Strange Creatures by Phoebe North

 


Annie and Jamie are sister and brother. They grew up super close, bonded by their shared love of a magical world called Gumlea which they created and escaped to frequently throughout their childhood. As the two grew older, though, Jamie begins to distance himself from their shared world and one day Jamie disappears. Annie is convinced Jamie has become trapped in Gumlea and is determined to bring him back. This proves increasingly difficult as time goes on and everyone believes that Jamie isn't gone, but rather that he is dead. Is Jamie simply trapped or is he really dead? If he is merely trapped, does Annie have the power to bring Jamie back? The twist in this book will certainly be unexpected!

I will be honest and say I struggled with this book. The mix of fantasy and reality often is as confusing for the reader as it is for Annie herself. Perhaps North does this on purpose, especially early on and at the end, but I really got into this book when North sticks to Annie's reality through much of the middle of this book. The overlapping relationships that some of the characters have with both Jamie and Annie provide the meat of this story and this aspect of the story is the most intriguing, for me personally.

There are some rather mature themes and adult concepts in this book, so parental discretion and approval is advised. 

-TK

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