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The Incredible Magic of Being by Kathryn Erskine

Julian and his family have just moved to Main to run a B & B. Julian has two moms and a sister is always grouchy. Julian is nine years old and wise beyond his years. He has quite the vocabulary and consistently posts his FARTs (Facts and random thoughts) throughout the book. Julian loves astronomy and part of the reason he was ok with the move is that Maine has a lot more space where he can look at the sky. His mother is very over protective, so it’s hard for Julian to do what he wants. His sister is Pookie, and she is beginning to run with a crowd that adults do not approve of. Pookie does not get as much attention as Julian does, so she has had to be more self-sufficient. Pookie is on a mission to try to figure out who her dad is and thinks life would be better with him. Part of the reason Julian moved is because he was being bullied at his previous school. His mom wants to home school him, but Joan thinks he is better off going to school. Julian believes he is a uni-sensor, which means he can sense things going on in the universe.

Julian believes there is magic in the universe that connects us. He is also very against burning marshmallows. When they arrive in Maine to pursue a new life, their new neighbor, Mr. X, is very crabby and slaps them with a lawsuit. He says that their house blocks his view of the lake. Julian is determined to get him to change his mind. The story unfolds with an unlikely friendship. I think this book hold a lot of appeal to middle grade readers. It will make readers think about their place in the universe and what family means. This book may be controversial to some because Julian and Pookie have two moms, but it is a story that needs to be told. It would be an important book for students who have 2 moms and need a feel good story with lots of hope in it. It’s realistic fiction with just a bit of magic in it. It’s about family and friendship and I think that will bring lot of readers in. It’s a must have for a school library. I think it would be a great choice for classroom libraries, independent reading, book clubs and just for fun. There is good dialogue and different points of view to explore as a reader. Enjoyable for all ages. ( )

Precocious nine year olds can be exasperating and when you’ve got a heart disease and a helicopter mother, you are a uni-sensor (someone who knows things before or as they happen), and a science nerd, it can be a bit much. Julian is just such a person. He, his moms and his sister, Pookie, move from Washington, D.C. to the boondocks of Maine to open a bed and breakfast. Upon arriving they receive a notice that their elderly neighbor, Mr. X, is suing them to demolish the addition they put on the house for the B&B because it hinders his view of the ocean.

Pookie suggests Julian go over and befriend Mr. X in hopes that he change his mind, thus beginning a relationship between Julian and Mr. X, who recently lost his wife to cancer, and has been described as a lonely man with nothing to live for.

The Incredible Magic of Being by Kathryn Erskine (author of Mockingbird among other tween books) describes exactly that…the magic of being alive, the magic of the world around us, the magic that is family. Everyone in the book, Julian’s moms and sister, Julian, and Mr. X all have issues that they must deal with. But it’s Julian’s positivity (is that a word?) that shines through and, in many instances, gets people through their issues.

Julian is a science nerd and through Julian, The Incredible Magic of Being cites many scientific facts and theories. It also has “farts”, Facts and Random Thoughts, at the end of each chapter, some of which we learn from (facts) and some of which are merely random thoughts. (Julian is a font of information and I got the feeling that he is on the autism spectrum somewhere, although that might not have been the author’s intention. Caitlin, in Mockingbird, has Asperger’s Syndrome, by the way.)

The one thing about science, according to Julian, is that whether or not you believe it in, it is there. And the fact that we don’t believe or understand it, doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. So, when Julian talks to his best friends in parallel universes, you’ve just got to believe. When he can sense occurrences in other locations, you just have to believe. When he describes his sister as a black hole, you’ve got to believe.

I love upbeat characters. In some ways, The Incredible Magic of Being reminds me of Soar by Joan Bauer whose main character also has a heart problem but won’t let it keep him down. I think kids will relate to Julian and his teenage sister and enjoy his thoughts and escapades. The Incredible Magic of Being is a fun, light read even though the subject sounds kind of heavy. Have fun with it and even learn something, such as what the Messier Objects are. ( )

National Book Award winner!