This is an exciting book about a girl who lives in the crater of a dormant volcano with her family and community. Aside from her father, the storyteller, and Kirra (who is learning to be a storyteller like him), her people don't leave the crater. They cooperate and live happily together.

Then the Takers come. Kirra has heard about them and sneaks out to catch a glimpse and maybe begin to weave stories of her own about them. But her brother follows her and while they are spying on the newcomers, he slips and falls and is caught by them.

The Takers were armor of leather and metal. They carry weapons Kirra has not seen before. And they threaten her brother. She creates a distraction and manages to save him, only to lead the Takers back to the volcano. While she watches from the safety of the trees, her community is destroyed. She runs and jumps into a river, hoping it will be the end.

Kirra awakens to a family who lives in the treetops far from her home. They care for her and she stays with them, never telling them about her past. And one day, the Takers are seen and only she knows what they are capable of.

Can she face up to the guilt she feels? Will she tell people about her past? What will she do to save this new community from the Takers?

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.

I was initially drawn to this book due to the connection with Dave Mathews. I am glad I was!

This book is about tragedy, community, friends, family, and overcoming obstacles (that may seem impossible) that require participation on everyone’s part.

A young girl witnessed a tragedy in her village and must learn to survive without those most important to her. She finds a new village that is complete opposite of her old village. No one is connected. There is no “community.” Despite the fact they all live “together,” working together is not something this new village does. They do not even speak to one another. In the midst of a new tragedy, the new village must learn to work together, connect, and become one in order to protect their community.

This is a great book for middle schoolers! They will enjoy the story(and the giants!)

Intriguing idea, putting together a famous musician (Matthews) and a popular children's author from my home town(Smith) so how could I not read it? The premise is a lovely, heroic tale of a little girl named Kirra, a mistake she makes, and the life-changing consequences it has not only on her life, but on many others. It is also the story of how we must live with nature, not against it, and how we need one another to survive. I loved the characters and the plot line, which built tension well and kept moving forward. My one concern is who is this written for? The syntax and vocabulary are too high level for it to be a middle reader, yet the plot line veers more towards upper elementary and middle schoolers, not high schoolers. I also found it to be quite long for a younger reader to handle. It would, however, be a fantastic read aloud for anyone third grade or higher. Thanks to Net Galley for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

I'm always a little jealous of musicians and actors who get book contracts because it seems so easy to rely on your draw as a star to jump to the top of the pile on an editor's desk. But Dave Matthews IS a storyteller, he just typically does it through song. This was a compelling book with great character development and a strong female protagonist. It's a cautionary tale of being very human and making a mistake, and living with the consequences. Not bad.

Kirra lives secretly in a peaceful community within a dormant volcano. She's training to be a storyteller like her father. But when she accidentally leads violent outsiders called Takers to her village, they burn everything until there's nothing left of her village or her people. After falling into a river, she is rescued downstream by tree people where she lives in numbness for the next four years, trying to block out the memories. Unfortunately, the Takers arrive at her new home, too so Kirra must find her inner strength to convince her adoptive family and the other peaceful Tree Folks to fight back, work together, and be victorious. A compelling plot, an interesting main character, and valuable life lessons about community and the earth will keep readers actively engaged.

Dave Matthews was the draw for me on this book to begin with. The story itself captivated me and kept me reading. The adventure begins when Kirra is 10; she travels "outside" with her father and knows she wants to be just like him when she grows up. Her natural curiosity causes a chain of events which drastically alter her world and the secure life she has always known is forever changed. Four years after tragedy shook her world, a much more subdued Kirra encounters danger again and she has to learn to trust herself and her abilities in order to keep her loved ones safe once more.

The is a glance at a fantastical world of a peaceful world before greed and violence take over; sort of a land before time. People had to reply one each other and the natural world to keep them safe and harmonious. Nature was to be lived within; to use what was necessary and to leave the rest behind. There is a message for readers about what happens when people within communities living together with respect and compassion for the world. It is also about the fight to keep at bay outside forces who wish to take more than is needed through violence and excessive aggression. It is written for middle grade readers, and can teach the value of community and living harmoniously with nature. There is adventure to be discovered through this cautionary tale, and I can see the appeal to a variety of young readers.

Hede: So much to say, at least to young readers: 'If We Were Giants' by Dave Matthews (review to appear in Mountain Times on March 3)

Singer, songwriter, musician — novelist?

Dave Matthews, vocalist, lyricist and guitarist of the Dave Matthews Band is also an author, and in “If We Were Giants,” he presents a cautionary tale with the powerful Disney-Hyperion team and a pair of collaborators backing him up.

Told through the voice of Kirra, a young girl whose young life is spent in the idyllic seclusion of family and community within the walls of a dormant volcano, Matthews is joined by children’s author Clete Barrett Smith and illustrator Antonio Javier Caparo in crafting a tale whose story and themes will be music to early readers and their caregivers.

Through inexperience and naiveté, Kirra accidentally leads a tribe of villains, the Takers, to her hidden home. She pays the price for the mistake through the loss of all she cared for — family, community, security and the only future she had ever envisioned.

As if such losses weren't burden enough to bear, Takers later again threaten her now-adopted family, igniting not only the nightmares she struggles to keep at bay, but the world she has had to reconstruct for a second time.

Clear morals and clean writing make for a typically sanitized Disney story, but the lessons are there and they are important: family bonds, measured risk taking and overcoming extreme adversity among those.

In "If We Were Giants," Matthews and Smith imagine a strong female protagonist on a hero's journey amidst enchanting world-building. A prominent fictional foray, the story will have appeal for both giants and those who aspire to be so, although older readers — that is, adult fans — looking for Matthews's lyrical voice will be left disappointed in the end.

This book was incredible!! I don't typically read young adult books but every once in a while I will check them out. I am so glad I took a chance on If We Were Giants. The book captured my attention from the very beginning and I loved reading about Kirra and her volcano. I am very excited to check out the published book and see the included full color insert. I spent so much time imagining what all of the locations and characters looked like and seeing the concept artwork would be so exciting. The story was fast paced throughout and ended on a note that leaves room for a possible sequel. (Which I am REALLY hoping happens!!) My oldest daughter is 8, and while she isn't quite at the point of enjoying chapter books, I can't wait to share this with her when the time is right. Thank you so much to Disney-Hyperion and Netgalley for the chance to read an advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

I received an electronic ARC from Disney Book Group through NetGalley.
Matthews has written a statement book to make young, and not so young, people think about how they get along with others. The book is divided into three parts to tell the story of Kirra's life.
Part one offers her life with her birth family. This is a community living in harmony. They unite together and each member has a role that supports the entire group. Life is peaceful until a group simply known as the Takers finds their hidden community and completely destroys it. She is the only survivor. She runs from her memories and nearly drowns.
Part two picks up with her new life after a young boy near her age rescues her from the river. It's a distinctly different style of community as there is little interaction among families. Most have fled to the trees to escape and so have little trust. Again, their lifestyle continues until the Takers discover their area. Kirra draws on her strength to cope with her hidden memories and share her story with the entire community. She and her friends present a plan to battle the Takers when they return in the dry season.
Part three picks up with the battle preparations and the battle itself.
at the end, Kirra has found peace and is setting out to fulfill her destiny as a storyteller. She combines the gifts she has found in both of her family settings.
The story flows smoothly with shorter chapters to keep readers interested. The underlying themes come through as readers learn more about Kirra and the other characters.

Singer Dave Matthews wows audiences with writing, too. Fans will love If We Were Giants. This is a good title for study of perspectives.

Kirra's village is located in a dormant volcano. It's a secret location that has been closely guarded for generations. Her father is a storyteller and travels outside their village to storytelling contests. Kira joins him as she is training to be a storyteller too. When they hear about the Takers who destroy everything in their path and take whatever they, Kirra and her father return to their village to try to make a plan to protect their peaceful community. In the second part of the novel, Kirra is living with a family of Tree People. They too are secretive. However, they keep themselves separate from each other. As the Takers again approach, will the Tree People work together to protect their way of life? Will Kira tell her story and face her past?

This book is perfect for my middle school library. The students in my school will recognize Kirra's struggle with depression, trauma, and hunger. I can't wait to get this book on my library's shelves.

Story with a strong message about acceptance, family, community and finding the courage to stand together for something you believe is important. Kirra lives in a secret community inside a volcano. When the Takers come and destroy her home, Kirra seeks shelter with the Tree People. Viewed as an outsider but accepted by her new community, she must face her past when the Takers threaten to destroy her new home.
This was a great YA novel that was short, easy to read and teaches us about the importance of coming together to protect our homes. Thank you to Netgalley for providing an e-galley.

If you give your child only one book to read or share, give them IF WE WERE GIANTS by Dave Matthews. Yes, THAT Dave Matthews. Apparently, he is not only a passionate artist in the world of music and an advocate for saving the Earth, this man has the chops for writing that delivers more than words on a page. It delivers the message of acceptance, valuing family and community and doing anything necessary to keep it safe while teaching how to live in peace with those who are different.

