BOOK REVIEW: UP IN THE AIR by Anne Marie Meyers

 

Welcome to Marvelous Middle Grade Monday (MMGM), a weekly event hosted by author 

Shannon Messenger. For a list of other MMGM posts, click HERE.

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UP IN THE AIR

Anne Marie Meyers

Jolly Fish Press 

Ages 8 - 12

244 pp.

Ever since she can remember, ten-year-old Melody has always wanted to fly.? 

And when she leaps off a swing in the park one day and lands in the mystical realm of Chimeroan, her dream finally comes true. She is given a pair of wings. She can fly! Life cannot be any better.? Yet, dreams do come with a price. Even with wings, Melody realizes she cannot outfly the memories of her past. The car accident that has left her father paralyzed, and her unscarred, still plagues her with guilt-she believes that it was entirely her fault.?

In Chimeroan, Melody is forced to come to terms with her part in her father's accident. She must choose between the two things that have become the world to her: keeping her wings or healing her father.

MY REVIEW:

I love the cover of this book, a little girl leaping from a swing, arms outstretched, a smile on her face. I remember doing that as a kid, that brief, exhilerating feeling of freedom and  weightlessness before landing in a crouch on the grass. There was nothing like it. In Up in the Air, Melody craves that feeling--more than that, she wants to fly. And her wish comes true when she's transported to Chimeroan where everyone's wishes come true.

Up in the Air is a wonderful example of magical realism for children. Kids who love mystical creatures, or magic, or even realistic stories with heart will enjoy this story.  Geared, I think, for a slightly younger audience, it would even make a great read-aloud bedtime story, and will inspire children to use their imaginations and dream!

CONTENT RATING:

Violence: Mild

Profanity: None

Sexuality: None