Mist by Marta Palazzesi

Mist by Marta Palazzesi. Translated by Christopher Turner. Red Comet Press, 2023. 9781636550695






Rating:  1-5 (5 is an excellent or a Starred review) 3.5



Format : Hardcover



Genre : Historical fiction



What did you like about the book? In 1880s London, a mud lark named Clay finds a set of tarot cards on the banks of the Thames. When he goes to try selling them at the circus that’s in town, he finds out that the circus has obtained a wolf that it intends to display. This animal, “the last surviving wolf in the United Kingdom,” is confined to a small cage and tended by sadistic handlers. Clay becomes determined to rescue the wolf, whom he names Mist, and to set him free.



Through first person narration, readers learn how bands of homeless kids claimed territories on which to scavenge, hoping to earn enough by selling the found items to buy food. Clay is a sensitive soul who forges a bond with the captive animal. He cares about his friends Tod and Nucky, loves his adoptive father Old Sal, and makes friends with Ollie, a circus kid. The book is written with modern-sounding conversational language. The adventures and violence feel realistic, and animal-loving readers will totally cheer Clay on in his repeated suspenseful attempts to free Mist from the circus.



This book won the Strega Ragazzi prize, an equivalent in Italy of the Newbery Medal, in 2020.



Anything you didn’t like about it? The book is as more about Clay than about Mist, but Clay’s future is really up in the air at the end. I wanted to know how he would survive after tricking and evading the evil hunters.



To whom would you recommend this book?  For middle grade readers who love stories that feature animals. Read alikes are books by Nizrana Farook.



Who should buy this book? Elementary school and public libraries



Where would you shelve it? Fiction



Should we (librarians/readers) put this on the top of our “to read” piles? No



Reviewer’s Name, Library (or school), City and State: Stephanie Tournas, Robbins Library, Arlington, MA



Date of review:  September 30, 2023