“She appreciates morbid humour, but most people don’t. They don’t get that life can be funny AND tragic at the same time, like in those old Road Runner cartoons my dad loves, where an anvil falls on Wile E. Coyote’s head and you’re supposed to laugh even though obviously it’s not funny for Wile E. Coyote,” (Glickman 95).
Twelve-year-old Sophie is writing a journal for class in which she tells her teacher all about her likes, dislikes, her upcoming Bat Mitzvah, and her great love for her sixteen-year-old sister Libby who has cerebral palsy. In alternating chapters, Libby writes a story for Sophie’s upcoming thirteen birthday that she is determined to finish though her health is declining.
If I had read this book as a teen I would have hated and loved it. I would have related so much with Sophie living with her chronically ill sister and somehow trying to navigate through life, everyday a balance between the normalcy of being twelve and worrying over your older sister’s health. I would have been worried about Libby, I would have hated the ending. But that would be if a much younger Sarah was reading this book, older Sarah is not nearly as anxious (but that doesn’t mean it’s gone).
The Discovery of Flight is a beautifully written book. I adored Sophie’s voice and really felt for the duality of her living her life while loving and worrying over her sister, especially her parents insistence on having a Bat Mitzvah when all she wants is for Libby to be okay. While readers only get to know of Libby through the story she was writing, I liked seeing the love she had for Sophie through that and her hope that she would live a full and happy life and come into herself. I think this book is very relevant to families who have a loved one with chronic illness.
Glickman is a beautiful writer, and while I loved reading Libby’s story it would have been nice to get her perspective and her voice instead of seeing her through her fiction and Sophie’s eyes. I also think the book would be better suited for an older middle-grade crowd than the YA genre it’s marketed as.
The Discovery of Flight is a quick, wonderful read that will be sure to tug at your heartstrings. I think it’s severely underrated and hope it gets some new readers in the future!
Publication: April 23 2018
Publisher: Inanna Publishing
Pages: 320 pages (Paperback)
Source: Library
Genre: Fiction, Young Adult, Contemporary
My Rating: ⛤⛤⛤⛤
Summary:
The Discovery of Flight is a novel in two voices about the relationship between two sisters, the older of whom is disabled by cerebral palsy and only able to communicate with assistive technology (she can control her computer by moving her eyes). It interweaves the fantasy novel sixteen-year-old Libby is writing for Sophie’s thirteenth birthday, and Sophie’s diary, in which she discusses the deteriorating condition of her older sister. The book’s title is also the title of Libby’s novel, in which Libby takes the form of a hawk telepathically linked to a girl who, like her sister, is a good artist. Sophie’s diary is in fact illustrated with the occasional black-and-white drawing. The sicker Libby gets, the more she retreats into her novel and the less she interacts with the outside world. Though the situation is tragic, Sophie’s voice is extremely funny and wry. In addition, through her storytelling, Libby becomes a heroic figure rather than a helpless victim. After Libby’s death, the girls’ mother presents Sophie with the novel and Sophie writes its final chapter, bringing the voices of the two girls together.
Sarah O'Connor 