The Girl Who Could Fly and the Boy Who Knew Everything

Today, I bring you the works of Victoria Forester, her first novel, The Girl Who Could Fly, and it's companion, The Boy Who Knew Everything.

First of all, I'd like to take a look at the evolution of the cover of this book, which I find a bit disturbing.

First edition looks like this.  Seems to be an innocent little girl in her nightgown about ready to leap off of a barn roof.  It's gentle, it's serene, it's quietly appealing.  The girl looks like she'd be about 9 or 10.


Second version.  A little more stylized and compelling.  Now the protagonist is in her school uniform.  She remains a round-faced innocent 9 year old, to my estimation, but now we have a villain clinging to her ankle-sock, mary-jane shoe wearing leg.  I still like this cover, even though it has a bit of shock value in it.



Current version.  Similar compelling depiction of peril and escape, but now we have, at least, the depiction of a 16 year old girl on the front, whose legs are splayed in such a way that her dress is barely a modest covering.  She retains the wild shock of unruly brown hair and blue dress, but she's definitely grown up when compared to the other girls on the previous cover.  This, first and foremost, really pissed me off.  The protagonist is indeed around 10 years old.  What in the hell is going on here?  WHY does this cover depict a 10 year old like this?  GAH.  Anyways.  On to the review.

First reaction:  It took me a while to finish this book, both books actually.  They're really slow to start,  but pick up closer to the end.  Piper comes from a small town where she doesn't particularly fit in.  Her parents are slow-speakin', God-fearin', hard-workin' people who are set in their ways.  At first, I disliked the author's depiction and description of Piper's parents (Joe and Betty).  It seems as though she's poking fun at the faith of people, and drew them as people who have absolute blind faith and that's that.  Piper ends up at a school with other children who have special talents (Kind of like Bird Lady and her Orphanage, but not as creepy.  Way more cool and technologically advanced.)  We meet the Boy who knows everything (who is an enemy at first, but then plots a valiant escape effort), a strong girl, a gal who can use telekinesis, twin boys who can manipulate the weather, a 6 year old boy who can heal people, and a girl who can shrink.  It turns out that the school isn't a school after all, but a detention center designed to drug the kids into submission and get them to forget their special talents.  If that doesn't work, there are torture devices.  The kids eventually escape.  Yay!



The companion to The Girl Who Could Fly is The Boy Who Knew Everything.  First of all, I think that the first novel can stand well enough on its own.  This second installment focuses more on Conrad Harrington (the bully who has a conversion in the first book), his background and his ability.  Again, this book starts off pretty slow, and then the action picks up right around page 200.  While the first book was really about kids with special abilities being oppressed, this one is more about a team of the same kids saving the world and defeating evil.  It was really hard to keep reading this book.  I was glad that it finally took off.  This sequel focuses more on the fantastic and unbelievable.

Promote Virtue?  Yes.  Piper is always trying to do what is good and right.  She even sacrifices her own happiness (and physical well being whilst being tortured) to help save her friends.

Transcendentals?  Goodness and truth.  Some of the descriptions are beautiful, but there's not an overabundance of it.

Overcome human condition?  Meh

Attitude toward Catholicism? N/A

Paganry?  Nope

Swearing?  Nope

Violence?   Yes.  A frightening amount.  It's really very mental in a this could happen sort of way.  Kids are drugged, kids are tortured, kids are convinced that their talents are not useful but instead hurt others.  The actual amount of gore is minimal.  However, the horror of "this could really happen (at least the torturing and drugging kids part)" is overwhelming.

Appropriate age? 11+

Writing Style- great.  It's very descriptive.  Forester does a great job creating scenery, tone, and believable characters.  The vocabulary is alright.

Other notes: I'd classify the second book as fantasy, and the first one as science fiction.  I wasn't particularly in love with the characters or the plot of either book, but there are good things about each one.  I guess I was more frustrated with the fact that it took so long for things to be discovered.  Some of the depictions in both books are quite terrifying.  Piper is tortured, and all of the kids are drugged in the first book to "break" them of their talents.  The second book is tied to the first via a tidy prophecy.  There are characters that cross over to the next story, and some aren't given full attention.  Overall, I think I like the first book better than the second, but neither of them really excite me.  I was just glad to be done with them.

Overall, the book is just ok.  It's not terrible, but it' really doesn't whip me into a verbal frenzy.  I'm also not liking the fact that a lot of books these days are written in a series.  I feel like I have to read all the books in the series (which is why I'm waiting on the Mysterious Benedict Society books) before I review them.

Also, anything that's been reviewed by the author of The Twilight Series does not automatically gain credibility in my estimation.

Therefore: