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A review by robinbridgefour
Illuminations by T. Kingfisher
4.0
What a cute story. I enjoy T. Kingfisher and this is one of those books that were supposed to satisfy her middle grade or kids book publishing but just was too adult for that and so it is published under her adult moniker. I guess this also happened with [b:A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking|54369251|A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking|T. Kingfisher|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1593743861l/54369251._SX50_.jpg|84842875], which I also found delightful.
Rosa comes from a family of artists. But these are not just any artists they have magic and paint things that are useful to society. Like wards to keep pots from breaking, fire from catching, garbage from stinking. I loved imagining a city where there was all this extra art to help keep things running in order. I enjoyed how each artist in Rosa's family was so different and each had their own way of making art.
Rosa is still young around ten and she wants to help her family any way she can and since she and her best friend Serena are in a fight right now she can. When she happens upon a mysterious box hidden away in the house is intrigued. Especially since it seems that something on the box makes you forget all about it. Well Rosa is determined that whatever is in that box could help her family and be the thing that make then the best artist family in the city again. Oh how wrong she was.
With the help of a crow sometimes distracted by shiny objects, her best friend/sometimes nemesis and the rest of her family Rosa will have to find a way to capture the unusual monster she accidentally let lose before it sucks all the magic out of the paintings in the city.
Totally cute story and I loved hanging out with Rosa and learning that even kids can do amazing things when they don't know they aren't supposed to.
Rosa comes from a family of artists. But these are not just any artists they have magic and paint things that are useful to society. Like wards to keep pots from breaking, fire from catching, garbage from stinking. I loved imagining a city where there was all this extra art to help keep things running in order. I enjoyed how each artist in Rosa's family was so different and each had their own way of making art.
Aunt Nadia often got a little weird when she was working on a painting, as if most of her brain was involved with art, and the bits that controlled talking were wandering around unsupervised.
Cousin Sergio, who believed that the painting was brilliant up until the moment it was finished, when he suddenly discovered that it was terrible and they had to stop him from setting the canvas on fire.
Rosa is still young around ten and she wants to help her family any way she can and since she and her best friend Serena are in a fight right now she can. When she happens upon a mysterious box hidden away in the house is intrigued. Especially since it seems that something on the box makes you forget all about it. Well Rosa is determined that whatever is in that box could help her family and be the thing that make then the best artist family in the city again. Oh how wrong she was.
“He made an evil monster that’s out to ruin us! Does it really matter how good his technique was?”
“Of course it matters,” said Aunt Nadia with a half-smile. “You’d hate to see the studio destroyed by a mediocre artist, wouldn’t you?”
With the help of a crow sometimes distracted by shiny objects, her best friend/sometimes nemesis and the rest of her family Rosa will have to find a way to capture the unusual monster she accidentally let lose before it sucks all the magic out of the paintings in the city.
Totally cute story and I loved hanging out with Rosa and learning that even kids can do amazing things when they don't know they aren't supposed to.