Hannah Greendale (Hello, Bookworm)'s Reviews > The Thing About Jellyfish

The Thing About Jellyfish is the heartrending tale of Suzy Swanson, a little girl who just encountered the Worst Thing: death. To make sense of her grief, Suzy turns to the wonders of the universe and the dazzling expanse of her imagination.

Suzy's take on the world is both academic and poetic, despite her young age. She has one of the most romantic worldviews yet encountered in a children's book:

I liked the way patterns repeated themselves in this universe, the way a solar system could resemble an atom, or a mountain range seen from outer space could look just like a fern leaf covered with frost. I liked the thought that three billion bugs fly over my head in a single month in summer or that an inch of soil might contain millions of creatures from thousands of different species.

This book is targeted at a middle grade audience, yet it offers several profound life sentiments:

Sometimes you want things to change so badly, you can't even stand to be in the same room with the way things actually are.

In the end, Suzanne," [she] continued, "it's a gift to spend time with people we care about. Even if it's imperfect. Even if the time doesn't end when, or how, we expected. Even when that person leaves us."

Even Suzy's musings on people and social behavior give the reader something to think about:

If people were silent, they could hear the noise of their own lives better.

What my dad wanted, I suspect, was the thing everybody seems to want: small talk. I don't understand small talk. I don't even understand why it's called that - small talk - when it fills up so much space.

The Thing About Jellyfish is a beautifully crafted tale about beginnings stemming from pain and blooming into a life worth cherishing.