I received this book for free from Library, Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Watch Over Me by Nina LaCour Also by this author: Everything Leads to You, Summer Days & Summer Nights: Twelve Love Stories, We Are Okay
Published by Penguin on September 15, 2020
Genres: Family, Ghost Stories, Orphans & Foster Homes, Physical & Emotional Abuse, Social Themes, Young Adult Fiction
Pages: 272
Format: eARC, Hardcover
Source: Library, Publisher
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Goodreads
A modern ghost story about trauma and survival, Watch Over Me is the much-anticipated new novel from the Printz Award-winning author of We Are Okay
★ "Gripping; an emotion-packed must-read." -Kirkus, starred review★ "A painfully compelling gem from a masterful creator." -Booklist, starred review ★ "Moving, unsettling, and full of atmospheric beauty." -SLJ, starred review
Mila is used to being alone.
Maybe that's why she said yes. Yes to a second chance in this remote place, among the flowers and the fog and the crash of waves far below.
But she hadn't known about the ghosts.
Newly graduated from high school, Mila has aged out of the foster care system. So when she's offered a teaching job and a place to live on an isolated part of the Northern California coast, she immediately accepts. Maybe she will finally find a new home--a real home. The farm is a refuge, but it's also haunted by the past. And Mila's own memories are starting to rise to the surface.
Nina LaCour, the Printz Award-winning author of We Are Okay, delivers another emotional knockout with Watch Over Me about trauma and survival, chosen family and rebirth.
Watch Over Me by Nina LaCour is a comfort. You read this book and you can just feel the healing coming through on the pages. As with all of the books I have read by LaCour, I feel moved. I also feel so glad that I picked this one up. It was a great use of my reading time. I honestly still find myself thinking about what I read in this book – what was real and what was not.
Mila is the main character in Watch Over Me. As the book opens, she’s getting ready to transition out of her foster home and into a new job. She is going to be a teacher at this home run by these two adults who take on foster children. As it turns out, she finds family while at this home. She has to confront the ghosts of her pasts — literally. You see, she sees these ghosts dancing in the field, but she is not the only person who can see them. So far, Mila only has one student — Lee. She forms a deep bond with him. And together, they work through their trauma. We get to see what lead to Mila being in foster care and see her process her adverse childhood experiences (ACEs for those who aren’t in the social work/human services field). Eventually Mila begins healing from her trauma.
Watch Over Me is another beautifully written book from Nina LaCour. If I had to determine an aesthetic for this book, it would be cottagecore. You see, Mila stays in a cabin where she has a fireplace for heat and a skylight. There is homeschooling. The characters wear simple clothing. Additionally, they grow food and sell specialty flowers at the farmer’s market. However, this book is not at all obnoxious about being cottagecore. I loved the vibe, I’ll admit.
It was such a comfort to wind down with. I mean, yes, Mila has her ghosts. But, she learns and heals from what has happened to her. She processes and ends up accepting the love she deserves and forgives herself. I think that if you have also been through something, this book can be a balm. Pick up this quiet book for an excellent read that is on the cusp of young adult and new adult.
@aprilbooksandwine Watch Over Me by Nina Lacour aesthetic #booktok #ninalacour #cottagecore
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