A review by goldenbooksgirl
The Day I Was Erased by Lisa Thompson

4.0

This is Lisa Thompson`s third book, and she just keeps getting better every time. The plot- which is quite reminiscent of “It`s a Wonderful Life” but is also totally unique from that- focuses on a boy called Maxwell who is constantly in trouble at home and in school, who wishes that he didn`t exist and then has to undo his erasion. First of all, I loved Maxwell. He is not always the kindest and doesn`t make the best choices sometimes, but I think it`d be impossible not to sympathise with him as you read because he has a heart of gold deep down (his relationships with Reg and Monster melted me) and his behaviour makes perfect sense when you hear his reasons for doing certain things/examine the subtext. His development throughout was fantastic too. I also thought the mystery was fantastic, as was the magical realism element. The mystery was so intriguing, with a perfect resolution and the way the magical realism tied in felt so believable and I loved uncovering its secrets. My other favourite thing was the ending in general rather than just that of the mystery plot strand, as it was perfect and made me cry! A thoughtful, interesting middle grade that crosses into several genres and does a great job in all of them. 4.5/5