"A sensitively told story which is made possible by an endearing and empathetic main character."
Clover is unmoored by the sudden loss of her mother, homeschooled and out of contact with other family, living with a father she’s not seen since she was little, Clover’s world is turned upside down. By looking into family history, sparked from letters kept in her mother’s secret box Clover settles, finds a connection with her father and the ability to feel hope for the future.
This is an intriguing multi-narrative story. It handles a range of tough subjects such as grief, loss of a parent, reconciliation with family, loneliness, family history and the topic of slavery with delicacy and compassion. No matter which aspect of the story you want to focus on you’ll find considered and well-crafted narrative to explore.
As Clover reads the letters from 1851 detailing the life of Mary and her experience and escape from slavery, she also meets Caterina, a young girl fiercely guarding her own secrets. The narrative deftly unfolds into a story of grief, friendship, reconciliation and hope. Searching for Remarkable Things balances the historic recollections of slavery with the experience of modern slavery in a way that is thought-provoking, highlighting the important point that such exploitation isn’t just a distant memory to learn about through historic artefacts. This makes the story a good resource to start discussions about the topic of slavery with readers. What also struck me was the reminder that the wealth generated from historic slavery didn’t disappear after abolition, that it provided the opportunity for new businesses to be created, adding more complexity to the discussion.
I think that Searching for the Remarkable in Things is a sensitively told story which is made possible by an endearing and empathetic main character in Clover.
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| Primary Genre | Indie Author Books |
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Mary, Georgia, 1851
My Momma always told me that, one day, remarkable things would happen to me. ‘No, Mary,’ I hear her say, voice dripping like treacle, ‘not happen to you; you will do remarkable things.’
Not now though, trapped and with no room to properly breathe – nowhere to look even but the sky above and the earth under my feet pressed flat on the ground from working and walking from dawn until the sun sets low in a stretched wide sky of cerise and crimson. For now, my space to breathe is inside. In that little pocket deep within my chest or heart or something – the bit they can’t touch.”
Clover has felt so alone since her mother passed away - there was only ever Mum and Clover and they were a team. That is until Clover discovers a box of old letters, dating back to 1851, where the voice of a young woman will tell Clover about her true heritage and the dark family secrets of slavery that Mum hid from her.
A Young Adult fiction novel by debut author, Natalie Lucy.
The LoveReading4Kids Editorial Team have read and reviewed Searching for the Remarkable in Things and determined it is suitable for children aged 15-18 years old
Searching for the Remarkable in Things features in the following genres: Featured Books for Young Adults, Indie Author Books , Indie Books We Love, Historical Fiction, Children’s / Teenage fiction: General, modern and contemporary fiction, Children’s / Teenage category fiction, Children's and Young Adult Fiction, Recommendations, Children’s, Teenage and Educational, Children’s / Teenage fiction: Special features and related items
Searching for the Remarkable in Things is available in Paperback
Searching for the Remarkable in Things was written by Natalie Lucy and published by ZunTold
Searching for the Remarkable in Things has 249 pages
£8.09
