27 Magic Words

Gr 4–6—Despite the titular magic, there is no fantasy in this quietly moving, well-paced work—just the reality of a child deep in denial ultimately coming to terms with her parents' death. Ten-year-old Kobi and her older sister live in Paris with their grandmother, enjoying a seemingly enviable lifestyle: they are homeschooled by a tutor, dine on gourmet meals prepared by a housekeeper, and wear fashionable French clothing. While Kobi misses her parents, whom she believes to be on an extended ocean voyage, she can see them whenever she wants by uttering one of the 27 magic words her mother gave her before she and Kobi's father left five years earlier. A move to Iowa to live with her uncle leaves Kobi struggling to adjust in every way possible: to school, to a new culture, to a much less luxurious lifestyle—and eventually to the realization that her parents aren't coming home. Told from Kobi's point of view, this character-driven novel does a remarkable job of allowing readers to see the world through Kobi's eyes, both as a five-year-old believing in her parents' magical abilities and as a 10-year-old surrounded by adults who are coping with their own heartbreaks and traumas. Secondary characters are portrayed equally deftly, and even minor characters come across as living, breathing individuals. A former artist who has Alzheimer's receives a particularly sensitive treatment, as does Kobi's sister's obsessive compulsive disorder.