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Reading age
8-12
Genre
Realistic Fiction
Publisher
Balzer + Bray
Publication date
March 7, 2023
A girl whose parents are most hated wants to find herself in the world.
Leeva Thornblossom has one of the worst parents on Earth. Her father, the treasurer, is a greedy man who only cares about gaining more wealth. Her mother, the mayor, is a literal clout chaser, doing anything to make herself famous. They make Leeva their servant, forbidding her to go anywhere until Leeva discovers a loophole and finds the town library. With access to learning information and new friends, Leeva will not let her parents ruin things!
This story is well-written, has a good sense of humor, and has a nice touch of quirkiness.
I love that the library and the librarians are central to this story. As one of my happy places is the library, I was delighted that Leeva feels the same. She is an avid learner and is open to learning many new things, like me. I knew many of the books she was talking about in the story.
Harry, the acting librarian, is dramatic but a very kindhearted man. His aunt, the librarian, is sweet and a good baker; she makes delicious cookies.
The book has a lot of similarities to Matilda by Roald Dahl. There were some of the same concepts there, like the parents. It saddened me that her parents neglected her and were just about money and fame. But on the bright side, Leeva has incredible friends that will help her throughout the book.
The illustrations by Matthew Cordell throughout the book are humorous and well done.
The theme of Leeva at Last is to be open to knowledge and change. I recommend the book to Roald Dahl fans.
My rating
About the author
“Sara Pennypacker was a painter before becoming a writer, and has two absolutely fabulous children who are now grown. She has written over twenty children’s books including Pax (illustrated by Jon Klassen), Here In The Real World, the Clementine and Waylan series (both illustrated by Marla Frazee); Stuart’s Cape and Stuart Goes to School (both illustrated by Martin Matje), Meet the Dullards, and others. Sara splits her time between Cape Cod, Massachusetts and Florida.” – Amazon.
