HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN LIVES NEXT DOOR - Cary Fagan


 It's been a few years since I've read a book that could very easily qualify for the prestigious Caldecott Award, but Cary Fagan's Hans Christian Andersen Lives Next Door is just such a book.

Andie Gladman is the new girl in a school in a small Canadian town of Meaford, Ontario. She'd like to think that she's pretty normal, even if her parents aren't.  Formally of Toronto, they left their big city jobs and are now cricket farmers - raising the insects as food supply for pet stores, individuals, or anyone needing to feed reptiles.

Being the new kid is hard enough, but with parents who raise crickets, it's next to impossible to stay out of sight of the school bully, Myrtle Klinghoffer. Myrtle, the biggest and loudest kid in class seems to want nothing more than to terrorize Andie every day. No one wants to be friends with Andie because no one wants to draw Myrtle's wrath.

But two people come into Andie's life. There's the new boy in school, Newton, who is just as much an outcast as Andie, except that he doesn't seem to notice or care, and the new neighbor who looks strikingly like the photos she's seen of her favorite author, Hans Christian Andersen. She's convinced it's him when, instead of a name, he places his initials on his mailbox ... HCA.

Andie loves writing poems - it's maybe the only thing that helps her escape the torments of Myrtle - and she's been writing poems that summarize or reinterpret Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tales. She's convinced he's the author, despite his objections, and only a devastating, embarrassing incident will help her find the truth.

There's a lot going on in this short novel - HCA, the fairy tales, Myrtle and the bullying, Newton and his steadfastness, the understanding parents, and a lesson learned when she's pushed too far. Yet somehow, author Fagan keeps it simple, let's the story flow, and doesn't overcomplicate any of it. 

There are plenty of lessons to be learned here (that's part of the makeup of award quality books) but 'be yourself' is probably at the top.  

The character of Newton is fun, and while it gives Andie a friend her own age and he gives the reader some unusual, fun facts (generally about Australia), there's really no reason for him to be in the book. While his refusal to let Myrtle get him upset could be an impetus for Andie to stand up for herself, the connection really isn't that strong and we might have gotten a stronger connection with Myrtle if he hadn't shown up.

There are a few black and white drawings by Chelsea O'Byrne scattered through the book.  I really like having books like this lightly illustrated and O'Byrne's drawings are just right for the targeted audience.

There is a part of me that wishes this didn't end so abruptly with all the storylines coming to such a neat conclusion all at once, but then I step back to recognize that I am not the intended reader and that the middle grade students who pick this up will probably really relish it.

Looking for a good book? Cary Fagan has written a delightful, warm, upbeat story for middle grade readers with Hans Christian Andersen Lives Next Door.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher, through LibraryThing.com, in exchange for an honest review.

4 stars

* * * * * *

Hans Christian Andersen Lives Next Door

author: Cary Fagan

publisher: Tundra Books

ISBN: 9781774880159

hardcover, 160 pages


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