- a new friendship between a grieving teen and an oddly smart one forms the foundation for a dangerous journey through the wilds of Maine
- a secondary story line with fantastical elements (such as a sea witch) is expertly woven into the “real” story and displays thought-provoking parallels
- themes include: kindness, working through grief, accepting differences in others, reconciliation, survival skills
- convo: mentions drinking/drunkenness, a few intense scenes involving dangerous men, the boys find a skeleton of a missing person, a different person is mauled by a bear
- language: geez x2, L*rd (as a swear), stupid x2, wench (but as the older definition: young girl)
Type: chapter book
Ages: 12+
Author: Clare Vanderpool
You guys, this book. WOW. It was one of my favorite “pre-reads” all last year. To be honest, I’d heard of the title for a while but didn’t prioritize it after hearing iffy things of Vanderpool’s first book (which could be totally wrong, but I have huge to-read lists as it is, so it fell off my radar…I will totally come back and make a note if I ever read it!). So I borrowed the audiobook from our library to avoid spending money. Funny thing is, I bought a physical copy IMMEDIATELY upon finishing. It made a perfect 12th birthday gift for our boy.
But more about the story! The boy who goes by Early has many autistic-type characteristics, though the author is purposeful in not adding that label (her note in back expands on this). He is extremely smart, socially awkward, speaks a little louder than he should, reads the number pi like a story, and so on. The grieving boy, Jack, is surprised to find a friendship forming with Early. Much of the book is his learning how to “navigate” Early and his quirks, how to support him and understand things he says.
There is an interesting focus on star constellations and how they help navigation. Vanderpool expertly inserts past memories or conversations about the stars. Once, Jack remembers his mom slowing him down and teaching him to see their beauty before their function. In the fantasy parallel, the great bear constellation is a theme.
Jack and Early run into some pretty bad men who steal their means of transportation–a boat–and have close calls a few times, some at gunpoint. They are roughed up a little, but I find the book’s intensity level appropriate for most 12-year-olds I know. Like always, parents know their children best and should pre-read or wait if needed.
They also run into helpful people–it’s not all scary–which adds warmth and depth to the story. I found myself laughing aloud at a few parts, too! By the way, the audiobook I listened to (5 star performance) had three narrators: Robbie Daymond, Mark Bramhall, and Cassandra Campbell.
I don’t want to give many more details, because it’s a treasure to discover on your own! So many twists and turns. If you’re looking for a new journey, with mystery and adventure, surprisingly clean language, and other elements I mention above, I highly recommend Navigating Early.
P.S. For fun, I kept a list of literary or cultural references throughout:
- Billy Holiday
- Mozart
- Dorothy & Toto
- Captain America & Bucky
- Ruth & Naomi
- Louis Armstrong
- Goldilocks
- Jack & the Beanstalk
- Plato’s Dialogues
- Philo of Alexandria
- Dante’s Inferno
- Aesop’s Fables
- Robin Hood
- Augustine’s Confessions
- Romeo & Juliet
- Frankenstein
- “The Journal of Poetry by Young Americans”
- Poem, “The Starlight Night” by Hopkins
- Huckleberry Finn
- other Marvel characters
- The McGuffy Reader
- The Odyssey
Happy reading!