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The Wishing Game
The Wishing Game: A Novel | Meg Shaffer
Years ago, a reclusive mega-bestselling childrens author quit writing under mysterious circumstances. Suddenly he resurfaces with a brand-new book and a one-of-a-kind competition, offering a prize that will change the winners life in this absorbing and whimsical novel. Make a wish. . . . Lucy Hart knows better than anyone what it's like to grow up without parents who loved her. In a childhood marked by neglect and loneliness, Lucy found her solace in books, namely the Clock Island series by Jack Masterson. Now a twenty-six-year-old teachers aide, she is able to share her love of reading with bright, young students, especially seven-year-old Christopher Lamb, left orphaned after the tragic death of his parents. Lucy would give anything to adopt Christopher, but even the idea of becoming a family seems like an impossible dream without proper funds and stability. But be careful what you wish for. . . . Just when Lucy is about to give up, Jack Masterson announces hes finally written a new book. Even better, hes holding a contest on his private island where four hand-picked readers will compete to win the only copy. At age thirteen, Lucy fled her unhappy home and showed up on Jack Mastersons doorstep, hoping to live with her favorite author. Thirteen years later, a sky-blue envelope arrives with Lucy's name on it, postmarked "Clock Island." For Lucy, a chance to read the first Clock Island book in years is a prize worth fighting for, but the possibility of winning, selling the manuscript, and securing a better future for her and Christopher means everything. But first, Lucy must contend with ruthless book collectors, wily opponents, and the distractingly handsome (and grumpy) Hugo Reese, illustrator of the Clock Island books and Jacks only friend. Meanwhile, Jack the Mastermind Masterson is plotting the ultimate twist ending that could change all their lives forever. . . . You might just get it.
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MotherOfCats
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LittlebearReads
Pickpick

This one goes out to all the adults who were once kids obsessed with reading and who found salvation in books. I simply couldn‘t help but root for Lucy, and I especially loved how the final outcome was forecasted throughout by little references to the Clock Island series (the books within this book).

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Julsmarshall
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Pickpick

So wonderful! Enjoyed this one so much! The riddles, love, and heart that flows through this story are heartwarming and comforting. I was smiling from ear to ear through the whole book. #BookspinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!!! 3w
58 likes5 stack adds1 comment
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angel1
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Pickpick

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Why did I wait so long to read this book??!! It was so good and now I know why it‘s up for book of the year with BOTM!!😍😍

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Super_Jane
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Pickpick

4.5/5 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗 #wishing #writing

LoverOfLearning I like this one!! It was heart warming. 1mo
14 likes1 stack add1 comment
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Kimberlone
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Pickpick

Light pick (3.5 ⭐️) The premise is perfection (reclusive author of an extremely popular children‘s book series comes out of hiding to hold a Wonka-esque competition for his most rabid fans to win the only copy of his next book), but the boring Mary Sue main character with the predictably traumatic backstory (that isn‘t even that traumatic) really brought down the vibe for me. Overall I liked it, but totally understand the mixed reviews.

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CaitlinR
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Pickpick

What a wonderful, charming story. Meg (“short for Megladon”) Shaffer gives us a book that shows us the power of hope, and how wishes can come true.

Jack Masterson is the author of the Clock Island book series. Four adult‘s, all with childhood connections to the author, have been invited to compete for the rights to his latest book. Lucy Hart MUST win to make her dream of adopting Christopher come true. Thoroughly enjoyed this read!

29 likes1 stack add
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Sharpeipup
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A great day of reading even an #audiowalk
With this sight to behold. 😂

BarkingMadRead This is amazing 🤣 3mo
25 likes1 stack add1 comment
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hes7
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Pickpick

✨ july ✨

i had three five-star reads in july this year:

-the wishing game
-when twilight breaks
-my dear miss dupré

and the wishing game was my favorite of the three.

#12booksof2023

Andrew65 Looks good. 3mo
44 likes1 comment
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Injeanious
Pickpick

Definitely agree with the others saying it had a Willy Wonka feel. It was fun, tender, tricky and clever. A fast enjoyable read for me!

