the light of hidden flowers by jennifer handford

One aspect of Here Where the Sunbeams are Green that I think Phillips handles so well as an author is the delicate development of Madeline's personality. When Ken Candy shows up in Denver to treat Dr Wade's family to what seem increasingly like diversionary activities more than perks of Dr Wade's job, Madeline grows increasingly suspicious and openly rude to Ken/Neth, especially since it seems like he is moving in on her mother.

As the months pass and the trip keeps getting extended, the girls and their mother hear less and less often from him and when they do his conversations are odd and his letters are strange and unlike the father they know. Seven months earlier, their father, the renowned bird watcher Dr James Wade, was invited by La Lava Resort and Spa, a green, environmentally friendly vacation spot for the rich and famous, to track and help preserve the habitats of the birds around them. When we first meet our narrator, Madeline, almost thirteen, is on a small plane headed into the jungles of Central America with her little sister Ruby, her mom and the annoying, odd Kenneth Candy, referred to as Ken/Neth by Mad who refuses to go along with his presence in their lives. The fantastic cover art was created by Jennifer Bricking and the title was hand lettered by Sarah Hoy. The other amazingly wonderful, out of the ordinary aspect of Here Where the Sunbeams are Green is the jungle where the story takes place, but I'll get to that in a minute. Everyone knows that girls will read 'boy' books ( Diary of a Wimpy Kid) but that boys will never read a book with girls as the main characters ( The Penderwicks.) And, while there is a great boy character in this book, as I said above, this story is really about the sisters and Phillips does a fantastic job creating the characters of Mad and Roo and giving depth to them and their relationship.

In light of that, I always admire a book immensely when the author has the courage to write main characters who are the same gender, especially two girls. And I completely understand this - if I wrote a book I would do everything I could to make sure it is read. I have read a lot of books since I started this blog, and I one trend that I noticed is the predominant presence of a boy and a girl as the main characters, as if authors want to cover all the bases and make sure their book appeals to the widest audience. There are so many out of the ordinary things about this wonderful novel that I almost don't know where to start, but I think that sisters Madeline and Ruby (Mad and Roo) are a good place to begin. And, while this is not strictly a work of fantasy, this book is filled with magic. Here Where the Sunbeams are Green is author Helen Phillips' stand-out debut novel.

The light of hidden flowers by jennifer handford