ORPHANLAND — Review & Giveaway

Thought for the Day:

“I’m always aware of writing around things I can’t do, and I’ve come to think that that’s actually what ‘style’ is – an avoidance of your deficiencies.”


~ George Saunders ~

Gifts for My Writer Friends:

I’ve often read about a story being structured in three acts, but HERE K. M. Weiland has an interesting post all about The Four-Act Structure and the Circular Shape of Story.

C. S. Lakin has a pair of wonderful posts on Using Contradictions to Create Masterful Microtension – Part 1 HERE and Part II HERE. These are long, but chock full of good content and examples.

Sarah E. Ladd has a good Writer’s Digest article HERE on How to Write When Procrastination Gets in the Way. Procrastination is certainly something I battle with. I should frame this and hang it on my wall.

Just so you know, you are liable to read a bit about Formula 1 racing in coming posts on my blog. I have a family that is crazy for F1, and I am having quite the learning curse. I mentioned last week that I thought the race we watched — I think it was the Australian Grand Prix — was pretty boring. My family assured me it wasn’t a very challenging track and that the next one would be better. They were right. The Shanghai Grand Prix was run in the middle of our night, and when we watched it this morning, it did not disappoint. Plenty of drama and excitement. A nineteen year old kid won the race! I can see that I will be spending way too much time on this sport. The stands for the race were absolutely packed and steep and treacherous looking. I’m perfectly content watching on TV from the comfort of my couch. We have actually been talking about taking a family trip to see one of the races, but I think I will have to study the venues this year to find places I would feel safe. Anyway, it’s an intresting new chapter in my life.

Last week, I offered a gently-read hardback ARC of WILD MOUNTAIN IVY by Shannon Hitchcock to one of you. This week’s winner is Sue Heavenrich. Congratuations, Sue! I will get your book out to you soon. If you don’t know Sue and her work, you really should. She writes amazing science-based books for kids. You can explore her site HERE, and it is really worth your time. She wrote one of my favorite kids books — 13 WAYS TO EAT A FLY. She makes learning so much fun.

I think titles are so important and so difficult. It’s not easy to capture my interest in one or two words, but when I ran across ORPHANLAND by Lauren Bomberger Fischer on the review list for the Manhatten Book Review, I was intrigued and asked for it right away. It is an interesting story. Here is the review I wrote for MBR.

Willa is 11 and has lived at the Southern Ohio Children’s Home since her mother died from opioids when Willa was 7. She loves it there and intends to never leave. Mercy, the woman who runs the Home, always needs more money to keep the place running. Willa has other kids her age at the home who are good friends. The latest to come, Kacey, is non-binary. Willa and Kacey become best friends. When they find some hidden diaries left by Mercy’s great-aunt (who had taken Mercy in when she was in her teens), and they discover an abandoned school with a frightening history nearby, they have two mysteries to solve. While all this is happening, the future of the Home is threatened.

Author Lauren Fischer has written a compelling story with interesting characters and a couple of mysteries woven through. There are some problems with the book, though. There are several story lines for young readers to track — the opioid crisis in small towns, lack of public support for orphanages, the horrors of some reform schools, and more. Unrealistically, five prepubescent boys and girls share a bedroom. This a good story with a real lack of focus and research.

I have a gently-read paperback to give to one of you. All you need to do is be a follower (it’s free and easy — see the top, right corner of the post) with a US Address, and leave a comment. If you share the link to this post on social media, please let me know in your comment, and you will get an extra chance. And please don’t forget to check for other Marvelous Middle-Grade Monday posts at Greg Pattridge’s blog HERE.