Gail Shepherd's Reviews > The Miraculous

I can't think of another middle grade novel that deals with the loss of an infant sibling, and Jess Redman's THE MIRACULOUS does so with such grace and feeling it left me breathless. Having lost a sibling myself, I know just how quickly and painfully even a close family can unravel around the death of a child. Redman gets all that heartbreak on the page as she describes Wunder Ellis's confusion and loneliness, even as she balances it beautifully with a story about how faith in connection and community can help us heal, and restore our belief in everyday magic.

In spite of its painful subject, this is a warm and often funny book about friendship--Wunder's relationship with Faye, an eccentric Korean-American fan of the paranormal who has also lost her grandfather, helps him recover his passion for collecting miracles. Wunder rebuilds a broken friendship with his oldest friend Davy; he begins to understand that while he is grieving, even his best friends aren't always sure what to do or say to help him.

What I loved most about this book was the way it mirrored the rhythms of healing from grief: the ebbs and flows, the passage of time. THE MIRACULOUS movingly captures the way some things have to be dismantled--like the empty baby crib that stands for too long in a corner of Wunder's bedroom--before life can be rebuilt. As with the magical flowering tree Wunder and his friends set out to find, there is a DoorWay to healing and connection with the departed. We just have to be willing to look for it.

Note: I read an Advance Readers Copy provided by the publisher.