvy by Ingrid Law

I'm reading a lot of books lately where the kids converse or think in ways more adult than their years. In The Mysterious Benedict Society, however, one could argue that it fit with the characters being "exceptional children." In Savvy, Mibs is a delightful character, confused as a thirteen year old girl should be, especially when coming into her special family talent. The problem comes when she figures things out.

In Mibs (short for Mississippi) Beaumont's family, coming of age has an interesting twist. On the day of their thirteenth birthday, children in that family discover their savvy, another word for a special gift that is uniquely theirs. Mibs' grandfather can move mountains. Her mother is perfectly perfect in every way. Her oldest brother conducts electricity and her other brother, Fish, raises storms with his emotions. Literally. The children are home-schooled after their 13th birthday because controlling a savvy is tricky. Which is why Mibs is a bit nervous about what hers will be.

And then, the day before her birthday, a terrible accident puts her beloved father in a coma. Now Mibs, Fish, and their youngest brother, are stuck under the protective watch of their pastor's wife. When Mibs' birthday dawns, and she starts to get hints that her savvy might help her father, she decides to stowaway on the bus delivering Bibles to the church (along with both her brothers and the pastor's two kids). This begins a wild adventure trying to get to the hospital, and all the wrong turns along the way that help Mibs discover that her true savvy may be something more than she even realizes.

I liked the originality of this book. It was an enjoyable read and the story pulled me in and carried me right along. My only issue, which I hinted at above, is that in the first person POV, Mibs tells us a little too much about what she's thinking. The conclusions she reaches about "growing up" are a bit too wise for someone her age, and come too easily within a 48 hour period. If only figuring yourself out at that age were so easy. I almost think that if the author had not explained so much about "how Mibs was feeling" and let her actions show us, it might not have felt as forced.

Still, I think the book has a wonderful message that each of us have a uniqueness that can have an impact. Definitely worth a read. 3 and a half bookmarks.

The Mysterious Benedict Society -- Trenton Lee Stewart

With the snarkiness of A Series of Unfortunate Events and the mind-bending conundrums of Chasing Vermeer, The Mysterious Benedict Society is a group a four gifted children brought together by an enigmatic classified ad that asks:

Are you a gifted child looking for special opportunities?

When the parentless kids respond to the ad, they are put through a series of tricky tests and puzzles that qualify them as the perfect team the narcoleptic Mr. Benedict needs to infiltrate the secretive school L.I.V.E. (the Learning Institute for the Very Enlightened). This school, Mr. Benedict believes, is somehow behind the subliminal messages he has discovered are being broadcast as part of the evil Mr. Curtain's mind-control plot to (mwah ha ha ha) take over the world!

Reynie Muldoon is an excellent lead character -- geeky intelligent but likable in his role as the group's unofficial leader. The never-forgets-anything-he's-ever-read George "Sticky" Washington, the get-out-of-any-situation Kate and the perpetually grumpy Constance Contraire (SUCH a great name) round out the group. The four friends don't always get along, in fact, it takes them a while to really discover their friendship, but ultimately the bond is cut deep as they work together to solve the mystery and, in the process, become something none of them have ever had -- a real family.

I listened to the audiobook and while I loved Del Roy's homey voice, it held a strange quality I can't put my finger on. I don't know if I think he was the right voice for the story, but it was certainly warm and friendly. It felt a little too old for the characters, and their dialogue was very adult, so that didn't help.

The story itself is intriguing and filled with twists, turns and puzzlers that kids will love figuring out. There were a couple of spots where the pacing slowed too much for me, but in the end I thoroughly enjoyed it. So much so that I went right to my public library website and reserved a copy of the sequel: The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey. 

This one gets an enthusiastic four bookmarks! Let me know if you've read it and what you thought!

Debut of Cool Kids Book Reviews

Welcome to Cool Kids Book Reviews -- here I'll be reviewing some great middle grade and YA reads. I'll also host some guest reviewers from our readers and hope to post author interviews with some of your favorites as well.

If you'd like to recommend a title to be reviewed, or submit a review of a book that you've written, please post it in the comments section.

My first review will be on "Gods of Manhattan" by Scott Mebus. I just finished it and hope to have the review posted in the next couple of days.

And thanks for visiting Cool Kids Book Reviews! Hope you find your new favorite book here!