Emotional and powerful read that dives into tragedy, hope, and fighting for a better future. Willa was a lovable narrator, and I really connected with Kacey’s storyline. That said, the book tackled a lot of heavy topics all at once, which made it feel a bit overwhelming and slow in parts. Still, a meaningful and timely story.

Wow this was short and sweet with the kitten and the friendships but it was quite dark with the mystery, the orphans the epidemic, the grief and institution elements.

I loved the kitten and I adored Willa and Kacey .
It was good to see non binary representation.

The Katherine parts and the diary were really interesting.
It was a quick goosebumps size book with a tad spooky element but mostly a mystery and coming of age book.

A really fantastic book.

Warning: This Book May Cause Sudden Outbreaks of Feelings

Well, well, well. Lauren Fischer has gone and done something truly diabolical with Orphanland—she's written a book about an 11-year-old orphan that somehow doesn't make you want to adopt every sad-eyed kid you see on the street. Instead, she's crafted something far more dangerous: a story that treats its young protagonist like an actual human being with agency. Revolutionary stuff, really.

Our hero Willa navigates the Southern Ohio Children's Home with the kind of wisdom that makes you wonder if maybe kids aren't just tiny drunk adults after all. Fischer tackles everything from family trauma to gender identity to the opioid crisis, which sounds about as fun as a root canal performed by caffeinated squirrels, but somehow she pulls it off without turning the whole thing into an after-school special.

The mystery of the abandoned Midlands Christian School lurks in the background like that weird smell in your fridge—you know something's not quite right, but you're compelled to keep investigating anyway. Fischer uses this intrigue as the perfect vehicle to explore deeper themes, proving that you can indeed have your narrative cake and eat your character development too.
What's particularly impressive is how Fischer manages to make every character feel real, even the ones who barely get a paragraph. It's like she's some kind of literary magician, pulling fully-formed personalities out of thin air. The children's home itself practically becomes a character, which is either brilliant storytelling or Fischer has some very concerning feelings about institutional buildings. (I'm going with brilliant storytelling.)

The book handles heavy topics with the kind of care usually reserved for transporting nitroglycerin or your grandmother's china. Fischer never talks down to her readers—a refreshing change in a world where many authors seem to think young people's brains are made of cotton candy and good intentions.

Orphanland is that rare beast: a book that respects both its characters and its readers enough to tell the truth, even when the truth is complicated, messy, and doesn't tie up with a neat little bow. It's engaging, thoughtful, and only occasionally makes you question your life choices (in a good way).

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Half a star deducted for making me care about fictional people again. Rude.

3.5 stars

overall a great story! i loved getting to getting to see the opioid epidemic from a children’s point of view. the start of the story felt a bit slow for my liking and it jumped around from topic to topic but i liked how the author portrayed the relationships willa had with kacey, finn, and mercy. also loved the nonbinary rep:)


*ARC provided by netgalley*

This was a moving, emotional book about tragedy, hope, and fighting for a better world. I easily immersed myself in the atmosphere and felt invested in the characters.
Willa, the main character, was a lovable narrator whose voice was believable as an eleven-year-old. I enjoyed reading the story from her perspective and seeing her frustration at the adults around her keeping secrets from her about things that could affect her life, and her desire to uncover the truth.
I appreciated how Kacey’s storyline was handled. As someone who is also nonbinary, I liked the discussions on gender and existing outside the binary of male and female. I also liked how hard the caretakers and children worked to help Kacey and to show them that they deserved to be loved as themself.
But I do feel like this book tried to address too many different things at once. It bounced from societal problem to societal problem touching on such things as drug addiction, unjust systems, transphobia, child abuse/neglect, corrupt corporations, and parental issues. It was a lot for one story and thus was at times difficult to get through. There were parts that I found somewhat slow or dull. There were quite a few different characters with storylines and sometimes it felt like too much.
Still, this book felt deeply necessary for the time we are in. It’s important never to forget the injustices of the world both current and in the past. I like how well that was addressed.

Willa has lived at the Southern Ohio Children's Home, in the care of Mercy, for four years. Before that, she lived with her grandparents, following the death of her mother from an overdose. Now aged 11, she is one of the oldest children living at the home, where the majority of the children have had experiences similar to hers, as a result of the opioid crisis afflicting the town. The newest resident, however, still has two living parents. Kacey's mother wishes to send them to a conversion camp, which she hopes will "fix" them. Kacey arrives at the home with a bloody lip, accompanied by a local police officer.

The home is a sanctuary for the children but Mercy is rapidly running out of the money needed to keep it open. Her plan to save the home brings up difficult reminders of the past and Willa is determined to uncover the secrets.

I really enjoyed this book. I loved the characters, who were likeable and realistically flawed. Willa is obviously hugely affected by her traumatic past but is so resilient. Her love of - and identification with - Anne of Green Gables gives her the hope that she too will find her much longed-for kindred spirit.