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Amie
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Pickpick

This is a sweet, touching story, although I don't like that the main character promised a young child that she would adopt him and be his mother when it was very unlikely that would be possible.

emz711 Such a cute story 3mo
31 likes1 comment
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GidgetsTreasures75
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12-6-23: My November Book Wrap Up! How sad only 4 books. Now that I am working a full time job here in Philadelphia I don‘t have nearly enough time to read! These were fine with the exception of The Wishing Game being 5 stars. It was a lovely story. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️📖💗

keys_on_fire I loved The Wishing Game! Have you read The House of Eve? It‘s set in Philadelphia and I read it when I was visiting for work back in the spring… 3mo
GidgetsTreasures75 @keys_on_fire I have not read it yet but it‘s on my list! 3mo
13 likes2 comments
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DebinHawaii
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Pickpick

#Rushathon

3 books to go to finish my #BOTM challenge! 🎉 This is one of those “hug in a book” stories, sweet & touching while still exploring some deeper issues like grief & childhood traumas. It gave me all the feels& made me root for Lucy, as well as the other characters. I only wish it had been a little longer so the characters were drawn a bit deeper. Still, a great book when you need a little comfort read.💫🖤⭐️

DieAReader 🥳🥳🥳 4mo
51 likes2 stack adds1 comment
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DebinHawaii
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#HumbleHarvest

What‘s better than wishing on a star? 💫 The cover of one of my current reads & the bookmark I‘m using with it are full of #Stars ✨⭐️✨

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks ⭐️🌟✨ 4mo
Eggs ✨🎄🌟 4mo
51 likes2 comments
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GidgetsTreasures75
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Pickpick

11-13-23: My 95th finished book of 2023! Lucy, a kindergarten teacher‘s aide, is a fan of the Clock Island book series. Jack Masterson is the author who actually lives on Clock Island in Maine. Remember Willy Wonka? Well, Jack hosts a game for fans of his series and 4 lucky contestants are brought to the island in the hopes that they will win his newest book, the only copy! This was a heart warming story. I loved it! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️📖#️⃣9️⃣5️⃣

GidgetsTreasures75 It was about so much more than a game. It was about wishes coming true, the love of a mother for a son she isn‘t sure she can foster, the sadness of a little girl who feels neglected by her parents and sister. It was magical in the sense that there are good people in the world who want to help others. 4mo
17 likes1 comment
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GidgetsTreasures75
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11-9-23: Very excited to start this one! 🎫

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LeslieO
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Looking forward to both of these.#BookSpin #DoubleSpin #BookSpinBingo

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BookNAround
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Gatsby is wishing I wasn‘t using her to model my next read. 🤣

dabbe Hello there, Gorgeous Gatsby! 🖤🐾🖤 5mo
Gissy Hi Gatsby🐶🐾🐾🖤🖤🖤 5mo
GondorGirl Gatsby is over your crap. 😂😂😂 5mo
58 likes3 comments
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Pogue
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Pickpick

A fun book for a rainy day.

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Lauranahe
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Pickpick

I loved this book so much!! I loved how magical and whimsical it is, I was pulling for all the characters, I got teary eyed several times, and I LOVE a good hea. This story hit me in all of my feels. Every one of them. And I can‘t remember the last time I smiled so much at the end of a book. ❤️❤️❤️

14 likes2 stack adds
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peaKnit
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“Hate is a knife without a handle. You can‘t cut something with it without cutting yourself.” #truestory

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DebinHawaii
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#IdiomInsight

The phrase fair and square is an idiom that means “honest, impartial, and without any sort of trickery.” It suggests that something was done in a straightforward manner, without any cheating or underhanded tactics.

In this book in my physical TBR pile (a recent #BOTM selection) there‘s a contest to win the only copy of the latest book from a beloved author. One hopes that when the winner is selected, they won #FairAndSquare ♟️◼️

Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks I have this one! 6mo
Eggs I enjoyed this one 👏🏻 6mo
48 likes2 comments
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JenReadsAlot
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Pickpick

I'll go with good not great!

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LazyLibrary
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Mehso-so

⭐️⭐️The Wishing Game did not hit the spot for me. I expected to love it, bc of the reviews & it was recommended by a reading buddy & we normally have same taste. But I found the MC Lucy to be childish & immature, so her drive to win this contest at 26 years old is to adopt a 7 year old child, when she herself behaves like a child & it left me annoyed from the start. I couldn't get over it and thus could not fully vibe with the story.

