You warm to her instantly, even as she puzzles through the peculiarities of middle school interactions. Emma-Jean isn't emotional, but at the same time she isn't so cold that the reader doesn't care for her. Part of Tarshis' strength lies in her characters, of course. When you review a lot of children's books, they all tend to run together after a while into a big old slurry blur. I could remember the plot, and the characters, and teensy tiny little details here and there. So as I picked this book up to review it, something strange occurred to me I could remember everything in it perfectly. The thoughts that have percolated and popped in my noggin are not first-impressions or sudden flashes of inspiration. People don't always make sense and the world is not always fair, but sometimes change can be good. Now, however, she has mixed feelings towards her widowed mother falling for the nice Indian guy boarding with them, while at the same time learning that this whole "friendship" idea may not be as straightforward as all that. Of course, that may mean some forgery here and there, but Emma-Jean is confident in her abilities. When Emma-Jean finds Colleen sobbing in the girls' bathroom (which is just as illogical as it is out of character) she vows to help Colleen out any way she can. That's something Colleen Pomerantz would probably pay anything to be. If Emma-Jean is anything, she's comfortable being herself. Come to think of it, she doesn't seem to have all that many friends to begin with. She doesn't burst into tears every day in middle school or giggle about boys with her friends. She's not like other girls, that Emma-Jean Lazarus. Memorable and supremely interesting, this is a book worth holding on to for a very long time. Newbie first-time author Lauren Tarshis has written a book with some serious buzz flitting about it.
Let us consider this book entirely on its own merits and leave speculations regarding the main character's mental state to the readers themselves. An engaging romp, if you will, but it is NOT to be compared to Mark Haddon 's book, no matter how tempting a prospect.
"Emma-Jean Lazarus Fell Out of a Tree," is a treat. First and foremost I want to stop right now the temptation anyone may have to compare this book to The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.
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