Remarkable

by Elizabeth Foley

[Briana @ Pages Unbound]

Remarkable is a delightfully whimsical and quirky book that a lot of readers should be able to relate to. Although Remarkable is populated with an extraordinary cast of characters, such as Jane’s insanely artistic brother and a sea monster more mysterious and elusive than Nessie herself, the focus is on Jane—the ordinary girl who feels just a little left out. She, and the readers, can definitely appreciate the talents of all the other Remarkable citizens—there is no bitterness here—but she would just like to think that she might be good at something, too.

A great series of adventures begins to occur around Jane, brought on by the arrival of a most unpirate-like pirate and the expulsion of trouble-making twins from the gifted school (Jane finally has classmates at public school.) The ride she and the readers go on is absolutely wild, and the end is impossible to predict. Through it all, however, ordinary Jane does is never passive. Though she may not have the most brilliant ideas in Remarkable, she does have a few good ones, and she is always ready to help when needed. Readers will love her efforts and the outcomes, not all of which, of course, go according to her unremarkable plans.

The best part, however, is that this story truly is about seeing the good in being a normal person. Foley does not mitigate the point of her story by suddenly revealing that Jane, too, is an extraordinary person with genius-like powers. Instead, she just shows how valuable Jane is exactly the way she is. A wonderfully fun and inventive book with a great message.

Also posted at Pages Unbound Book Reviews.