A corner of white - Moriarty, Jaclyn
Summary: Fourteen-year-old Madeleine of Cambridge, England, struggling to cope with poverty and her mother's illness, and fifteen-year-old Elliot of the Kingdom of Cello in a parallel world where colors are villainous and his father is missing, begin exchanging notes through a crack between their worlds and find they can be of great help to each other.
Voice of Youth Advocates Reviews
Fourteen-year-old Madeleine Tully lives in Cambridge, England, after she and her mother flee from high-society life with her father. Elliot Baranski, fifteen, lives in the Kingdom of Cello, where his own father has mysteriously disappeared after a "Color Attack" that also killed his uncle. After accidentally discovering a crack between their worlds that allows letters through, the two begin corresponding about their problems: Madeleine's poverty, her mother's illness, her friends Jack and Belle, her research of Isaac Newton; and Elliot's discovery of the Butterfly Child (a fairy creature said to improve crops), the effects of Colors in Cello, and the antics of his loyal friends Moriarty's fans will recognize her flair for epistolary storytelling and quirky characters. Humorous asides and large doses of whimsy create a breezy tone that makes moments of romance and violence unexpectedly powerful. Madeleine's insistence that Cello is Elliot's fabrication ("I have issues with your world-building") provides a particularly funny, metafiction twist to the parallel-universe storyline. As the first book in a new series, The Colors of Madeleine, this book sets up a lot of backstory, and the slow beginning may deter some readers. Those who persevere, however, will be rewarded with a clever, layered story in which every seemingly innocuous detail plays a part, and the ending satisfies while opening brand-new doors for the sequel. School and public libraries will want to purchase this one.—Rebecca O'Neil 4Q 4P J S Copyright 2011 Voya Reviews.
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