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After reading The Returned by Jason Mott, I was thrilled to get an advanced copy of The Wonder of All Things, his latest novel. Jason Mott is a fantastic storyteller and although I wasn’t completely satisfied with the ending of The Returned (mainly because it just ended and it didn’t seem like there was an explanation), I understand that was most likely his point. Not everything in life has a perfect ending or explanation. Which leads me to discussing his latest book in which the storyline revolves around an incident and a phenomenon with no explanation.
A synopsis of The Wonder of All Things from Goodreads is as follows:
On an ordinary day, at an air show like that in any small town across the country, a plane crashes into a crowd of spectators, killing and injuring dozens. But when the dust clears, a thirteen-year-old girl named Ava is found huddled beneath a pocket of rubble with her best friend, Wash. He is injured and bleeding, and when Ava places her hands over him, his wounds miraculously disappear. Ava has a unique gift: she can heal others of their physical ailments. Until the air show tragedy, her gift was a secret. But now the whole world knows, and suddenly Ava is thrust into the spotlight. People from all over the globe begin flocking to her small town, looking for healing and eager to glimpse the wonder of a miracle. But Ava's unusual ability comes at a great cost, her own health, and as she grows weaker with each healing, Ava begins searching for an escape. Wash agrees to help Ava, but little does she know he has his own secret he's been harboring, and soon Ava finds herself having to decide just how much she's willing to sacrifice in order to save the one she loves most.
Just like his first novel, I enjoyed reading this one as well. The book is well written and less confusing than his other one, although it does jump around from present to past experiences, but for a good reason which the reader discovers at the end. The best part of this novel was seeing the friendship between Ava and Wash, and Ava and her family’s struggle with her “gift”. We all have best friends and families and sometimes we don’t know what’s best for us and neither do the people in our lives. Any reader will be able to relate to this family.
The most frustrating part of this book is there are certain things for which we readers don’t get an explanation. It’s human nature to expect explanations for everything, even things we don’t understand; hence the frustration. But I respect the fact that Jason Mott does not end his stories with traditional endings. Sometimes certain things in life just end with no explanation and we are left wondering how to make sense of it all.
I would highly recommend this novel to anyone who is a Jason Mott fan, or simply for anyone who appreciates a unique, well told story that leaves you confused and searching for an explanation, but ultimately satisfied at the end.
Guest Reviewer: Kara C.Kelly
About the Author
Jason Mott lives in southeastern North Carolina. He has a BFA in Fiction and an MFA in Poetry, both from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. His poetry and fiction has appeared in various journals such as Prick of the Spindle, The Thomas Wolfe Review, The Kakalak Anthology of Carolina Poets, Measure and Chautauqua. He was nominated for a 2009 Pushcart Prize award and Entertainment Weekly listed him as one of their 10 “New Hollywood: Next Wave” people to watch.
He is the author of two poetry collections: We Call This Thing Between Us Love and “…hide behind me…” The Returned is his first novel.
The Returned has been optioned by Brad Pitt’s production company, Plan B, in association with Brillstein Entertainment and ABC. It will air in March, 2014 on the ABC network under the title “Resurrection.
An ebook was provided for review from NetGalley and there was no monetary compensation
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