Books › The girl who could fly
The girl who could fly
352 pages
A folksy, high-flying adventure about the power of staying true to your weirdest, most wonderful self in a world that demands conformity.
What it feels like
Reading this book feels like stepping out of a sunlit, wide-open pasture and into a sterile, fluorescent-lit hallway, only to break the windows and soar back into the sky. The narrative is anchored by a deeply earnest, folksy voice that gives the story a charming, homespun texture, which contrasts brilliantly with the creeping, dystopian dread of the secret facility. It moves at a brisk, adventurous clip, balancing moments of whimsical wonder with genuine stakes and a slightly sinister undertone. Ultimately, it is a triumphant and heartwarming experience. It will thoroughly delight readers who root for quirky underdogs, cherish found-family dynamics, and love watching extraordinary children outsmart the rigid, joyless adults trying to force them into a mold.
- Mood
- whimsical
- claustrophobic
- triumphant
- heartwarming
- Tone
- folksy
- earnest
- quirky
- sinister
- hopeful
- Pace
- brisk
- Themes
- embracing individuality · rebellion against conformity · found family · danger of assimilation · courage in the face of fear
- The writing
- The narrative voice is infused with a charming, folksy twang that contrasts sharply with the sterile, clinical descriptions of the government facility.
- The arc
- Moves from the joyful innocence of discovering a unique gift, through the chilling realization of institutional control, to a triumphant and rebellious reclamation of self.
- Who it's for
- Middle grade readers who love quirky underdogs, found families, and stories where extraordinary kids outsmart oppressive adults.
Content notes
- child confinement
- institutional abuse
- bullying
- animal peril
About the book
When homeschooled farm girl Piper McCloud reveals her ability to fly, she is quickly taken to a secret government facility to be trained with other exceptional children, but she soon realizes that something is very wrong and begins working with brilliant and wealthy Conrad to escape.
Piper McCloud's ability to fly sets her apart from the other kids, so her mother sends her to an exclusive school for children with exceptional abilities, but even there she does not fit in with the other students.
Description from Open Library.
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