Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
In this intriguing epistolary novel, Walker (Baby Feminists) employs multimedia formatting to chronicle the anonymous, pen pal--adjacent friendship between two high school seniors in 2016 rural Green Bank, W.Va. When a cryptic letter left to her by her recently deceased mother, an astrophysicist raised in Green Bank, leads one of the teens to an 1888 astronomy textbook (the "oldest book in the Green Bank High School Library"), the high schooler--an artistic newcomer from San Francisco who takes the pseudonym Copernicus--begins crafting handwritten letters to her mom on the book's pages. Copernicus's writing is then found by a second teen called Kepler--a gifted student whose family runs "generations deep in Pocahontas County"--who replies via sticky note. Soon the two team up to unravel the puzzle of Copernicus's mother's history in Green Bank as well as her link to unexplained events in the late 1980s, along the way forming a close connection. The students' alternating perspectives are occasionally indistinguishable, but sustained tension surrounding the central mystery and the duo's anonymity, as well as their focus on astrology, anchor this conceptually innovative solo debut. Photo collages and Copernicus's drawings feature throughout. The protagonists read as white. Ages 12--up. (Nov.)
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Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 7 Up--A tale told through notes, with gorgeous drawings and town secrets, that keeps readers wanting more. After her mother's death, Copernicus transfers to Green Bank High School in Pocahontas County, WV, where the Wi-Fi is shoddy and crop circles appear mysteriously. In an attempt to learn more about her mother, who went to the same high school, Copernicus finds the oldest book in the library, an astronomy textbook, and begins journaling in it. Kepler, a high-achieving student whose family has lived in West Virginia for generations, finds the notes and drawings and challenges Copernicus for defacing school property. However, the pair connects over science, the mystery of the high school, and aspirations outside of Appalachia, eventually starting "The Secret Astronomers" club. Readers will be entranced by the lush and creative hand-drawn illustrations and collages, as well as the mystery elements. Though Copernicus and Kepler only speak through notes, their dialogue and reactions still feel realistic, and their friendship develops authentically. Readers will appreciate the way the two challenge each other's assumptions about Appalachia, family, and more. Walker's depiction of grief, Appalachian life, disability, and family life also feel genuine. Although the mystery wraps up too nicely, readers will enjoy discovering answers alongside the protagonists. VERDICT A heartwarming tale about connection, grief, and challenging assumptions, this will be well-received by fans of graphic novels like Samuel Teer's Brownstone and epistolary YA novels.--Israt Abedin
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
A 19th-century astronomy textbook connects two isolated teens in this epistolary collection of notes and drawings. "Copernicus" is grieving their astrophysicist mother's recent death. Their dad sent them to their grandparents in Green Bank, West Virginia, to complete senior year. A cryptic note their mother left behind leads the San Francisco native to an old textbook in the school library. Since the Green Bank Observatory's sensitive equipment requires a ban on Wi-Fi in the area, instead of scrolling on their phone, Copernicus spends study hall creating fanciful artwork and writing letters to their mother in the pages of the textbook. After another student leaves a sticky note asking them to stop defacing the book, their exchanges evolve into true dialogue. "Kepler" is only in the school building early each morning, before she's bussed to a gifted program. While she plans to leave the area for college, she's proud of her Appalachian roots. The two, who appear white in the illustrations, ultimately join forces to investigate strange phenomena that occurred when Copernicus' mother was in high school, referring to themselves and other members of their community through astronomy-related code names. Over the school year, they trade candid exchanges and challenge each other to grow. While their communications are confined to paper, their friendship feels organic and earned. Walker's clever, eye-catching collages and drawings appear on the pages of a real historical astronomy textbook, incorporating the textbook's contents in ways that maximize their effect. A wholly original novel that celebrates connection in unlikely places.(Fiction. 13-18) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
