How to Find a Missing Girl can be fun, silly, and fast-paced and defined by grief and hope. The feelings are still there. They can co-exist. I know they do.
The verse novel format adeptly captures Chloe's racing mind, her outbursts, and her new need for introspection. A solid read with a main character who undergoes genuine growth.
I hope the proliferation of fantasy books grounded in African societies will create familiarity for readers and a new shorthand. I hope it will inspire readers to learn more about the real places and people that underpin the stories.
My roots, traditions, language and stories all come from that place, so in writing All That Shines, I was calling home. Trying to recreate those nights full of shimmering stars, meadows full of blue green grass you could get lost in and friendships that last forever.
A really great story of the lengths one teen will go to to help keep her family together. Somehow Zimmermann makes this story of neglect as hilarious as it is heartbreaking. A stellar read.