Gr 4–8—Cora's older sister Mabel was killed in a school shooting perpetrated by the older brother of Cora's best
friend, Quinn. Both girls are desperate to travel back in time to prevent the terrible event from happening. In
attempting to do so, they start coming to terms with what has transpired. In this deeply resonant work, Warga
expertly tackles grief, trauma, and gun violence.

Representation: Biracial main character, side biracial character, character with a speech disorder
Trigger warnings: Death of a child and sister in a school shooting, death of a brother by suicide, grief and loss depiction, near-death experience in a creek, hospitalisation
Read this review for context. This review can also be found on The StoryGraph.
Score: Eight points out of ten.

Originally my first book from this author was going to be Other Words for Home but someone got it before I could so I settled with this and I'm so glad I read this since it feels different yet familiar at the same time and yet this still hits like a truck much like the last book I read, think what happens when The Thing About Jellyfish meets Numb to This, where do I even begin. It starts immediately with the two main characters Cora London (I'm not sure if that's her middle or last name) and Quinn McCauley or Quinn for short and each of them are both dealing with similar instances of grief. Cora lost her sister Mabel in a school shooting and Quinn's brother killed himself there but now it's almost a year ago from that incident and yet this still affects them to this point. They separated since and Cora still wishes that this never happened so she goes on a quest with Quinn to try and time travel through a wormhole to save Mabel and she even said it was possible and one person might've done it however this doesn't go according to plan as seen later on. The two kids try to live their lives as normally as possible when they prepare for the upcoming Quiz Bowl and soon they enter however they didn't win much to their disappointment and I liked where Quinn has her brain wracked and cannot believe her brother could've done something like this so it's a love-hate relationship now; she even sends letters. Did I mention there's figurative language galore, I just love that in a book. Towards the latter half of the book, Cora ponders on some pretty heavy topics and Quinn figured out the motive but you must read the book to find out more, anyways Cora discovers a breakthrough, apparently thunder is the key to time travel and what an interesting theory that is, I sure hope it doesn't go wrong... I don't understand why Cora blames Quinn for Mabel's death even though she had nothing to do with it and I think Quinn even hallucinated about Parker once. Now Cora risked her life by going out during the fair and a storm to the place with the oak tree and a creek where she went many times before and she hit her head on a rock and almost died, if it weren't for Quinn she would've. What a shock! A few pages later Cora ends up hospitalised, recovers soon enough and finally grasps the fact that Mabel is gone and cannot come back and eventually moves on ending this bittersweetly. That author's note was a nice touch. ( )

A book that tackles a school shooting is definitely not an easy read. I was very curious how it would be handled for a middle grade audience....it certainly needs to be handled with a deft hand, a subtle hand, a loving hand. Jasmine Warga is a brilliant author and I knew she would address a racial shooting with aplomb....and she did.....mostly.

Here is the thing: until midway through the book, I had no idea that the main characters, Cora, and Quinn were not the same ethnicity. Yes, the girls on the front cover appear to look differently...but it is not fully obvious (they really should be more front and center). The school shooting being racially charged, well, was mentioned but never went into detail. I find this good and bad. Middle grade readers deserve to know ways that people are targeted. Yet we also do not need ideation.

I am not a fan of wormholes and talks of time travel. It is not my forte for starters. So a book that relies on that for the plot (Cora and Quinn talking so they both can go back and time and save their respective siblings) put me off. Hence the average three star rating. But when both girls come to the realization that they cannot change the past, only then is true peace found

I like how the characters progressed. Cora wanted to learn more about her heritage. Quinn wanted her family to actually go and talk to someone about her brother's gun violence. It's all written beautifully and from different points of view. I will be interested to see if come Caldecott/Newbery Time, it received mention ( )

Cora and Quinn split the storytelling duty in alternating chapters in this novel. Cora's sister Mabel was killed in a school shooting and Quinn's brother, Parker, was the shooter who ended his shooting spree by killing himself. The familes are dealing with the aftermath in very different ways. When Quinn approaches her former best friend with the idea of time travel to try to set things right, the two start working together on a project that they hope will heal and make them whole again.
The pain and loss seep through the pages.
Both girls are carrying a lot of guilt, but learning that the burdens are not theirs to carry is necessary for them on their paths to healing.
I had to step away from the book for awhile, but glad I came back to finish the story. ( )

CW: Death of loved one, gun violence (off page and not described), racism (reference only - no details given - we just understand it is the motivation behind the attack)

Well that was a beautifully written middle-school story of dealing with loss and guilt in the aftermath of a school shooting.

Cora and Quinn are both characters that Readers can empathise with. Their fragility and pain pour off the pages and I just wanted to hug them both. Ultimately this is about hope and healing and the different ways families cope with tragedy.

Although no details are provided I would make sure that young readers understand the plot of the story so they can decide if they are in the right headspace to read this. ( )