A review by turrean
Cartwheeling in Thunderstorms by Katherine Rundell

4.0

Dove right in and read this in one afternoon. The descriptions of Africa were marvelous. I really felt for Will when she was transported to dreary drizzly London. The book went off into an unexpected direction; I thought it would follow the formula of many "new place" stories. Either Will would be made miserable, rise above it, and emerge triumphant (like [b: A Little Princess|3008|A Little Princess|Frances Hodgson Burnett|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327868556s/3008.jpg|1313599] or [b: Heidi|93|Heidi|Johanna Spyri|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1388462714s/93.jpg|1738595]) or would find herself transformed by the setting, as in [b: The Secret Garden|2998|The Secret Garden|Frances Hodgson Burnett|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1327873635s/2998.jpg|3186437]. I did NOT expect the runaway sequence.

I was also a tiny, tiny bit disappointed, ,

Spoiler

as I always am by books with extraordinarily obtuse teachers and school staff. There was no one who saw the cruelty of the other girls? Who thought to see what she knew academically before placing her in classes? To give her any clothing suited to the climate while she waited for her uniform to be delivered? Miss Blake seemed to grow a heart, but where was she when Will was being tormented? And do we believe her chief tormentor is now reformed, after a "I'm sorry, I didn't know?" Bah.