FICTION

A Strange Thing Happened in Cherry Hall

by Jasmine Warga (text) & narrated by Michael Crouch
HarperAudio. Sept. 2024. 339p. $27.99. ISBN 9780063395220.
COPY ISBN
Gr 3-7–Versatile Crouch adroitly adapts ages, genders, backgrounds, species (!) to embody a sizable cast, opening with Agatha the turtle, sole witness to theft at the Penelope L. Brooks Museum. Rami, whose immigrant single mother is the museum’s cleaning crew supervisor, was also there that day because he’s not allowed to stay home alone, even though he’s almost 12. He didn’t see the thief, but he does meet a girl—shoeless, floating—who’s somehow related to the stolen painting. Rami wishes he could tell his mother everything, not just about his spectral encounter but also his terrible middle school struggles. An unexpected new friendship with classmate Veda—a true crime podcast enthusiast—begins to alleviate his loneliness. Working together will solve plenty of problems.
VERDICT While effortlessly enlivening Warga’s notable characters, Crouch expertly imparts that “singular feeling to be understood. Seen. Connected. It is the best feeling in the whole world.”
Reviewed by Terry Hong , Jan 01, 2025

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