Bibliography:
Werlin, Nancy. September, 2008. Impossible. New York: Dial Books. ISBN: 978-0-8037-3002-1
Plot Summary:
At 17, Lucy Scarborough has a pretty normal high school life: she runs track, consoles her best friend when she has boy problems, and is looking forward to the junior prom. But she also has a mother who is literally crazy, showing up at school and at Lucy’s foster parents to shout and rant. The tragic events the night of the dance are only the beginning…Lucy discovers her family is cursed, and unless she can break the curse (the details are given in Werlin’s version of the song Scarborough Fair), she is doomed to end up like her mother. Thank goodness she has the strength and love of her foster family and friends to help her, but is it enough against the ancient magic of the curse?
Critical Analysis:
Nancy Werlin has written yet another wonderful novel for teens which shows how much she respects them as readers. She does not shy away from the details of reality, even in her first foray into fantasy. This is not typical fantasy with swords and knights in shining armor, although I would say there are knights and armor present, if not typcial ones. Rather Werlin has created a novel where the fabric between our world and the world of elves and fairies has been become thin, if not torn completely. What strikes such a chord with me, as a reader, was that I would have loved this story of families that are made, not born; of true friends who love you for who and what you are, no matter what; and love that gives you strength you never knew you had, without the details of the curse and the elements of fantasy. For me, that is what takes what would have been a good contemporary teen romance and elevates it to a whole other level. I actually think this book has great potiential for crossing over and appealing to twenty and thirty-something readers, and maybe even a wider readership than that.
Review Excerpts:
Booklist (starred review): “This tale, inspired by the song “Scarborough
Fair,” showcases the author’s finesse at melding genres [with
its] graceful interplay between wild magic and contemporary reality
[and its] catapulting suspense.”
Kirkus (starred review): “Modern logic and methodology mesh splendidly
with fairy lore; if emergency contraception won’t break the curse,
then maybe duct tape will.”
Connections:
- To the song Scarborough Fair. The most famous rendition is the one by Simon and Garfunkel, but there is lots of information available about the origins, including variations of The Elfin Knight which is one that Werlin used for the novel. Check out The Oxford Book of Ballads or The English and Scottish Popular Ballads, an influential work that collects variations of ballads in one place, including 13 versions of The Elfin Knight.
- Research herbs and spices and their uses and meanings. Just like there is a language of the flowers, there is also meaning in the herbs and spices. Search online or look for a book such as The Meaning of Herbs.
