{"id":31319,"date":"2018-06-27T22:46:37","date_gmt":"2018-06-28T02:46:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=31319"},"modified":"2018-06-27T22:46:37","modified_gmt":"2018-06-28T02:46:37","slug":"review-of-the-seventh-wish-by-kate-messner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sonderbooks.com\/blog\/?p=31319","title":{"rendered":"Review of The Seventh Wish, by Kate Messner"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>The Seventh Wish<\/em><\/p>\n

by Kate Messner<\/p>\n

Bloomsbury, 2016. 228 pages.<\/p>\n

This is a nice quiet middle grade story with a touch of fantasy. It reminds me of Edward Eager books \u2013 dealing with wishes \u2013 except that it\u2019s only one kid figuring out the wishes instead of a family of brothers and sisters.<\/p>\n

I like all the details in this book. Charlie (short for Charlotte) lives in a town where winters and long and cold and her neighbors like to go ice fishing. Charlie\u2019s always been afraid to go far out on the ice \u2013 until one day at a hole in the ice at a shallow part of the lake, she catches a fish with sparkling green eyes. It promises her a wish if she releases it.<\/p>\n

Charlie thinks she must be imagining it, so she makes a frivolous wish \u2013 that Roberto Sullivan (the cutest boy in her school) will fall in love with her and that she won\u2019t be afraid to go on the ice.<\/p>\n

Instantly, she is no longer afraid. She goes out on the ice with the others and catches more fish. She starts to forget about it \u2013 and then the next day at school Robert O\u2019Sullivan \u2013 definitely not the cutest boy in the school \u2013 is crazy about her, embarrassing her with love notes.<\/p>\n

It turns out that when Charlie fishes at that hole in the ice, she usually catches the fish again \u2013 and is promised a wish if she releases it. She tries to help her friends \u2013 but wishes don\u2019t always turn out exactly like you hope they will. And when she makes a wish for herself, it especially backfires.<\/p>\n

I love all the details in this book. Charlie competes in Irish dancing and wants to save money to get a solo dress for the competition. I knew nothing about Irish dancing or ice fishing.<\/p>\n

But the central problem of the book is that Charlie\u2019s older sister who\u2019s off at college turns out to be addicted to heroin. This book reveals how that affects Charlie and how much it affects her whole family.<\/p>\n

So what starts as a light-hearted book as Charlie is saving money for a dress and catching fish and having fun with friends \u2013 does delve into some heavier issues. But Kate Messner keeps things firmly from the 7th grade protagonist\u2019s perspective. <\/p>\n

There is a message, done with a very light touch, about how hard it is to get out of heroin use once you\u2019ve started. And that your life will be much better if you never start. The Serenity Prayer comes up frequently \u2013 Charlie does have to learn that she can\u2019t magically fix her sister. Not even with a magic fish.<\/p>\n

But mostly it\u2019s a playful story about a seventh grade girl who finds a magic wishing fish.<\/p>\n

What would you say if a fish offered you a wish, and you had to come up with a good one in time to let it back in the water?<\/p>\n

katemessner.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Buy from Amazon.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Find this review on Sonderbooks<\/a> at: www.sonderbooks.com\/Childrens_Fiction\/7th_wish.html<\/a><\/p>\n

Disclosure: I am an Amazon Affiliate, and will earn a small percentage if you order a book on Amazon after clicking through from my site.<\/p>\n

Source: This review is based on a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.<\/p>\n

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I maintain my website and blogs on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.<\/p>\n

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