Reality and fantasy collide in this “beautiful and reflective tale” (Booklist, starred review) for fans of Counting by 7s and Bridge to Terabithia, about a girl who must save a magical make-believe world in order to save herself. Things Finley Hart doesn’t want to talk about: -Her parents, who are having problems. (But they pretend like they’re not.) -Being sent to her grandparents’ house for … -Being sent to her grandparents’ house for the summer.
-Never having met said grandparents.
-Her blue days–when life feels overwhelming, and it’s hard to keep her head up. (This happens a lot.)
Finley’s only retreat is the Everwood, a forest kingdom that exists in the pages of her notebook. Until she discovers the endless woods behind her grandparents’ house and realizes the Everwood is real–and holds more mysteries than she’d ever imagined, including a family of pirates that she isn’t allowed to talk to, trees covered in ash, and a strange old wizard living in a house made of bones.
With the help of her cousins, Finley sets out on a mission to save the dying Everwood and uncover its secrets. But as the mysteries pile up and the frightening sadness inside her grows, Finley realizes that if she wants to save the Everwood, she’ll first have to save herself.more
I picked up Some Kind of Happiness at the thrift store. The cover beckoned. It sounded like a fantasy. And it is…ish.
Some Kind of Happiness is a heart-wrenching mixture of real life and fantasy. Eleven-year-old Finley is dealing with some tough stuff–anxiety, depression, the uncertainty in her parent’s marriage, and being sent to grandparents she’s never met while her parents attempt to work out their issues. Fantasy and reality intermingle in Fin’s mind as she wrestles with life. To cope, she’s invented another world–Everwood.
When Fin arrives at her grandparent’s home, she finds Everwood is “real” and in trouble. She slowly lets others into her world. First her cousins. Then the forbidden Bailey boys.
The author does an incredible job getting into a troubled eleven-year-old mind. The way she sees the world and people is poetic, beautiful, and often sad. Some Kind of Happiness is emotional. I don’t recall crying while reading like this before. But Legrand wrote Fin so well, I grew to love her.
The kids get into some mischief and blatantly disobey direct orders. There are consequences for the actions, but it all leads to answering Fin’s questions: Why is her father estranged from his parents? Why are they not allowed to visit Everwood? Why aren’t they allowed to associate with the Bailey’s? All combined, the answers to these questions solve the ultimate mystery–what happened to the Travers family?
If you enjoy seeing life through the eyes of a child, gaining a deeper understanding of what it is to struggle with depression and anxiety, intermingled with fantasy and mystery, and possibly shedding a tear or many–Some Kind of Happiness is for you.
Wow…this book is absolutely fantastic. I can’t say enough good things about it. I don’t rave about a ton of books, but I would give this one over 5 stars in a heartbeat and recommend it to everyone.
I don’t have a lot of experience with anxiety, but I do with depression. And this is the most accurate and poignant description of depression I’ve ever read. And yet somehow, it’s not a depressing book. It’s full of lovable characters, fascinating mysteries and secrets, and completely beautiful prose. The interwoven story of the Everwood is done expertly and adds another dimension to an already rich story.
Finley is a sweet and lovable narrator, realistic and multidimensional. She handles “the darkness she carries inside her” the best she knows how, and develops unique relationships with her cousins and neighbors that enrich the story and make you fall in love with all of them.
I was really curious about how she would handle the ending, what kind of resolution there could be for a book dealing with so many real issues, and I wasn’t disappointed. It was realistic and satisfying and made me cry in a good way (and books don’t make me cry).
This book was unique, beautiful, memorable, and extremely well-written. I expect to reread it at some point, and it will be at the top of my list of books to recommend, not just for middle grade and young adults, but for anyone who loves a rich, unpredictable story that delves into real issues and does so with a lot of heart.
This is my favorite book of all time!!!!!
I read this book aloud to our 11-year-old son, and he gives it it four stars as well, but he is a very tough reviewer. “Everything pretty much gets a two or a three,” he said, when I asked him how he would rate this. “Unless it’s outstanding.” So he thinks this book is outstanding and I love that! It really was good. I liked the author’s style. I liked her sentences. I loved the lists, and the side thoughts and parenthesis. The story was real-life and creative adventure. It was stormy, with lots of breakthroughs. We will be reading more books by this author.