Summary: Writing a memoir of the previous year of her life while dreaming of the day she will become president, high achiever Maggie confronts the difficult realities of her father's battle with multiple sclerosis, in a story published to benefit the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. A first novel. Simultaneous eBook. - (Baker & Taylor)
Horn Book Magazine Reviews
In her debut novel, Sovern introduces readers to eleven-year-old Maggie Mayfield, a female counterpart to Family Ties's Alex P. Keaton. Maggie's parents were clearly free spirits in their younger years, and her dad is ready to reminisce about those glory days at the drop of a hat. But Maggie has set her own path for a more responsible adulthood: she's going to be rich, and she's going to be president of the United States. Thinking there's nothing she can't conquer, Maggie is stymied by her dad's mysterious illness -- which is slowly (perhaps too slowly) revealed as multiple sclerosis. Maggie's family uses humor to deflect their pain, but this behavior also allows self-absorbed Maggie to ignore what's really going on at home. As she tells her story in flashback, Maggie's unreliable narration puts the responsibility on readers to see both the seriousness of her situation and the subtleties in the family dynamics. For example, she dismisses her two older sisters as a couple of "hotties." While it's true they may be beautiful, they're also involved with taking care of their father, making Maggie's lunch, and generally helping out at home. Maggie's self-realizations come quickly, mostly during the time her father is hospitalized for a serious infection on her twelfth birthday. But her distinct voice, with a snarky superiority that often masks her true vulnerability, creates a character who's not easy to love but tough to forget. betty carte Copyright 2014 Horn Book Magazine.
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