March 25, 2024
Cashore (Seasparrow) examines themes of grief informed by the 2020 presidential election and the Covid-19 pandemic via a speculative narrative in this intimate read. High school graduate Wilhelmina Hart was raised by her aunts Margaret, Frankie, and Esther. Following Aunt Frankie’s death, Wilhelmina begins seeing bizarre visions that all seem to know her name and prophesize events before they occur. She soon realizes that she’s not the only one—her attractive friend James Fang, whose family owns a doughnut shop, is experiencing otherworldly events, too. As the 2020 presidential election draws near, Wilhelmina struggles to make sense of this new and strange magic and must come to terms with Aunt Frankie’s death if she hopes to find some peace amid tumultuous happenings. Via vulnerable and sensate third-person prose and chapters that move back and forth in time throughout the year, Cashore quilts together small, everyday moments that center family and healing. Though the punctuated nature of certain interactions can sometimes foster disconnection between the characters’ lives and relationships, distancing them from the reader, it all culminates in a nimbly braided slice-of-life tale. Wilhelmina reads as white; James is of Italian and Chinese descent. Ages 12–up.
