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thephdivabooks's review against another edition
4.0
Tearfully beautiful and filled with a certain sort of magic that only an inspiring story can deliver, Alyson Richman’s The Secret of Clouds is a book I encourage everyone to open their heaart to. I’m still a bit choked up over this story in a wonderful way. It spoke to the child in me who still remembers that one teacher that really changed my life, and it spoke to the adult in me who knows how special the imaginations of youth are. And it also is just an incredible story about the love of a family, all wrapped up in the connection between teacher and students. Wonderful!
About the Book
When Maggie Topper is first assigned to work with Yuri, achild suffering from a congenital heart defect that prevents him from attendingschool with his peers, she is hesitant to accept. Maggie remembers a friendfrom childhood Ellie who passed away one summer, and she has never reallyrecovered from that heart ache.
But from the moment Maggie meets Yuri, it is so clear that thereis something special about him. I loved seeing Maggie and Yuri get to know oneanother. At first, Maggie doesn’t know how to engage this frail, despondent child. But eventually her friend and colleague Suzy suggests that kids are perceptive—they know when you are putting on a brave face. Yuri is a child who has never been treated like a real kid due to his condition. As they bond over a shared love of baseball, pizza, and writing, I fell in love with their story.
Reflection
I was captivated by the story of Yuri’s parents Katya and Sasha, who fled Ukraine for a better life in America. Katya was a ballet dancer, and her quiet grace as a person shined through the pages. She had such fierce love for Yuri. She was so afraid to let him live, because of her fear of losing him. Sasha is also a wonderful character. I think readers will be mesmerized by their story, and what they had to go through to get an opportunity to provide medical care for Yuri. Heart-warming!
Maggie also has a storyline outside of just her work with Yuri that I really enjoyed. I won’t say too much, but I found it to beincredibly authentic and showcased the ups and downs we go through in life, as well as how our passions can make tough times bearable.
One other thing I loved about this book was the importance of food. Maggie’s family is Italian and they show love and caring through food. I found my mouth watering often hearing what Maggie or her mother were cooking, and I loved reading about the meaning of the small acts of preparing a meal. Food is also the first thing that really bonds Maggie and Katya, as Katya explains her own Ukarainian dishes that hold meaning and provide comfort. I found these food traditions to be so wonderful, and they helped these two women connect in a way that words alone could not.
About the Book
When Maggie Topper is first assigned to work with Yuri, achild suffering from a congenital heart defect that prevents him from attendingschool with his peers, she is hesitant to accept. Maggie remembers a friendfrom childhood Ellie who passed away one summer, and she has never reallyrecovered from that heart ache.
But from the moment Maggie meets Yuri, it is so clear that thereis something special about him. I loved seeing Maggie and Yuri get to know oneanother. At first, Maggie doesn’t know how to engage this frail, despondent child. But eventually her friend and colleague Suzy suggests that kids are perceptive—they know when you are putting on a brave face. Yuri is a child who has never been treated like a real kid due to his condition. As they bond over a shared love of baseball, pizza, and writing, I fell in love with their story.
Reflection
I was captivated by the story of Yuri’s parents Katya and Sasha, who fled Ukraine for a better life in America. Katya was a ballet dancer, and her quiet grace as a person shined through the pages. She had such fierce love for Yuri. She was so afraid to let him live, because of her fear of losing him. Sasha is also a wonderful character. I think readers will be mesmerized by their story, and what they had to go through to get an opportunity to provide medical care for Yuri. Heart-warming!
Maggie also has a storyline outside of just her work with Yuri that I really enjoyed. I won’t say too much, but I found it to beincredibly authentic and showcased the ups and downs we go through in life, as well as how our passions can make tough times bearable.
One other thing I loved about this book was the importance of food. Maggie’s family is Italian and they show love and caring through food. I found my mouth watering often hearing what Maggie or her mother were cooking, and I loved reading about the meaning of the small acts of preparing a meal. Food is also the first thing that really bonds Maggie and Katya, as Katya explains her own Ukarainian dishes that hold meaning and provide comfort. I found these food traditions to be so wonderful, and they helped these two women connect in a way that words alone could not.
juliabegeman's review
emotional
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
clairedrum's review
3.0
I struggled to rate this because the writing itself wasn’t great. Things were rushed, and there were some things kids said that were so unbelievable and brought me out of the book. 6th graders don’t speak like philosophers! But the story was sweet, if not utterly predictable. It was a nice way to spend a few hours of my day.
rmarcin's review
4.0
Thanks to Penguin Random House and Book Movement for sending copies of The Secret of Clouds for our book club to enjoy. I am providing this review honestly.
