Publication Date: April 23 2019

Genre: YA Contemporary/ Magical Realism

Source: The Book Drop

Synopsis:

Magpie Lewis started writing in her yellow notebook the day her family self-destructed. That was the night Eryn, Magpie’s sister, skipped town and left her to fend for herself. That was the night of Brandon Phipp’s party.

Now, Magpie is called a slut whenever she walks down the hallways of her high school, her former best friend won’t speak to her, and she spends her lunch period with a group of misfits who’ve all been socially exiled like she has. And so, feeling trapped and forgotten, Magpie retreats to her notebook, dreaming up a place called Near.

Near is perfect–somewhere where her father never cheated, her mother never drank, and Magpie’s own life never derailed so suddenly. She imagines Near so completely, so fully, that she writes it into existence, right in her own backyard. It’s a place where she can have anything she wants…even revenge.

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*I would like to thank The Book Drop for this advanced reader copy in return for being their brand ambassador*

A strange contemporary and magical realism combination that draws on and reminds me of the movie Pleasantville and A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness!

*TW* This book take on a though provoking take on rape culture and how many times what a girl says doesn’t seem to matter.

Everyone has their own way to deal with trauma and pain. Magpie created her own version of escape from the horrors that have been plaguing her over the past few months. Magpie turns to a notebook in which she writes the world the way she wishes it was.

I thought that Leno did a fantastic job with creating a magical way to manifest the trauma and pain that has been inflicting Magpie. Much like the way Patrick Ness creates a monster to be the manifestation of what the young boy was dealing with in regards to his mother. Sometime I believe that there are times when turning mental illness, trauma or pain into a being/object that everyone can understand makes trying to deal with a situation or explaining the affects and toll it has on someone makes it easier to comprehend. It might not have been Leno’s intention, but I felt like what she did really painted a portrait of how certain events took a toll on Magpies life. Not saying that how Magpie ultimately dealt with certain situation was the right way or okay at all.

You’ve created the universe, and he wants the rules to be simple and easy and tied up in a bow? Well, sorry to disappoint you. Nothing about this place is simple.

I did find the character of Magpie to be annoying at times. She had a lot going on and I know how some of those things could take such a great toll on her, but she avoided those who cared for her and tried to help. I get why to an extent because of what happened to her a losing her best friend. The other ragtag team of characters that were outcast and quickly became her friend base were great.I wish we got to see more of them. I felt like a lot of the book was stuck in Magpie’s head which I get is kind of the point, but it caused the book to loose some depth for me.

“You felt so deeply, and for so long, that your very sadness grew limbs and walked away from you. You have moved mountains, Magpie Lewis, and you are only just getting started.”

Overall I appreciated what Leno was attempting to do, by loudly calling out rape culture and the affect it has on individuals. The ending was absolutely wild and was kind of abrupt. It was a little dragged out at time, but had some great eye opening moments. It was a quick and dark book at times which had me on edge. The book packs a punch with multiple different heavy topics covered and the strong need for escaping our own reality.