Sign in with Facebook
Kendra Lee's Reviews > The Witch of Woodland
The Witch of Woodland
by
by
The Witch of Woodland captivated me, as Laurel Snyder's middle grades books always do.
Laurel writes characters that feel so viscerally present that I expect them to come banging through the front door of the bookstore to ask a question or pick out a book or just sit and chat with me. And Laurel's characters constantly remind me how difficult it really is to navigate the 11-12 year old years. Her writing makes me more compassionate with my own 12 year old daughter--and it invites me to embrace grace for who I used to be 35 years ago. And who I'm still becoming now.
Zippy's journey to understand her own spirituality and her place in Jewish life resonated with me. I was very busy trying to figure out my own spirituality at that age, too. I was an evangelical kid with a bunch of Jewish friends--so I felt out of place often. And I was entranced by the community and the sense of ritual and connection of the mundane & divine that my Jewish friends seemed to exist in. So, when Zippy shows up in this book and starts fumbling her way toward an understanding of her Jewishness--I was 100% there for it.
I learned a lot about Jewish culture/spirituality from Zippy's experience, without feeling like I was learning something (which is the best way to learn, in my opinion).
As a parent reading this book, sometimes I wanted to shake Zippy (gently, of course) and beg her to just fit in a little more (she's a witch, too--which causes a bit of a kerfuffle in the seventh grade). But that's why Laurel's writing is perfect for kids. Because Zippy isn't going to compromise--and kids, well, they get that in a way that I think most adults forget over time.
Every time I had to put this book down, I wondered how Zippy was getting along. I was in it to win it with this girl. And I absolutely powered through the last quarter of the book, unraveling the mystery/danger Zippy finds herself in. I. needed. to. know!
Zippy will capture your heart & then break it. But then you'll get the chance to cheer her on as she comes into her own--as kids so often do.
Get it from Bookish: https://bookshop.org/a/4334/978006283...
Laurel writes characters that feel so viscerally present that I expect them to come banging through the front door of the bookstore to ask a question or pick out a book or just sit and chat with me. And Laurel's characters constantly remind me how difficult it really is to navigate the 11-12 year old years. Her writing makes me more compassionate with my own 12 year old daughter--and it invites me to embrace grace for who I used to be 35 years ago. And who I'm still becoming now.
Zippy's journey to understand her own spirituality and her place in Jewish life resonated with me. I was very busy trying to figure out my own spirituality at that age, too. I was an evangelical kid with a bunch of Jewish friends--so I felt out of place often. And I was entranced by the community and the sense of ritual and connection of the mundane & divine that my Jewish friends seemed to exist in. So, when Zippy shows up in this book and starts fumbling her way toward an understanding of her Jewishness--I was 100% there for it.
I learned a lot about Jewish culture/spirituality from Zippy's experience, without feeling like I was learning something (which is the best way to learn, in my opinion).
As a parent reading this book, sometimes I wanted to shake Zippy (gently, of course) and beg her to just fit in a little more (she's a witch, too--which causes a bit of a kerfuffle in the seventh grade). But that's why Laurel's writing is perfect for kids. Because Zippy isn't going to compromise--and kids, well, they get that in a way that I think most adults forget over time.
Every time I had to put this book down, I wondered how Zippy was getting along. I was in it to win it with this girl. And I absolutely powered through the last quarter of the book, unraveling the mystery/danger Zippy finds herself in. I. needed. to. know!
Zippy will capture your heart & then break it. But then you'll get the chance to cheer her on as she comes into her own--as kids so often do.
Get it from Bookish: https://bookshop.org/a/4334/978006283...
Sign into Goodreads to see if any of your friends have read
The Witch of Woodland.
Sign In »
Reading Progress
January 27, 2023
–
Started Reading
January 29, 2023
–
Finished Reading
January 30, 2023
– Shelved
