The book was more a 3.5 for me. It started out as a fun read, got strung out long in the middle and had some very dark areas for a kids book. I enjoyed the concept of the book and glad I finished it and didn't abandon it in the middle.

Unique and quirky, The Mortification of Fovea Munson reminds us that everything might not work on the way we want it to, but everything will work out in the end.

A BIG Thank You to NetGalley for providing me an advanced copy of “The Mortification of Fovea Munson” by Mary Winn Heider in exchange for my honest review.

This book was HI-LA-RI-OUS!! I LOVED reading it! There are very few books out there which make me laugh out loud throughout, and this was one of them.

I honestly cannot find anything to complain about this book. The story is unique and unlike anything I have read before. Even though the plot contains some pretty morbid matter like cadavers, appendages and cremators, it is written in such a light hearted manner that would intrigue the young ones to read without spooking them. The story has so many twists and turns happening that I was just glued to the pages to find out what happens next. At times the plot got so farfetched (like when Fovea realizes she has to find a baritone to entertain her new found friends) that I wondered where the author was going with this, but I think that is the reason why this book was SO good where I really didn’t know how the story would turn out. In addition to that, it also touches on the values of friendship and how to deal with breakups and see the more important things in life.

Coming to the characters, Fovea is one of those characters that you can easily relate to, and her snarky sense of humor that makes the entire book so entertaining. In fact, up until the first twenty pages, I thought Fovea was a boy because of her unique name, and until Em mentions refers to her as a girl, I had no idea the main character is a girl (I just jumped into the book because I loved the cover). The supporting characters like Howe, Whitney, Andy, McMullen and Grandma Van were also a treat to read. My favorite of course was Lake. He was the funniest amongst them all, and even though he was in the story for a while, he turned out to be a memorable character for me just because of his personality.

I have become a fan of Mary Winn Heider after reading this book and cannot wait till her next one comes out. The illustrations are also cute and add a whimsical tone to the book. I feel if you are a middle grade fan and are reading only 3 books this year, this should definitely be one of them “The Mortification of Fovea Munson”.