A Glasshouse of Stars
Winner of the CBCA Book of the Year Younger Readers 2022
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5.0 • 2 Ratings
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
Winner of the Children's Book Council of Australia Book of the Year - Younger Readers 2022
Meixing Lim and her family have arrived at the New House in the New Land. Everything is vast and unknown to Meixing – including the house she names Big Scary. She is embarrassed by her second-hand shoes, has trouble understanding the language at school, and is finding it hard to make friends.
Meixing’s only solace is a glasshouse in the garden, which inexplicably holds the sun and the moon and the secrets of her memory and imagination.
When her fragile universe is rocked by tragedy, it will take all of Meixing’s bravery to find her place of belonging in this new world.
'Heart-twisting and hopeful, bursting with big feelings and gentle magic. This is a special book from a powerful, compassionate new voice in children’s literature, destined to be read and loved for generations and held close in many hearts (including mine).' – Jessica Townsend, New York Times bestselling author of the Nevermoor series
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
First published in Australia, Marr's (Little Jiang) uneven sophomore middle grade follows quiet, pensive Chinese child Meixing Lei, her pregnant Ma Ma, and Ba Ba, "Old People" and new immigrants to the "New Land," where recently deceased First Uncle has bequeathed them a house that Meixing names "Big Scary." Seemingly shifting and growing to reflect Meixing's emotions, the house contains a mystical glasshouse, where Meixing sees past and future visions and interacts with First Uncle. But when tragedy strikes, the family must rely on their Vietnamese neighbors, the Huynhs, including sullen Kevin, a classmate of Meixing's. Certain elements, including a lunch box moment and Ma Ma's pressure on Meixing to become a doctor and bring honor to the family, will be familiar to readers of similar diasporic titles. While the narration doesn't always feel age-appropriate ("Ailing, so highly foreign educated but completely ignorant about the proceedings of a traditional funeral") and the prophetic glasshouse feels underutilized, the second-person perspective allows direct access to Meixing's rich inner landscape, and the hopeful end to this gentle speculative novel will satisfy. Ages 8–12.