I really enjoyed this sweet story of a teacher and her relationship with a student who had health issues. Yuri, the student, taught Maggie, the teacher, many things about life. She grew to really bond with this student, over books, writing, and baseball.
This book also examined other parts of Maggie's life - her relationship with her parents, her boyfriends, and her co-teachers.
The book was a nice exploration of what it means to live life to the fullest.
However, there were 2 errors in the book that bothered me. One - the author constantly referred to January 1, 2000 as the new millennium. It is not - January 1, 2001 is the new millennium, December 31, 2000 is the end of the century and the old millennium. Many people thought of the change to 2000, especially after the Y2k craze, as the new millennium, but it is not. I am surprised that the editor didn't catch this and correct it. Two - the author talked about having her friend, Suzie, the art teacher move in with her, but said there was a problem in that the cottage only had one bedroom. Later in the book, she mentions that she converted the second bedroom.
This was a feel good book, with a bit that tugged at the heartstrings, but overall, very well done.
#TheSecretofClouds #AlysonRichman
I really enjoyed this sweet story of a teacher and her relationship with a student who had health issues. Yuri, the student, taught Maggie, the teacher, many things about life. She grew to really bond with this student, over books, writing, and baseball.
This book also examined other parts of Maggie's life - her relationship with her parents, her boyfriends, and her co-teachers.
The book was a nice exploration of what it means to live life to the fullest.
However, there were 2 errors in the book that bothered me. One - the author constantly referred to January 1, 2000 as the new millennium. It is not - January 1, 2001 is the new millennium, December 31, 2000 is the end of the century and the old millennium. Many people thought of the change to 2000, especially after the Y2k craze, as the new millennium, but it is not. I am surprised that the editor didn't catch this and correct it. Two - the author talked about having her friend, Suzie, the art teacher move in with her, but said there was a problem in that the cottage only had one bedroom. Later in the book, she mentions that she converted the second bedroom.
This was a feel good book, with a bit that tugged at the heartstrings, but overall, very well done.
#TheSecretofClouds #AlysonRichman
lisawreading's review
3.0
The Secret of Clouds is about a young teacher, Maggie, whose enthusiasm for her middle school students and her passion for introducing them to the joys of reading and writing seems limitless. Maggie is asked to take on an additional role, tutoring a 12-year-old boy named Yuri who is unable to come to school because of a health condition. Hesitantly, Maggie agrees, but soon is completely charmed by this lonely boy and becomes determined to help him regain an interest in the world around him.
Bonding through his love of baseball, Maggie slowly draws Yuri out of his shell of apathy, and soon has him engaging with her and the worlds of literature she's introduced him to with real interest and insight. As she begins to earn Yuri's trust, Maggie also learns more about his parents, Katya and Sasha, and their desperate love for their ill son.
Katya and Sasha lived in Kiev at the time of the Chernobyl disaster, and while they themselves suffered no adverse effects, like so many others, their offspring suffered birth defects -- in this case, a rare heart ailment -- due to their own radiation exposure.
Meanwhile, as Maggie witnesses Yuri's struggles to live his limited life to the fullest, she reassesses her own life and relationships, seeing where her true happiness lies and making the changes needed to live life to her best ability.
The Secret of Clouds is touching and appealing in many ways, yet something about the writing style let me down. It's the old "show, don't tell" issue: I felt like Maggie was sharing a summary of her experiences, rather than drawing me in enough to see the events myself. The writing kept me at a distance throughout, as entire months or sometimes years went by in the span of a few paragraphs. There was no sense of immediacy; I rarely felt as though I had entered into a scene or had a genuine moment of emotional connection. For example, when Maggie meets and falls in love with a new man in her life, it's very nice for her, yet I'd be hard pressed to tell you a thing about him other than that he's a musician and seems to be a really great guy. Granted, their love story was not the main point of this book, but he feels like a cipher to me.
