Verse novels are a guilty pleasure of mine. I love that the author gets straight to the story and uses only the most vital words needed to share the story.
This is the third verse novel from Nadine Aisha Jassat and I love each one. She writes with such heart but also deals with important issues within each one.
In this story, we meet Amal and Sara along with their parents and Aunt Muriel as they leave their beloved home and library. They weren’t able to stop the closing of the library and were desperate for a new home when a mysterious letter arrived offering them an inheritance. The family has inherited Hope House.
Arriving at this mysterious house, the family discover it has some hidden depths and adjust to the comfort and hope it offers each of them individually. What they also discover is that a couple in the local village believe the house belongs to them and gives them 30 days to vacate. Amal and Sara are determined to find out the truth and begin investigating at the local archive and in the attic of the house. They uncover some facts which may help their case.
This book not only shares a love of libraries and books but deals with grief, mental health and families. Amal is one who worries and has troubling thoughts so she focuses on words and keeps a diary of them. She worries about drifting away from her sister and making new friends.
She is filled with Hope amongst her worries and it is this that leads her to the truth behind Hope House.
It was the perfect book for me to read and I just adored it.
My Shelves Are Full 