Publisher's Weekly Review
An apprehensive girl ventures into unknown territory in new environs--and within herself--to uncover the truth behind a local legend in this thrilling otherworldly novel from Tan (the Cilla Lee-Jenkins series). After her stepdad leaves, Chinese American 12-year-old Mo Lin, her five-year-old half sister CeCe, and their mother move to a new town to live with Uncle Ray. Helping with her younger sister, watching her mom navigate depression, and facing racism in the largely white Massachusetts town makes the transition a difficult one for Mo, as does her heightened fear of fire following a toast incident at the family's prior home. Strange dreams and bouts of sleepwalking add to her worries, especially when they turn out to involve the ghost of a circus elephant named Maudie, who perished in a local fire and whose spirit lives on via a ghostly white dog. When unsettling occurrences begin happening around town, Mo teams up with new friend Nathaniel, a ghost enthusiast who is white and Jewish, to investigate, finding that it takes living a little dangerously to uncover truths about their town's erased history. Mo's sincere first-person narrative portrays the way that finding emotional safety--via attending therapy, and bonding with Uncle Ray over music--gives way to a feeling of peace. Ages 8--12. Agent: Daniel Lazar, Writers House. (Apr.)
Booklist Review
APALA Honor--winning author Tan's latest follows sixth-grader Mo, who moves to a new town with her mom and her little sister, CeCe. They're moving in with Uncle Ray, a self--described "aging Chinese hippie," and they're one of the only Asian American families in New Warren. Mo struggles with microaggressions about her ethnicity at school and intense anxiety, while her mom is having trouble getting out of bed each day after her divorce from Mo's stepdad. Mo takes care of CeCe and tries not to be an additional burden, but then a ghost elephant starts haunting Mo's dreams. Tan's emotional story explores different themes of family with humor and a paranormal adventure, and as Mo tries to understand the significance behind the elephant in her dreams, she starts to learn some troubling things about her new town's history, especially the Chinese workers exploited during the heights of its industrial past. This engaging, multilayered story about family history, community, and nefarious ghosts will find plenty of appeal for middle-graders who like fantasies grounded in reality.
