Author: Beth Bracken and Kay Fraser
Illustrator: Odessa Sawyer
Publisher: Capstone Young Readers
Publication Date: April, 2013
Genre/Format: Fantasy/Novel
GoodReads Summary: Never wish in the woods.
With one wish made in Willow Forest, Soli and Lucy are pulled into Faerieground—and into the middle of an ancient battle. In the faerie kingdom, an evil queen searches for her daughter while the palace crumbles. To save her best friend, Soli must find her hidden strength. This is a story about friendship, growing up, and the power of wishes. This is a story about faeries and spells, queens and lost princesses, fireflies and four-leaf clovers. But mostly, this is a story about love.
What I Think: When I was little, I remember watching the movie Labyrinth. I was probably 6 or 7 and my younger sister would have been 1 or 2. The girl in the movie wishes that goblins would take her little brother away...and then they do! It's a Jim Henson movie but very dark and scary - or at least it was to me when I was little. To make it worse, there were times when I wasn't a fan of my little sister and it freaked me out to think that goblins might come and take her away if I wasn't careful.
Wish reminds me a little of that movie because Soli makes a wish in the woods and entangles herself and her best friend Lucy into the world of faeries. It definitely made me think carefully about the phrase, "Be careful what you wish for." Lucy and Soli are best friends but growing up means growing together or apart and sometimes apart to grow back together. I love that the authors capture this very real feeling that comes to being best friends. More than being a story of friendship though, this story has faeries...but not the Tinkerbell sort of faeries. Readers will enjoy connecting with the girls' story but also the fantasy of faeries and the mystery of how Lucy and Soli are connected to the faerie world.
The dark, mystery of the faeries are brought to life in the illustrations that are mixed in between the text. I think this will help readers feel like they are in the story and help them to imagine just how perilous the girls' adventure us.
Read Together: Grades 6 - 7
Read Alone: Grades 6 - 9
Read With: Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu, Wings by April Lynne Pike, Fablehaven by Brandon Mull
Snatch of Text:
"Sometimes I feel like I've left Soli behind. Sometimes it feels like she doesn't like doing the things I do. She's so quiet. She's so careful. I like being loud and bright and full of life.
She is like the other half of me.
So of course I changed my mind. I invited Soli to the party
But is there anything wrong with wanting something that could just be mine? Something I wouldn't have to share with my best friend, my sister?
My own mother? My own friends? My own party? My own boyfriend?
Does it make me a bad person?" (p. 17-18)
Reading Strategies to Practice: Visualizing
Writing Strategies to Practice: Personal Narrative
Writing Prompts: Write about a time in your life when you betrayed someone or someone betrayed you. How did you feel? What did you do about the situation?
Topics Covered: Friendship, Family, Trust, Honesty, Loyalty, Determination
I *heart* It:
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