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Age 8 +
198 pages, 39 chapters
The Story
"The two bedroom lights were on. Amelia sidled along the wall and peered into the first room. It was the small bedroom, the one that had been empty. It wasn’t empty now. It was full of cages, glass tanks and plastic bins. She stared through the side of a wire cage at a bright black eye in a greyish-green scaly face. It looked like a little dinosaur! A hand clamped down hard on her shoulder. Amelia spun around."
Amelia’s world came crashing down when her parents separated and she had to leave her old life behind. So when Duke and Gabriella move into the basement suite with their menagerie of exotic animals, Amelia feels like she’s been thrown a lifeline. Convinced that her mother will not like sharing a home with the creatures, Amelia tries to keep them a secret, but it’s difficult hiding the California kingsnake – not to mention the cockatiel and the sulcata tortoise. Will Amelia be able to keep her newfound family together?
The lively brief chapters feature smart and sassy adolescent dialogue with contemporary references and incidental learning about animals.
The story neatly focuses on the passions not only of Amelia but also of Duke and Gabriella in whom Amelia finds an extended family. Citra keeps the focus light and delivers some life lessons with grace. It all comes together in a lovely little episode that animal-loving young readers should especially find resonant. Sweet and lively.
