My Diary from the Edge of the World

Twelve-year-old Gracie's world is almost like ours--except that the planet is flat, dragons exist, and poltergeists stopped the Industrial Revolution. When the arrival of a Dark Cloud seems to portend her younger brother Sam's death, the family tries to escape fate by leaving for the fabled Extraordinary World. Intricate details of Gracie's world emerge gradually through her sometimes humorous, sometimes poignant diary entries.

High-spirited twelve-year-old Gracie Lockwood's world is almost like ours -- except that the planet is flat, dragons exist (and migrate), and poltergeists stopped the Industrial Revolution from getting very far. When the arrival of an ominous Dark Cloud seems to portend her younger brother Sam's death, there is only one way for the family to escape fate: by leaving for the fabled Extraordinary World from which no one has ever returned. The Lockwoods -- along with Gracie's classmate Oliver, new in town after being orphaned in a sasquatch attack -- set out on a cross-country Winnebago trip in search of a guardian angel and a ship that will take them off the edge of their world to, it is implied, our own. Gracie's family is both aggravating and endearing, full of sibling rivalry and sibling loyalty, with one almost-perfect parent and another who is given to frequent bouts of silent stupor. Anderson wisely allows the intricate details of Gracie's world to emerge gradually through her protagonist's sharp, sometimes humorous, sometimes poignant diary entries. Although readers may be left with questions (how does gravity work on a flat planet? Why are McDonald's and TJ Maxx so prevalent in a semi-industrialized world?), Gracie herself is concerned with far more important questions of honesty and survival. Subtle nods to contemporary issues, notably climate change, shape the book's themes without detracting from the fast-moving plot. sarah rettger