Middlegrade, Middlegrade, oh, Middle-middle-middle-Middlegrade! Bu-dum-dum-dum!
Did I sing this in the tune of “Lollipop”? Why yes. Yes, I did. š It’s time for MG Takes on Thursday again!
MGTakesOnThursday is a weekly feature from Mary at BookCraic to celebrate the love for Middle Grade Books! The steps to take part are here.
Today I wanna show you the debut of one of my most favourite middlegrade authors:
A Girl called Owl by Amy Wilson
I remember the way her voice changed as she told me of those strange places; the way her eyes glazed as she spoke of fairies and sprites, talking trees and fearsome queens.
[excerpt from page 11]
Frost, Owls, Magic
It has been a while that I have read it but I found an old review I wrote a few years back. Unfortunately it’s in German so it won’t make much sense linking it here but it was interesting for me to see what I thought about this book back then.
It’s bad enough having a mum dippy enough to name you Owl, but when you’ve got a dad you’ve never met, a best friend who needs you more than ever, and a new boy at school giving you weird looks, there’s not a lot of room for much else. So when Owl starts seeing strange frost patterns on her skin, she’s tempted to just burrow down under the duvet and forget all about it. Could her strange new powers be linked to her mysterious father?And what will happen when she enters the magical world of winter for the first time?
Let’s just say, Amy Wilson’s books are amazing. Magic seems to roll off every page and I don’t know if I have told you this often enough by now but I love books that have anything to do with snow or frost or winter. They just make something ring inside of me.
A Girl called Owl is a story of magic, winter, selfdiscovery, friendship, secrets and magic. Did I mention magic? Amy Wilson’s writing creates a very special atmosphere – which is true for all the books by her that I’ve read – and has a very special tone. It’s just something I feel really comfortable with and while some things might seem more obvious for an older, more experienced reader, I think it’s thrilling and new for a younger one. Still, the writing filled me with wonder and I absolutely recommend to take a look and discover the world of winter, get to know Owl and follow her on her path.
By the way, the book was also released under the title “The lost frost girl” but I love the title “A Girl called Owl” so much more. I still have another book by Amy Wilson on my tbr (shame on me, I know) and was overjoyed to see that there will be a sequel coming out next autumn called “Owl and the lost boy”. This is the cover. Isn’t it gorgeous? I’m so excited!
A fantastic choice! I read this as part of the Twenty Books of Summer Challenge last year after having read and loved Snowglobe. Iām really looking forward to Owl and the Lost Boy. There is something magical about books set in winter! I really, really need to read Shadows of Winterspell.
I feel like I have to put every one of her books on MG Takes on Thursday. I just love them so much. Shadows of Winterspell is the one I haven’t read yet but I will. Soon, hopefully. Did you read A far away magic? Loved that one too. š
Oh my goodness, Iād forgotten about A Far Away Magic – will look it out.
Aww man. Now I’ve got “Lollipop” stuck in my head. xD Thanks for that. The cover of this is amazing! It’s lovely. This book sounds fantastic, and the sequel looks super cute, too! Definitely gonna have to check it out. :3
Sammie, I need you to read all the Amy Wilson books and then put them in your library. Her books are amazing. I love recommending them. <3
Ugh, I’d love to. The problem is really getting books from other countries. For reasons above my pay grade, it’s difficult to do as a library. It’s something that’s a goal of mine, to at least expose the kids to foreign authors, etc, but how feasible it will be, I don’t know. I’m working on it. I have a list of authors I’d love to push to get, because I think our patrons would just love them. xD