Clara Voyant will be published by Penguin Random House Canada on 15 May 2018, but I can already “predict” that this book will be a really popular YA fiction read.
The plot of the book goes like this: Clara and her mother, Gaby, are currently residing in the most weird-coolest places, Kensington Market. Kensington Market is a haven for the free spirits, and also for people like Gaby who wish to “follow their bliss”. Clara’s grandmother has shifted to Florida, and hence Clara’s only connection to a sane relative has gone for a toss.
She starts her middle school year by joining the school newspaper team, Gazette, in order to sharpen her investigative journalistic skills. The Editor, Wesley is the most ambitious girl you’ll ever meet. Her plans for the newspaper are designed in a way that will ultimately get her into the best journalism school in the area. And amidst this ambitious drive, Clara gets assigned the most boring task ever – writing horoscopes for the fortnightly newspaper.
What happens next? Clara’s ‘randomly-put-together’ and ‘non-scientific’ horoscopes actually start becoming true. Now, Clara is a middle school sensation! However, Clara’s journalistic and astrological skills are soon put to the test when a mystery unravels in her middle school. Can Clara predict the future and save the day?
The characters in this book are Clara, her mother Gaby, her grandmother Elaine, her best friend Maeve, Maeve’s parents, Gaby’s friends Lily and Terence, Wesley, the taco shop owner Paquito, and the ice-cream parlour owner, Sophie, and many more middle school kids.
What I liked about this book is that the story is witty and endearing. There’s no love interest drafted for Clara, and that’s refreshing for a YA Fiction read. Moreover, the story has a beautiful flow, and everything happens perfectly.
Also, the whole aspect of horoscopes, witchcraft, reading tea cups is presented in a hilarious, modern fashion. Clara, the sceptic, is pitted against her mother, who wishes to make a career based on all this ‘woo!’ (You’ll get the ‘woo!’ reference once you read the book.) Clara, the non-believer, is forced to believe that ‘maybe’ horoscopes do come true. Or is it just ‘subjective validation’, which means that two things are thought to be related because of a prior expectation? (That’s why I asked you to read my blog post at the beginning of this review. I had written a post two years ago about the same topic, and now it’s the plot of a YA Fiction book! I’m clairvoyant! 😛 )
Moreover, I could relate with this book a lot, thanks to being a part of the newsletter team in college. The deadlines, the hunt for a good article to write, presenting everything perfectly… This book totally felt like a second home to me. And hence I picked up this book via NetGalley. Thank you Penguin Random House Canada for accepting my ARC request!
The ending of the book got a bit predictable, but that’s okay. The book deserves a 4/5 star rating, as it is a wonderfully written YA Fiction read. And I’m sure readers of other ages would love it too.
I would recommend this book to every teenager who has dreams of launching into journalism / writing. This book will provide you a quick overview into what exactly happens in the newspaper team, and how you can contribute your varied talents, even non-writing talents (photography, drawing cartoons, editing pictures, designing a newspaper).
~Amateur-Book-Reviewer
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