Keedie - Elle McNicoll

Before there was Addie, there was Keedie.

Firecracker Keedie has had enough of bullies and has had enough of conforming to convention.  As she sets out to right wrongs and stand up for the truth, the sleepy town of Juniper is about to wake up and see that Keedie is one of a kind.

Keedie is a book I've been looking forward to reading for quite some time, so when my pre-order arrived early, it didn't go anywhere near the tbr pile!  I began reading it yesterday evening and stayed in bed this morning until I was finished: I simply couldn't put the book down.  It. Was. Brilliant. (But then I didn't expect anything else from Elle whose writing always captivates me).  

So, why did I find it so good?

Having first met Keedie in A Kind of Spark, I was keen to get to know her more in this prequel, and I definitely got to know her.  She is a force of nature whose sense of justice is strong (I love her for this amongst many other things), and she is fiercely loyal to her friends as well as her family, especially Addie who is only six at the time of this book.  I know that Keedie finds so many things in life tricky but, to me, she is a powerhouse with an inner strength I admire. 

Returning to Juniper was lovely, and there were a few subtle nods and leads to A Kind of Spark (however, not so many that you couldn't read this as a stand-alone).  Gaining an insight on the place through Keedie's eyes means I now want to go back and reread A Kind of Spark. 

Having seen the relationship between Keedie and Addie in A Kind of Spark, seeing how that builds here felt special; it was just wonderful to read and incredibly touching (yes, I cried).

The ending: oh wow!  the whole book packs a punch (rather like Keedie herself) but the final few pages ... ❤️  It was an ending that left me sitting quietly, processing and absorbing the book, and I've yet to begin a new book, such was impact (which, those of you who know me well will know is incredibly unusual).

Keedie is a book full of heart, emotion and empathy that packs one heck of a punch; it's a book about friendship, bullying, the importance of kindness and of being proud of being unique.  It's a book that made me laugh at times, and cry a lot.  Elle has a way of folding you into a story that makes you feel like you're doing so much more than reading words on a page. She makes you feel what the characters feel, experience exactly what the characters are feeling and live the life they are living. She has a way of including phrases and paragraphs that touch your heart and help readers to know they are not alone (I have numerous post-its dotted through the book to remind me of sentences that have jumped out at me) and I, for one, am truly grateful that she writes from the heart.  Thank-you, Elle, for being you and for sharing your books - the world is a better place for them.