The Green Kingdom by Cornelia Funke & Tammi Hartung (illustrated by Melissa Castrillon) Dorling Kindersely.
Right now the world feels a very strange (and scary) place and I am having trouble losing myself in novels, which does seem counterintuitive I know! Even old favourites and comfort reads aren't working so I was very pleased to become instantly immersed in The Green Kingdom.
This is a delightful middle grade novel and while it is packed full of action it is also incredibly gentle and positive.
Caspia's plans for a summer spent hanging out in the wilds of her hometown with her two best friends are scuppered when her parents announce that they will be spending the summer in Brooklyn, due to the work and learning opportunities that they have been offered.
And that is the absolute maximum of threat/peril that happens in the book. Caspia's parents are happily married and not working through any issues and Caspia has only the normal worries of an on the cusp of adolescence girl and even her friendship triangle is mostly issue free.
What we get instead is an exploration of friendship, and cross generational friendship, and of the plant world that can be found even in the heart of a huge city. Caspia comes across some old letters from the family who own the apartment the family are renting and from these unfolds a botanical treasure hunt which spans the world.
In the best sense of the word this is an old fashioned story, and one that can be read and enjoyed by so many people. It reminded me a lot of Eva Ibbotson's Journey to the River Sea (but with less peril) and also of Elizabeth Enright's series about the Melendy Family.
In fact it was so gentle that perhaps my biggest criticism is the freedom Caspia has to wander around a New York Borough - even with a mobile phone this lack of supervision did worry me a bit, although removing parents from a narrative to make the story is of course very common!
The botanical details and illustrations are as important as the story in this book and it is absolutely delightful. I was a huge fan of Funke when I was working as a bookseller and I am so pleased to rediscover her with such a gem.
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