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Eringogreen
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Mehso-so

I was enjoying this for a while, loving the puzzles, games and riddles. But now that I finished it, it feels sort of frustrating, juvenile and potentially damaging. The main character holds grudges and cuts off important people in her life and characters flippantly throw terms like “mom” and “son” around without a lot of regard for the process of found family.

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Allthebookclubs
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Pickpick

A “look at yourself in the mirror and figure out who you are and what you really want” kind of book. It took me awhile to get into this. I enjoyed the story but I‘m not sure I understand all the hype and why so many people LOVE this book. Book #49 in 2023

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xicanti
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Rocco, my incredibly sweet new buddy, helped me start THE WISHING GAME by Meg Shaffer this afternoon. Shaffer is one of my favourite authors (she‘s also written a ton of stuff as Tiffany Reisz), and the first seventy pages reminded me what a great prose stylist she is. I‘m excited to keep going later this evening.

dabbe Hello, Rocco with the sweetest face ever! 🖤🐾🖤 7mo
Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Hi Rocco! You are so handsome 🖤🐾 7mo
TheSpineView Awwww... adorable!❤️🐶❤️ 7mo
See All 6 Comments
xicanti @dabbe @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks @TheSpineView he‘s the biggest, sweetest boy. I‘m obsessed with him. 7mo
batsy 😍😍 7mo
Catsandbooks Yay Rocco! ❤️ 7mo
45 likes6 comments
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kaykay521
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So, as I‘ve mentioned a few days ago, I‘m trying to get back into my reading life/ community. I saw the posts for #bookspin and thought I‘d try. I hope I‘m participating correctly. I post a list of books I‘d like to read for September and then @TheAromaofBooks randomly draws 2 and that‘s the two I read? I get overwhelmed and end up not reading anything, so this seemed like a fun way to deal with that.

Larkken Correct! @TheAromaofBooks will also draw up a bingo board each month that incorporates all the books on your list by number and adds 5 freebie spaces if you‘re into that sort of thing. Many littens are now hopelessly addicted to bingo boards ( me included) and its fun seeing what everyone is excited to maybe read in the month ahead! 😊 (edited) 7mo
TheAromaofBooks Yes!!! Your list looks great!! I do draw out two numbers on the 2nd (BookSpin & DoubleSpin) and those are your target books for the month. Like @Larkken said, if you're interested in reading more books from your list, you are welcome to also participate in the Bingo part as well!! I have more details (and pictures haha) on my blog if you're interested - https://thearomaofbooks.wordpress.com/bookspin-bookspinbingo-litsy-challenge 7mo
TheAromaofBooks Also, I added you to the tag list, so you'll get a notification when I post the numbers on Saturday!! 😁 7mo
24 likes3 comments
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Kshakal
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Pickpick

This book is a love letter to those who love books and the power they have, no matter how old you are. Beautifully crafted I dove headfirst into the story and didn‘t want to surface!

38 likes4 stack adds
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Kshakal
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Cat mom dilemma… I want to read but to do so would disturb my pretty girl!

kspenmoll Typical cat -no books! My Em & Poe do this frequently 7mo
wanderinglynn Aw, so sweet! ❤️🐱 And that is a #catdilemma for sure! 🐱📚🐱📚 7mo
IndoorDame She‘s beautiful 😻 and mine play that trick too 😸 7mo
dabbe “Books are for sleeping on, Mom, not for reading!“ 🖤🐾🖤 7mo
40 likes4 comments
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mom_of_4
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Pickpick

This book was very good.

39 likes2 stack adds
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thea-block
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Pickpick

If you mixed A Wrinkle in Time, Ready Player One, and Matilda together, you would get this book! A little dark and sad, yet hopeful and magical, it was different than I expected. It felt like the author could have fleshed things out a little more, bringing the story more depth and staying power. But I love the magical feel, the authentic characters, and the focuses on hope and found family (I cried a few times!)

