While waiting for the second book in the Nevermoor series by Jessica Townsend to come in from library, I decided to pick up a brief book to fill the gap. This is a book that I originally read when it came out sixteen years ago. The sequel to it has been in my "to-read" pile for years and I kept meaning to re-read this one because I couldn't remember what happened. I took the opportunity to refresh my brain and will tackle the next book after finishing the Nevermoor title.
(Philomel, 2003)
Olivia Kidney is NOT crazy! Of course, she has a hard time convincing others, especially the school psychiatrist. That's because she often talks to her older brother, who has recently died.
Olivia has taken an interest in seances in hopes of being about to actually speak to her brother, who she misses too much to let go. However, one strange afternoon in the strangest apartment building in New York City will change Olivia's life forever...and her perspective on life in general.
Much like the inhabitants Alice meets in Wonderland, the people living in Olivia's apartment building seem to be from another world, one that functions differently from the rules Olivia is accustomed to. And like Alice, Olivia is set adrift to navigate through the bizarre escapades of those around her, trying in vain to make sense of the nonsensical. Along the way, the reader is treated to stories filled with danger and flights of imagination. And while Olivia is often unnerved by what is happening, the reader remains confident, as we are with Alice, that she is clever and resourceful enough to find her way out any predicament.
This is a much darker story than I remembered, with a hint of brutality running under the surface for most of the story. It's also much more sophisticated in terms of story structure than I remember and by the end, all the threads come flawlessly together.
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