When Life Gives You Mangoes

 

I'm excited to be working with Poppy Stimpson at Pushkin Press for the blog tour for When Life Gives You Mangoes. When Life Gives You Mangoes by Kerreen Getten is wonderful and refreshing read. It also was thought provoking.  Because of these factors, I loved When Life Gives You Mangoes. 

Book: When Life Gives You Mangoes

Author: Kareen Getten

Publisher: Pushkin Press

Date Published: October 20, 2020

Genre: Middle Grade/Fiction

Book Synopsis

For fans of deeply poignant middle grade about friendship and loss like The Thing About Jellyfish, comes the story about a young girl who can't remember anything from her previous summer after a hurricane.

Twelve-year-old Clara lives on an island that visitors call exotic. But there's nothing exotic about it to Clara. She loves eating ripe mangos off the ground, running outside in the rain with her Papa during rainy season, and going to her secret hideout with Gaynah--even though lately she's not acting like a best friend.

The only thing out of the ordinary for Clara is that something happened to her memory that made her forget everything that happened last summer after a hurricane hit. Sometimes things come back to her in drips like a tap that hasn't been turned off properly. Other times her Mama fills in the blanks...only she knows those aren't her memories and it is hard feeling like she is not like everybody else.

Summary

   When Life Gives You Mangoes follows Clara who's world changes after she befriends Rudy, a visitor to her island. Unfortunately, Clara has lost her memory because of a traumatic event that happened the previous summer. It begins to concern those who love her as she becomes the talk of those who don't. But, a chance encounter with the town's biggest draw ensures that this summer will change everything. 

Review

  When Life Gives You Mangoes is an amazing read. It had an intriguing story that kept me invested well until the last page. I wanted to know what Clara was doing, and what happened the summer before. Moreover, The writing perfectly captures the mystery, and the plot kept getting better and better. 

In addition to this, the characters were well thought out and each possessed a unique personality. I loved the friendships formed between the characters, and how they helped each other. Also, the atmosphere of this book was amazing. I loved the story, and I would highly recommend. 

My Rating

When Life Gives You Mangoes is a great story that I loved. I gave it a 5 out of 5 stars on Goodreads, and I would highly recommend this wonderful read.  

Author Information

Kereen Getten grew up in Jamaica where she would climb fruit trees in the family garden and eat as much mango, guinep and pear as she could without being caught. She now lives in Birmingham with her family and writes stories about her childhood experiences. When Life Gives You Mangoes is her debut novel. Visit her on Twitter @kereengetten or on Instagram @Kezywrites.

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Purchase Links

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