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2

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candc320
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Pickpick

This book hit me in all the right places! The attention given to that spectacular magic we can only get from reading books as children, mixed with the very realistic and often terrifying world so many live in, was so touching. And while there‘s a romantic element of sorts it isn‘t over done or too sappy. This is a bittersweet/sweet and somewhat sappy story and it was exactly what I needed even though I didn‘t know it. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

mom_of_4 Im reading this now. 7mo
candc320 @mom_of_4 how‘re you liking it so far? 7mo
mom_of_4 @candc320 im in the beginning but im loving it. I dont want to put it down. 7mo
candc320 @mom_of_4 yay!! I hope you love it as much as I did! 7mo
22 likes1 stack add4 comments
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mom_of_4
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The school bell rang at two-thirty, and the usual stampede of little feet followed. #FirstLineFridays @ShyBookOwl

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mom_of_4
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Enjoying some tea while reading a book. What better way to enjoy a after noon. #tealover

38 likes2 comments
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mom_of_4
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Currently reading

46 likes1 stack add
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nitalibrarian
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Pickpick

A low pick. It was just on the verge of being too sappy for me. But I liked the characters and really was invested in seeing how the game played out.

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SW-T
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Mehso-so

Maybe it was the audio, but Lucy just seemed really, really whiny and she annoyed me. Seemed to have unrealistic expectations regarding the adoption process and made promises to Christopher that she wasn‘t in a position to keep at the time she made them. The whole thing seemed unrealistic. Wasn‘t nuts about Hugo either. Christopher and Jack were okay. Okay, but not a feel-good read for me.

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nitalibrarian
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It's the weekend! I'm starting this #botm.

Bette I thought it was a fun read. (+ riddles!) 😊👍 8mo
32 likes2 stack adds1 comment
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Rissa1
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Pickpick

Finished this while my husband drove through Nashville.
This book was incredible! I laughed, I cried, I loved it!!!

Reggie Are you in the states? 8mo
Reggie Have fun! 8mo
Rissa1 @Reggie, yes, in the States. 8mo
23 likes1 stack add3 comments
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Rissa1
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I should be packing for our family vacation, but this book has sucked me in.

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Kristy_K
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Bailedbailed

DNF at 15%

I couldn‘t get over Lucy promising a little boy she‘d adopt him when it wasn‘t a sure thing. Or why she wouldn‘t get a second, part-time job to help get more money. I didn‘t get far enough in to tell if I‘d like Hugo, but thus far he wasn‘t anything special. On to the next.

Lissa00 I felt the same way and dnf‘d for the same reason! I came on here to look at reviews because all I‘ve seen is praise for this book and I thought maybe I was missing something. 8mo
Kristy_K @Lissa00 Glad I‘m not the only one! I definitely felt in the minority on this one. 8mo
65 likes2 comments
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TheSpineView
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Pickpick

This is a retelling of sorts of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. I say of sorts because not all follows the original. Instead of kids you have adults playing a game with an author and the prize is his latest children's book. It is the only copy in existence and is worth millions to the right buyer. Outstanding prose and an MC that will steal your heart. 4.5⭐️

#LitsyLoveReads @Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks

82 likes3 stack adds
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TheSpineView
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#FirstLineFriday @ShyBookOwl

"Every night, Hugo went for a walk on the Five O'clock Beach, but tonight was the first time in five years his wandering feet spelled out an SOS in the sand."

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Cathyloves2read
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Pickpick

I loved everything about this book, from the cover, to the acknowledgement. I loved the parallels to Willie Wonka, one of my favorite stories ever! How I‘d love to visit Clock Island someday, and read all of the Clock Island books to my grandkids. This author has an amazing imagination. The biggest compliment I can give a book is to call it magical. I love magic.

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BookMaven9
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Pickpick

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 I devoured this book! absolutely loved it! Yes you‘ll know right away that this is a bit like Charlie and the chocolate factory and yes you may figure some things out along the way, but it‘s such a wonderful journey you can‘t help but feel good all over and fall in love with it.

I thought the dialogue and writing style was wonderful. Gave me all the feels. Sometimes you have to just read something that makes you smile 😊 📚📖📙👍🏼

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SerenaCrawford
Pickpick

4/5 stars.

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megnews
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Pickpick

This is the type of story that will remind you of when you were a kid and first fell in love with reading. I can‘t give a book higher praise than that.

SilversReviews So enjoyed this book. ❤️ 8mo
59 likes4 stack adds1 comment