by Victoria Forester
published 2008
completed February 2010
Piper McCloud can fly, but her parents try to keep that fact a secret. When her secret is accidentally revealed to the community, Piper became the center of a media frenzy. Soon after, she is contacted by the government to attend a special school for children with unusual gifts. The school turns out to be much different than she expected.
I picked this up because my mom was reading it for her book club. It wasn't one I would have chosen on my own, but it was a fun, quick read. All of the characters are fantastic, but I particularly enjoyed Piper. She is naive, but full of courage and heart. There is a great plot twist in the middle of the novel and it made for a fast-paced story for the last half.
The one negative part for me, was Piper's mother. It really bothered me that she discouraged Piper from flying and treated her daughter so poorly. As a mother, I can't imagine being like that. Shouldn't a mother champion her own children and encourage them to pursue their dreams? Not Mrs. McCloud.
The Girl Who Could Fly is written for a slightly younger audience than the young adult genre, but I think adults will enjoy it as well. I love the message that this book will send to young readers, that it is okay to be different. We don't need to all be the same and hide what is unique about us because it might make someone uncomfortable.
I would recommend The Girl Who Could Fly to anyone looking for an uplifting but light read.
I read this one too, about a year ago. It was a cute little book.
ReplyDeleteReading your review made me wonder if Forester would be publishing another book soon (she's not, that I could find) but I read here that this book started as a screenplay! I thought that was interesting.
It does sound kind of awful that the mother didn't celebrate such an unusual and amazing gift. What a great idea for a book for younger people though ... who has never imagined themselves flying at some point?
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