Sylvia Cassedy (1930–1989)

I first read this as a child and I've read it many times since then. I just finished re-reading it and actually stayed up until the wee hours of the morning because I couldn't put it down even though I already knew the ending!
I think this book is so well written. It's the kind of book that stays with you long after you've finished it. I really like the way it is written with small glimpses into the present in between the different parts. I think because it is written in this way what could show more have been a really depressing book is quite hopeful. We see in the first couple of pages that Maggie is living with a family who she has grown to love and she's started to call them mom and dad and her sisters. This gives us hope as we read about her difficult life knowing that she has found a place to belong.
I think the author did a wonderful job of showing Maggie's insecurities and vulnerabilities and helping us understand why she does the things she does.
There are still some really sad parts in this book that just break my heart. When she finally has something to share with her class and she comes out of her shell to excitedly share only to be laughed at. She's so afraid to get close to anyone and so she does things so that people won't want to be around her. She's become much more comfortable alone, sometimes if feels easier that way.
I didn't like the two aunts but I think they were portrayed realistically as they were stuck in their ways with their own views and were very intolerant of anyone behaving in ways that didn't fit into their box. We do see a brief glimpse of one of the aunts excitement at giving Maggie a gift which Maggie doesn't want and things may have gone differently if Maggie had accepted this gift.
I really enjoyed the ending although it was bittersweet and haunting.
A beautifully written story that I will continue to enjoy re-reading.

This book was reviewed on the Literary Club Podcast episode 66
https://www.buzzsprout.com/1984185 show less

As an adult, I prefer this to Behind The Attic Wall; both are lonesome and sad and eerie, but Lucie and her house are somethin' else.

Cassedy is brilliant. Brilliant. The scope and heft of her writing ... I can't articulate it. The children in Lucy's school have names and personalities, sometimes; but again and again they act as a pack, names and differences falling away in a gaggle of speech that runs down the page without any attempt at differentiation. The little differences come out and show more recede again. Storks and Cranes. Emily and, most strongly, Claire. The adults walk around making noises and being difficult, but the real life goes on below their notice. And Lucie's life goes on below anyone's notice ...

What is real and what is imaginary meld together, as they do, and Cassedy says: It doesn't matter. You can lose your house and your family and your entire life, and still what's in you can rise to the top like a bean sprouting in a cup. If you want. You can return to the dark closet. You can spend your time in the circle of light writing a letter to the world or you can spend it collecting the sun in a jar to use later. You can go mad, if you want. It is all right. It is allowed. It is your choice, yours alone.

I don't know of any other book (much less, a children's book!) which sets up the rules and knocks them down so completely and with so little judgement. Oh, Sylvia Cassedy. What happened to you? Where the fuck did you go? show less

I first read this as a child and I've read it many times since then. I just finished re-reading it and actually stayed up until the wee hours of the morning because I couldn't put it down even though I already knew the ending!
I think this book is so well written. It's the kind of book that stays with you long after you've finished it. I really like the way it is written with small glimpses into the present in between the different parts. I think because it is written in this way what could show more have been a really depressing book is quite hopeful. We see in the first couple of pages that Maggie is living with a family who she has grown to love and she's started to call them mom and dad and her sisters. This gives us hope as we read about her difficult life knowing that she has found a place to belong.
I think the author did a wonderful job of showing Maggie's insecurities and vulnerabilities and helping us understand why she does the things she does.
There are still some really sad parts in this book that just break my heart. When she finally has something to share with her class and she comes out of her shell to excitedly share only to be laughed at. She's so afraid to get close to anyone and so she does things so that people won't want to be around her. She's become much more comfortable alone, sometimes if feels easier that way.
I didn't like the two aunts but I think they were portrayed realistically as they were stuck in their ways with their own views and were very intolerant of anyone behaving in ways that didn't fit into their box. We do see a brief glimpse of one of the aunts excitement at giving Maggie a gift which Maggie doesn't want and things may have gone differently if Maggie had accepted this gift.
I really enjoyed the ending although it was bittersweet and haunting.
A beautifully written story that I will continue to enjoy re-reading.

This book was reviewed on the Literary Club Podcast episode 66
https://www.buzzsprout.com/1984185 show less

This story was fun and touching from the start. I knew some of what was coming and for a while enjoyed the fantasy angle less than the realistic part. But I ended up liking it all and have much appreciation for how it ended up for all of the characters. I was both delighted and frustrated by the ending. A part of me wanted more but mostly I loved its open-endedness. I’ve decided on my own how it ended up in the long run for the main character. Maggie is a memorable character and I believe show more very genuinely and effectively believable. Ditto Morris and most of the others, even minor characters such as Barbara. This is a book I’d love to discuss in private with others who’ve read it. Had I read it at age 9 or 10 I’m certain it would have been one of my favorite books at the time. In some way it feels like a classic but I was already an adult when it was published. Big spoiler not to be read if you think you might read the book but haven’t yet: I was so glad that Maggie didn’t end up staying with Harriet and Lillian.

Thanks to Goodreads friend Hilary for alerting me to it and encouraging me to read it. show less