From the synopsis, I expected Katya and Sasha to have equal time in this novel alongside Maggie, but that's not the case. While we see their lives in Kiev in the early chapters, once it's been established that they were exposed to fallout from Chernobyl, the story shifts entirely to its 1999/2000 setting, focusing on Maggie and Yuri. Katya and Sasha become supporting characters, in the background as Yuri's parents, but not central point-of-view characters.
The Secret of Clouds is a fine read with an interesting story to tell, but unfortunately the writing style kept me from feeling truly emotionally invested. I will say, though, that if every student had a teacher as committed, idealistic, and compassionate as Maggie, the world would be a much, much better place!
Review copy courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley. Full review at Bookshelf Fantasies.
Bonding through his love of baseball, Maggie slowly draws Yuri out of his shell of apathy, and soon has him engaging with her and the worlds of literature she's introduced him to with real interest and insight. As she begins to earn Yuri's trust, Maggie also learns more about his parents, Katya and Sasha, and their desperate love for their ill son.
Katya and Sasha lived in Kiev at the time of the Chernobyl disaster, and while they themselves suffered no adverse effects, like so many others, their offspring suffered birth defects -- in this case, a rare heart ailment -- due to their own radiation exposure.
Meanwhile, as Maggie witnesses Yuri's struggles to live his limited life to the fullest, she reassesses her own life and relationships, seeing where her true happiness lies and making the changes needed to live life to her best ability.
The Secret of Clouds is touching and appealing in many ways, yet something about the writing style let me down. It's the old "show, don't tell" issue: I felt like Maggie was sharing a summary of her experiences, rather than drawing me in enough to see the events myself. The writing kept me at a distance throughout, as entire months or sometimes years went by in the span of a few paragraphs. There was no sense of immediacy; I rarely felt as though I had entered into a scene or had a genuine moment of emotional connection. For example, when Maggie meets and falls in love with a new man in her life, it's very nice for her, yet I'd be hard pressed to tell you a thing about him other than that he's a musician and seems to be a really great guy. Granted, their love story was not the main point of this book, but he feels like a cipher to me.
From the synopsis, I expected Katya and Sasha to have equal time in this novel alongside Maggie, but that's not the case. While we see their lives in Kiev in the early chapters, once it's been established that they were exposed to fallout from Chernobyl, the story shifts entirely to its 1999/2000 setting, focusing on Maggie and Yuri. Katya and Sasha become supporting characters, in the background as Yuri's parents, but not central point-of-view characters.
The Secret of Clouds is a fine read with an interesting story to tell, but unfortunately the writing style kept me from feeling truly emotionally invested. I will say, though, that if every student had a teacher as committed, idealistic, and compassionate as Maggie, the world would be a much, much better place!
Review copy courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley. Full review at Bookshelf Fantasies.
kdurham2's review against another edition
5.0
Check out the full review at Kritters Ramblings
What a fantastic story. Katya and Sasha lived through the Chernobyl disaster and are now safely in the United States. Most of the story takes place years after they moved and centers around their son who is living with a heart condition that has the ability to be fatal. They are protective of their son which leads to Maggie a teacher coming to their home to tutor him to try to keep him up to speed. Maggie will turn their world upside down in all the best ways.
What a fantastic story. Katya and Sasha lived through the Chernobyl disaster and are now safely in the United States. Most of the story takes place years after they moved and centers around their son who is living with a heart condition that has the ability to be fatal. They are protective of their son which leads to Maggie a teacher coming to their home to tutor him to try to keep him up to speed. Maggie will turn their world upside down in all the best ways.
katscribefever's review against another edition
4.0
This was one of those books where so much was happening and all of it was unrelated--except that it was all happening in the life of one young teacher whose modest life is forever altered by one student who has a broken heart. The book felt very realistic in that way, dramatized, of course, but overall very real, and it really made me think about each human life being a small cog in the giant machine of existence. I realize that sounds philosophical, but that is the tone of this beautiful story: the philosophy and drama of of everyday living.
Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with this ARC in exchange for my truthful review.
With that in mind, I will say that I think the title change was a good idea; The Secret of Clouds feels much less pigeon-holing to the story than The Family Cloud.
Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with this ARC in exchange for my truthful review.
With that in mind, I will say that I think the title change was a good idea; The Secret of Clouds feels much less pigeon-holing to the story than The Family Cloud.