Furthermore by Tahereh Mafi

Posted by Pooks on March 8, 2017 in What Pooks is Reading | Comments Off on Furthermore by Tahereh Mafi

How many ways can I express the sentiment of, “Simply delightful!”?

I didn’t recognize Furthermore as being middle grade. The main characters, Alice and Oliver, are 12 and 13 years old so maybe it should have been obvious. It’s a whimsical tale, and Bronson Pinchot does an admirable job as narrator. And yet it was clever and fun in a way that made me never consider that it might not be written for, well, me. Rather than a middle grade reader.

Hey. I heard that!

Alice is a wonderful character–not recognizing her strengths, and wallowing in her weaknesses. But oh, is she ever funny and clever.

She is colorless in a world where color is everythting.

But even more importantly, she’s on a mission to find her father, and reluctantly joins Oliver who seems to have the same mission. [Ever since Oliver told her she was the ugliest girl in town she’s held a grudge. Can’t imagine why.]

Their relationship is fun, and Oliver deserves every bit of the frustration he suffers from having to deal with her.

Fun stuff, gloriously written, with remarkably evocative prose.

And yes, this writer who has been known to write romance very much identifies the bickering  between Alice and Oliver as a precursor to twue wuv.

Gotta love it!

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