- 10-year-old girl discovers her home (a floating island) holds a sleeping giant and struggles to convince others to believe her
- gentle fantasy story that is delightfully upbeat and frequently funny
- convo: a person’s skirt is accidentally stepped on and torn, “revealing a pair of long, brightly colored underwear” (others hurry to her aid), two people are briefly put in stocks for a crime they didn’t commit, minor magic without the word (a potter makes special pots that produce for the owner what is truly needed such as bread), some characters believe their tears have healing powers
- language: stupid x7, shut up x1, idiot x1, “the devils” referring to mean animals, mild name calling
- includes a great map & a few other entertaining extras
Type: chapter book
Ages: 8-12 (easily lower if a family read-aloud)
Author: Jennifer Trafton
Illustrator: Brett Helquist
Could very many people write a coherent story about a basket weaver’s rambunctious daughter, poisonous giant turtles who run faster than humans, people with twig-like limbs who only eat leaves, and a spoiled 12-year-old king who is obsessed with pepper and lives in his castle on top of a hill that is, in actuality, the belly of a giant? Jennifer Trafton sure can!
She brought many smiles to my face throughout my reading. Any scene that might truly have been scary in another fantasy novel is kept light, brief, and usually infused with humor. Her word choices were often delicious, and the world she created on this floating island is memorable. On top of that, several of the main characters progressively grow/mature in various areas–from conquering a worrying habit to reducing selfishness.
My only complaint, as the oldest sibling of four, is how dull she paints the older sister. I see the humor myself (birth order generalities can be hilariously true), but young readers who are firstborns might feel a little hurt by the negative thoughts our main character has of her big sister. This was fairly minor and did not warrant any docking of stars in my rating.
Overall, I found this book quite refreshing. (I’ve been pre-reading heavier books lately, and Mount Majestic was the perfect interruption.) I highly recommend it as a family read-aloud. Your discussions can go as deep as you want them to, with many layers that could be pulled back and analyzed, if that’s your cup of tea[rs].
Please let me know if you read it based on this review!