I also loved the setting of the home and the way that the author makes the huge mansion feel so cosy and homely for the children.

There were a couple of places where it reads like a paragraph has been added between two linked paragraphs, making it a bit confusing but this wasn't a major issue and will hopefully be sorted out in final edits.

I also wasn't sure about the Middle Grade age guidance on the book. I wouldn't be allowed to recommend a book with fairly detailed descriptions of drug overdose and death to our Upper Key Stage 2 pupils (age 9-11), who fall comfortably into the Middle Grade age bracket. I would suggest that this is more suited to secondary school age children and early teenagers.

"You think your pain and your heartbreak are unprecedented in the history of the world, but then you read."

I’d like to start by thanking Netgalley, Mission Point Press for giving me the opportunity to read and review this ARC. All opinions are my own.

Our narrator is Willa, an 11 year old orphaned child, victim of the crisis within the community, and utterly loveable trouble-maker. It’s so lovely to see this story shared through the innocent and honest eyes that you can only get with a child.

"“Mercy’s always running out of money,” I said. “That’s the way it goes, running a home for kids during an opioid crisis.”"

Lauren Fischer lets Willa truly come to life, giving her that lovely staccato, authentic way of speaking. So insightful, clever, but genuine and true to her age, and experiences.

"There was no sad-happiness, or happy-sadness. Just sad-sadness."

Finally, I’d like to touch on the acknowledgement and representation in this book. This didn’t feel like an afterthought - we had characters who explicitly had Down Syndrome and another who used headphones to cope with the world. Then we had LGBTQ+ individuals recognised, in a main character spot, acknowledging they/them pronouns.

We also saw difficult topics such as class divide, addiction, family breakdowns, indigenous peoples and land, and more. These weren’t shied away from, but approached sensitively, through Willa’s innocent yet all-seeing eyes, in a way that would be appropriate for middle-grade readers.

A lovely read overall that had my heart sinking and soaring in equal measure, with a healthy dose of hope and love for the characters throughout.

Thank you NetGalley and Publisher for allowing me to read and review this book.

I very much enjoyed this book. The writing was great and the characters were well developed. I hope to read more from this author in the future.

This was hard to read but worth it. The journey was heartbreaking but I am glad I read it.

Seeing the characters growth throughout the story and overcoming the things that aren’t in their control. It’s a book everyone should read.

Thanks to NetGallery and the Publisher for this Arc in exchange for my honest review.

A powerful read. I thought it was beautifully written. It opened up my eyes to what other children may experience. It showed different sides to ‘befores’ and was a simple reminder of how lucky I am in my life to have what I have.

I believe it would be an enriching read for children to explore what life is like outside of their ‘bubble’ or it could be a reassuring read that they aren’t alone with their ‘troubles’. Including the fact that this is my first read that encounters non-binary characters. I feel like more of this is definitely needed because it wasn’t just thrown in, it was explained so well throughout - a well needed educational factor for our current and future generation of readers.

Orphanland covers some important and difficult subjects like transphobia, group homes/foster care situations, drug addiction, and death. A book like this for a younger audience is needed and I am glad it is available! The topics are talked about carefully through Willa's eyes, and there is enough detail to help readers understand why these are hard things, but not too mature that younger readers should be turned away.

While Willa's character was a tween, it often felt like it was an older teenager or young adult narrating.

The mysterious aspects of this book were intriguing, though it often fell flat.

Loved this book, easy to read, the story was well written and so well thought out, the characters were amazing and the pace was quick.

An inspiring tale of hardship, heartbreak, hope (yes, even when there's 3 babies named Hope from an overzealous nun), growth, and healing.

Orphanland, told from the perspective of 11-year-old Willa, not only depicts the hardships of being an orphan in many different regards, but also has a captivating mystery surrounding the now abandoned Midlands Christian School. Orphanland touches on troubling topics such as familial deaths, gender acceptance and identity, abuse, the opioid epidemic, and general coming-of-age struggles with care.

Each of the characters within the novel feel fully fleshed out and their own personalities are portrayed excellently, regardless of how often they are discussed within the text. It genuinely makes the operation that is Southern Ohio Children's Home feel as if it's its own character, living, breathing, and molding as the story progresses.

The overarching plot is genuinely captivating, and while being categorized as a "middle grade" novel, this is a novel that anyone of any age can enjoy, understand, and potentially resonate with.

The ending does leave you with a few questions, especially in regards to the Midlands Christian School, however I feel as though it ends exactly where it needs to. I would love to see a prequel that covers exactly what happens at Midlands.

This is the kind of novel I wish I had when I was Willa's age, a novel in which I could find myself. While I'm not an orphan in the traditional sense, I found myself relating to many of the characters within this novel. Kacey, however I found myself relating to the most.