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theengineerisreading 's review for:
We Dream of Space
by Erin Entrada Kelly
"The only way to find the answer is if we go out there. It might be scary. We might not find anything... but it's worth it. We can't just settle for what's easy, or we would never discover anything."
Starting the year with one of my anticipated releases last year is never a wrong move since We Dream of Space 'pmuls-ed' my holiday slump and put my 2021 reading journey in a great launch.
This middle grade novel is In Cosmic Dreams' book of the month and I scheduled to read the book in line with my good friend, Kat's, book club so I can relate with their discussion. Also, if you've been with me since 2018, it is not a breaking news to announce that Erin Entrada Kelly is one of my auto-buy and favorite authors so WDOS is definitely a priority for me.
As previously mentioned, this book is a middle grade novel that revolves on three characters namely Cash, Fitch, and Bird - all siblings in Park, Delaware and children of Tam and Mike Nelson Thomas. The book is set in early 1986 in line with the launch of space shuttle Challenger.
I'll be frank and say that this book saddened me. I dove into this without knowing anything aside from the Challenger influence but this book managed to play with my emotions in all of its 390-pages goodness.
I'm not a big middle grade reader but I am up-to-date with Erin's book and this one hits different as the storyline touched on so many family issues and how children sees the world in relation to how they were treated inside their house.
Bird is an auto-favorite. I feel connected with Bernadette Nelson Thomas as I also used to dream of being an astronaut when I was a kid and how studious Bird is in this book. I see myself in Bird with the way she always act a step ahead of her family in such a tender age and how proactive she is when it comes to her parents and siblings. Bird's dedication is also commendable and I love how unorthodox her character when it comes to societal standards. You may be wondering why I'm saying these things to a middle grade character but trust me, this is Bird and I love her.
Fitch is the character that I want to hug. I understand how the world works as a kid and I see Henry Nelson Thomas as this kid who wants to keep everything in its angle and is afraid of unexpected turns that's why most of the time, he had a hard time adjusting to changes. 1986 is not a progressive year in terms of mental health discussion and Fitch's character is accurately developed on how society viewed people who suffer from mental health issues.
Cash is on a different spectrum though. As the eldest Nelson Thomas who's having a hard time in terms of academics, his character is enveloped with insecurities. From being cut-off from the basketball team to his friends moving out of middle school to attend high school after this year, Cash is all set to start fresh in this new year and make a new perspective for his new life to start rolling.
The family dynamics in this book is what set it aside from other MG novels I read in the past as the story presented how a verbally-chaotic family runs. From the way the parents argues about things up to the kids' behavioral adjustment, the book captured the reality about semi-dysfunctional families.
I can say that I grew up in a similar background since I always hear and see my parents argue even in the smallest things, but most of the time it's about who provides food for the family, that's why the family part in this book resonated with me deeply. The way Mr. and Mrs. Nelson Thomas wasn't able to reach out properly with their kids is just heartbreaking but what's new? Families really are a complicated galaxy.
On a different note, the Challenger subplot is what breaks me. I have very little knowledge about this piece of history but after reading this book and putting myself in Bird's eye view, the astronaut-wannabe in me somehow cried with what happened in that much-awaited event.
The last chapters made me wish I can hug the Nelson Thomas kids and have a heart-to-heart discussion because kids deserve a little talk, too.
RATING: 4stars
Starting the year with one of my anticipated releases last year is never a wrong move since We Dream of Space 'pmuls-ed' my holiday slump and put my 2021 reading journey in a great launch.
This middle grade novel is In Cosmic Dreams' book of the month and I scheduled to read the book in line with my good friend, Kat's, book club so I can relate with their discussion. Also, if you've been with me since 2018, it is not a breaking news to announce that Erin Entrada Kelly is one of my auto-buy and favorite authors so WDOS is definitely a priority for me.
As previously mentioned, this book is a middle grade novel that revolves on three characters namely Cash, Fitch, and Bird - all siblings in Park, Delaware and children of Tam and Mike Nelson Thomas. The book is set in early 1986 in line with the launch of space shuttle Challenger.
I'll be frank and say that this book saddened me. I dove into this without knowing anything aside from the Challenger influence but this book managed to play with my emotions in all of its 390-pages goodness.
I'm not a big middle grade reader but I am up-to-date with Erin's book and this one hits different as the storyline touched on so many family issues and how children sees the world in relation to how they were treated inside their house.
Bird is an auto-favorite. I feel connected with Bernadette Nelson Thomas as I also used to dream of being an astronaut when I was a kid and how studious Bird is in this book. I see myself in Bird with the way she always act a step ahead of her family in such a tender age and how proactive she is when it comes to her parents and siblings. Bird's dedication is also commendable and I love how unorthodox her character when it comes to societal standards. You may be wondering why I'm saying these things to a middle grade character but trust me, this is Bird and I love her.
Fitch is the character that I want to hug. I understand how the world works as a kid and I see Henry Nelson Thomas as this kid who wants to keep everything in its angle and is afraid of unexpected turns that's why most of the time, he had a hard time adjusting to changes. 1986 is not a progressive year in terms of mental health discussion and Fitch's character is accurately developed on how society viewed people who suffer from mental health issues.
Cash is on a different spectrum though. As the eldest Nelson Thomas who's having a hard time in terms of academics, his character is enveloped with insecurities. From being cut-off from the basketball team to his friends moving out of middle school to attend high school after this year, Cash is all set to start fresh in this new year and make a new perspective for his new life to start rolling.
The family dynamics in this book is what set it aside from other MG novels I read in the past as the story presented how a verbally-chaotic family runs. From the way the parents argues about things up to the kids' behavioral adjustment, the book captured the reality about semi-dysfunctional families.
I can say that I grew up in a similar background since I always hear and see my parents argue even in the smallest things, but most of the time it's about who provides food for the family, that's why the family part in this book resonated with me deeply. The way Mr. and Mrs. Nelson Thomas wasn't able to reach out properly with their kids is just heartbreaking but what's new? Families really are a complicated galaxy.
On a different note, the Challenger subplot is what breaks me. I have very little knowledge about this piece of history but after reading this book and putting myself in Bird's eye view, the astronaut-wannabe in me somehow cried with what happened in that much-awaited event.
The last chapters made me wish I can hug the Nelson Thomas kids and have a heart-to-heart discussion because kids deserve a little talk, too.
RATING: 4stars