Kirra lost her first family, but she never forgot the lessons her storyteller father had taught her. Her inner guilt at her part in the death of her community was buried deep, even as another tribe took her in and raised her as their own. Will history repeat itself as her new community is threatened by strangers who take what they need from others? It will be her determination to reveal her past that could save her future and that of those around her.

Brilliant, creative and heartwarming, this tale is a tale of bravery, of trust and perseverance. It is a tale of honesty and the courage it takes to take a stand against an evil that threatens humanity, as well as the planet. Colorful and youthful characters come together with resourceful ideas and the adults of their community actually LISTEN.

Delightful reading geared to all ages or family sharing, lessons to be learned and an adventure to live alongside the characters.

I received a complimentary ARC edition from Disney Hyperion! This is my honest and voluntary review.

If We Were Giants is a wonderful story for readers young as old! With a relatable main character and a fun plot, this is one you will want to share with the whole family.

Thank you to NetGalley for my copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

An interesting adventure story about the meaning of family, being part of a community and redemption. Kirra is a strong female protagonist but is also flawed and vulnerable.

This story follows Kirra through two distinct phases of her life, before the Takers and after. In her world communities live fairly separate from each other and only one or two are allowed out to find news and spread stories. As we follow Kirra through the years we come across the Tree People, who live separate from one another and rarely interact. When the Takers come to their home Kirra must overcome her fears and find a way of bringing everyone together to defeat their foe or all will be lost.
This is a touching story of loss, hope, community, and how we need each other to survive. The Takers do just as their name implies and take from everyone and destroy everything in their path. They have no respect for nature and wipe out the resources as they flood across the land. This is a cautionary story warning us how our consumerist nature is destroying the world and how we need to connect as a community and learn to live in harmony and respect with others and nature.

This book is full of adventure. It makes for an exciting and engaging read aloud. I read it with my 9 year old son and he loved it.

First off, Dave Matthews?! Of course I requested an ARC of this book and I was delighted. If We Were Giants is a great story. It opens on Kirra and her "Paja" Taro as they travel from town to town entering storytelling festivals to spread stories about the demons in their volcano home to keep outsiders away. At their last stop an agitated visitor speaks out about the Takers - horrible people who arrived on huge ships, overran the villages and enslaved the people. No one really believes this could happen on their idyllic world, but Kirra and her father hurry home. It turns out they actually live in the volcano with the other Zeduan people who have created a culture of peace, and harmony with each other as well as with the natural world. Kirra eavesdrops on her parents then heads off with her brother to do some recon for herself. Of course things do not go as planned and what follows is a harrowing tale of capture and escape, then attack as the Takers attack the Zedu and wipe out the entire village. Kirra wakes up in the care of the Tree People who are soon facing the same dangers of attack from the Takers. Kirra helps her new family to work together and devise a plan to save their world from the monstrous intruders.

I was really impressed with the imaginative setting and characters the authors have created. The story was well written so it was easy visualize the action and the settings which were skillfully crafted. Kirra is a very strong, resourcesful character - middle school children, especially girls, will adore her. There is also a great message of caring for people and the world around you and working together to protect them. This was an all around excellent book. I appreciate the chance to read the ARC and will highly recommend it. I hope that Matthews and Smith continue to produce more stories of a similar vein.

This book was a wonderful surprise.

Like most great stories this book was filled with adventure, life lessons and a hero rises up from the dust like a Pheonix.

We begin our story with an introduction to Kirra, a 10-year-old who lives in a hidden city in a dormant volcano, where the people of Zedu have lived for hundreds of years. When we meet her she is adventurous, curios and full of life. However, with all great greats, she is struck by tragedy.

After her life alternating encounter, she becomes frightened, broken and withdraws becoming a shell of who she truly is.

However, with all great heroes, another life alternating encounters inspires her to face her fears and become the hero we all know her to be.

This book is wonderous and is filled with life lessons, great storytelling and above all the wonders of a happy ever after that, all great books have.

I truly enjoyed this book it took me on a ride I would enjoy going on over and over again.

Kirra's village is hidden inside a volcano and has remained untouched by the outside world until she inadvertently leads the "Takers" to their location. The result is the death and destruction of everyone she knows and the place she loves. Her guilt paralyzes her, but she is rescued and taken in by a family that lives with a loosely defined tribe in the treetops. Although Kirra has repressed the memory of her trauma, she is terrified when she observes Takers in the area, and she is desperate to save her new family and friends. The young people develop an effective plan to repel the invaders, proving that by working together with creative cooperation, the odds can indeed be beaten. This is a novel for middle grades that without preaching portrays the value of community and the power of teamwork, all while telling a suspenseful story.