Nora & Kettle - Review

This book is the first installment in the Paper Stars series. It's a reimagining of Peter Pan and follows two teenagers named Nora and Kettle. They face extreme hardships and both of them long for the day when they will be able to fly away and touch the sky. Kettle is a Japanese American living on the streets with other lost children after the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II. Nora's home life in the brownstone walls is filled with violence, lies and perpetual danger. She dreams of being free and seeing what it's like outside of those walls that constantly torment her. When Nora and Kettle meet, they discover that there might be such a thing as pixie dust after all. But they must confront what's been making them run, so that they can finally fly. Nora & Kettle is one of those stories that leave an imprint on your memory long after you turn the last page. The writing is lyrical and poetic. It's rich in metaphors, and yet so simply told. The characters are brilliant. They have their own backgrounds and distinguishing characteristics that make them so vivid in your mind. This is a story of love, trust, survival and overcoming adversity. It's about always believing that things will get better, no matter how many times it seems like it only gets worse. Life can knock you down so hard that you feel as though the earth never can meet the sky. But love pulls you back up each time. And then you find that you can will your feet to move, to leave the ground. Because that star you thought was out of reach, may have been in your pocket all along.

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