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A review by ajsterkel
The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron
4.0
I really like this book! It’s the kind of story I would have read over and over as a preteen. Ten-year-old Lucky lives with her guardian in a vivid little desert town. Lucky has been abandoned before and sees her guardian’s homesickness for France as a sign that she will soon be abandoned again. To avoid being dumped in an orphanage, Lucky decides to run away and live in the desert.
Every character in this novel is realistically flawed. Lucky has a mean streak and sometimes lashes out at her friends. There isn’t much to do in Lucky’s town, so her favorite hobby is eavesdropping on twelve-step addiction recovery meetings. She hears about the worst moments in her neighbors’ lives. I like this aspect of the novel because it shows young readers that everybody has problems. Everybody makes mistakes. You can recover from them if you put in the effort.
This book doesn’t have much of a plot, but I found the characters interesting enough that I didn’t care. I enjoyed watching Lucky mature and correct her mistakes. There are some brilliant moments of humor. Lucky overhears the word “scrotum” at a twelve-step meeting and badly wants to know what a scrotum is, which is funny and realistic for a ten-year-old girl. There’s also a scene where Lucky’s guardian finds a snake in the clothes dryer and duct tapes the dryer closed so it can’t get out. I think young readers would appreciate the humor.
I don’t have many complaints. As I mentioned, this is a character-focused book, so kids who are used to plot-heavy novels may get bored with the lack of action. My only wish is that the book had more cohesion. There’s some talk of rock bottom, higher powers, and finding the courage to change your life. I wish those elements had been a bigger part of the story. They could have been used to effectively tie the disparate parts of the book together. The plot would have seemed less scattered that way.
Newbery winners are pretty hit-or-miss for me. I’m happy to report that this one was a hit. As a kid, I would have found Lucky’s mean streak and desire to run away relatable. I would have appreciated the honest way the author depicts the problems of a small town. Where was The Higher Power of Lucky when I was a kid?
Do you like opinions, giveaways, and bookish nonsense?
I have a blog for that.
Every character in this novel is realistically flawed. Lucky has a mean streak and sometimes lashes out at her friends. There isn’t much to do in Lucky’s town, so her favorite hobby is eavesdropping on twelve-step addiction recovery meetings. She hears about the worst moments in her neighbors’ lives. I like this aspect of the novel because it shows young readers that everybody has problems. Everybody makes mistakes. You can recover from them if you put in the effort.
This book doesn’t have much of a plot, but I found the characters interesting enough that I didn’t care. I enjoyed watching Lucky mature and correct her mistakes. There are some brilliant moments of humor. Lucky overhears the word “scrotum” at a twelve-step meeting and badly wants to know what a scrotum is, which is funny and realistic for a ten-year-old girl. There’s also a scene where Lucky’s guardian finds a snake in the clothes dryer and duct tapes the dryer closed so it can’t get out. I think young readers would appreciate the humor.
I don’t have many complaints. As I mentioned, this is a character-focused book, so kids who are used to plot-heavy novels may get bored with the lack of action. My only wish is that the book had more cohesion. There’s some talk of rock bottom, higher powers, and finding the courage to change your life. I wish those elements had been a bigger part of the story. They could have been used to effectively tie the disparate parts of the book together. The plot would have seemed less scattered that way.
“It made her feel discouraged, like if you took the word apart into two sections of dis and couraged. It was getting harder and harder to stay couraged.” – The Higher Power of Lucky
Newbery winners are pretty hit-or-miss for me. I’m happy to report that this one was a hit. As a kid, I would have found Lucky’s mean streak and desire to run away relatable. I would have appreciated the honest way the author depicts the problems of a small town. Where was The Higher Power of Lucky when I was a kid?
Do you like opinions, giveaways, and bookish nonsense?
I have a blog for that.