Zoey’s father passed away nine months ago in a bus accident, and ever since then she’s suffered anxiety that has overwhelmed her life. Fearful of accidents and life’s uncertainties, she doesn’t attend school, she won’t ride her bike, she won’t swim in the deep end, and she sanitizes surfaces obsessively. Her anxiety prevents her from doing things she used to love, and now it is driving a wedge between her and her best friend, Lena.
But after receiving a pencil from her favorite fantasy author, the stories Zoey write seem to come true. Zoey wonders if she can write her own happy ending – one where Lena doesn’t move on with new, cooler friends, one where her mom doesn’t take interest in a new man, and one where maybe she’s the hero. With an unlikely new friend, a boy, Derek, who also struggles with his own social anxiety, Zoey attempts to recreate her favorite protagonist’s hero journey. Things don’t always go right for her, and Zoey learns that maybe you don’t need magic to overcome your fears; sometimes putting others’ first is all you need.
WHAT I LIKED
- Kids finding relief and an escape in books
- A protagonist with an anxiety disorder
- A good message: “But she learns to live with her fears, to walk beside it. Bad things are gonna happen, to all of us, be we decide how those things change us.”
WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE
- Too many middle school tropes: the mean, popular girl who flips her hair; the best friend who is moving on with said mean, popular girl; the incredibly cruel popular boy (who teases a girl for crying when her dad just died?!); lots of eye rolling
- Everything wrapping up a little too easily and perfectly, especially the anxiety
- I didn’t feel connected to Zoey or rooting for her as much as I wanted to – she tended to make fun of the bullies behind their backs, and that always turns me off a little bit
- The prose felt a little too young for the intended audience
Overall, I think this is a good book, and I’m happy there are more books coming out that center mental health and anxiety. But, this one just wasn’t great for me.
Have you or your kiddo read The Forgotten Magic of Zoey Turner? What did you think? Comment below!
Birdie's Bookshelf 