On an island on the edge of an immense sea there is a city, a forest, and a boy. The city is called Asteri, a perfect city saved by the magic woven into its walls when a devastating plague swept through the world years before. The forest is called the Barrow, a vast wood of ancient trees that encircles the city and feeds the earth with magic. And the boy is called Oscar, a shop boy for the most powerful magician in the Barrow, who spends his days in the dark cellar of his master’s shop grinding herbs and dreaming of the wizards who once lived on the island. Oscar’s world is small, but he likes it that way. The real world is vast, strange, and unpredictable. And Oscar does not quite fit in it.

But it’s been a long time since anyone who could call himself a wizard walked the world, and now that world is changing. Children in the city are falling ill; something sinister lurks in the forest. Oscar has long been content to stay in his small room, comforted in the knowledge that the magic that flows from the trees will keep his island safe. Now, even magic may not be enough to save it.

Anne Ursu has written an unforgettable story of transformation and belonging—a spellbinding tale of the way in which the power we all wield, great and small, lies in the choices we make.

In city filled with magic and people so perfect that everything about them shines, it is Oscar who stands out in a crowd. Perfectly ordinary and even a bit odd, Oscar’s small world as a boy grinding and mixing plants may seem mundane to people looking from the outside. To the apprentice serving under his master, Wolf, Oscar is a nuisance to be disposed of at the earliest convenience. Master Caleb and Oscar’s new friend Callie see things very differently and when life in the Barrow becomes increasingly dangerous it turns out that there truly is more to Oscar than even he ever expected.

About one week ago Anne Ursu shared a post on the Nerdy Book Club that changed the course of my review. You see, I have a tendency to take books very personally. Every so often the lines between reality and fiction blur momentarily while reading, expanding the way you see your world and the experiences or relationships you have. Even more rarely, thanks to the beauty of the internet, you discover something about the author behind the book that causes their writing to mean that much more to you. An understanding, a connection and sometimes even a friendship or kinship is developed. Let me first share this paragraph from The Real Boy and then I’ll continue:

Oscar awoke in the morning with the feeling of dread twitching in his body, as if mice had been skittering along the inside of his skin all night. With a deep breath, he counted the things around him that were real. There was a the ceiling; there were his walls; here was his bed, his blanket, his Pebble.
p. 23, ARC, The Real Boy by Anne Ursu

You see, I’d read this some time before Anne’s post went up on Nerdy Book Club and when I read this paragraph(among others) it was clear to me that Oscar was very much like my Turkeybird. And now, having read the post, very much like Anne’s son as well. This connection, this knowing that someone else so clearly (clearly is a loose term because I’m not certain any of us will ever completely understand another without physically being in their shoes) understands and has written a character I cannot wait to share with my own son, has meant more than I can communicate. As readers we long to find characters we can relate to, those that speak to us in a way that help us to feel less alone in this enormous world. As a parent this feeling of longing for the exact right books for our children is multiplied a thousand times over. When we find one such book it’s all we can do to bide our time waiting for the right moment to casually hand it to them with every secret hope they’ll love it. This, is how I feel about The Real Boy. And for this reason I’m happy to say my review has been skewed, but why not? Books are supposed to be personal, aren’t they?

The Real Boy by Anne Ursu is a book I will champion for years to come, and not only because of the character connection I mentioned above. Anne has created a story world layered in rich bold characters, settings and conflict. Where you start within the first few chapters is only the beginning of something bigger, not only for Oscar but the world around him. Oscar’s relationships were a large part of the story connection, from good to bad and especially the small subtleties of his relationships with the cats in his home. When Callie is introduced to the story I couldn’t help but root for their friendship. So often all we need, no matter who we are, is someone to cheer us on and ask the right questions of us. Callie saw something in Oscar that most overlooked, his potential. Through Callie’s friendship and Master Caleb’s encouragement, Oscar slowly makes the choices he needs to to propel him forward.

In all honesty, I could continue to talk about The Real Boy by Anne Ursu for days. There is so much to be discovered within the city of Asteri and land surrounding it. Magic, the lack of magic, characters who come to life page after page, conflict and intrigue, the power of good and bad choices, and most of all the power of friendship and kindness. Oscar, though it’s never said in the book that he’s autistic, has characteristics that so many children today will relate to and be comforted by. They’ll possibly feel freed by knowing they aren’t alone in the world and that this very Real Boy understands the way they think. There is so much more I could say. The Real Boy by Anne Ursu is powerful and heartfelt, a story I will treasure for years.

The1stdaughter Recommends: Ages 7 and up. Magic, intrigue, friendship and the power of making choices. A powerful follow-up to Anne’s novel, Breadcrumbs, that begs to be read by all.

Giveaway!

I have to give a huge thank you to the publisher, Walden Pond Press, for giving me the opportunity to review and be on the tour for The Real Boy as well as host a giveaway for one signed hardcover of the book!
Be sure to enter using the rafflecopter form below and be aware that this one is for US residents only.

Also, Walden Pond Press is hosting a Facebook sweepstakes in celebration of THE REAL BOY by giving away $300 worth of books! Stop by their Facebook page to enter and read more details.

Find The Real Boy by Anne Ursu and Illustrated by Erin Mcguire at the following spots:
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Powell’s Books | Indiebound | Book Depository | Goodreads | ISBN/ISBN-13: 0062015079 / 9780062015075

Thank you to Walden Pond Press for coordinating this blog tour! Find Walden Pond Press on Twitter and Facebook!
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Original article: Book Review and Giveaway: The Real Boy by Anne Ursu

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