CLARISSA

A grieving girl learns to find her courage from a fire spirit in this children’s novel.

For 11-year-old Clarissa Gentle, there’s no better place to sit than beneath the oak tree in the garden. Oak also likes Clarissa’s company. She can hear him, although no one else can, and she enjoys Oak’s stories about legendary creatures in the surrounding Fens of England. He’s been her friend for the nearly three years since her mother died, her baby brother was born, and her father became distant. One evening, Oak tells Clarissa to dig beneath his roots, where she finds an old key. She discovers that it unlocks an old iron box from the museum where her father works. Opening it, she releases Fire, a spirit who is grateful that he’s free again to connect with fire around the world. Meanwhile, an archaeological artifact, a potion bottle with a flame painted on it, has been stolen by a man who wants to trap a fire spirit. Clarissa has trouble making her voice heard, but she must to prevent disaster—as the spirit says, “Speak your truth and flame bright.” In her latest children’s book, Spudich employs folklore and myth for a coming-of-age story that’s lyrical, exciting, and psychologically insightful about gaining wholeness. Clarissa’s quiet, intuitive nature becomes powerful when she gets in touch with the restlessly wild fire spirit, who gleefully proclaims “I stretch, and a volcano erupts in Hawaii. I crackle, and trees burn!” Fire, too, learns from Clarissa, acknowledging that her courage inspires his own. The story also balances understated portrayals of emotional states with a tense, gripping scene that requires Clarissa to confront a villain intent on enslaving Fire.

A poetic, beautifully written exploration of finding inner strength.