Book review of A Mango-Shaped Space by Wendy Mass

Do you ever get worn out by reading? Maybe because the books you read are too difficult to understand and take a lot of mental energy? Or maybe you just want to kick back and let your mind rest. If you like easy-to-read books with good character development, then this might be the book for you!

A Mango-Shaped Space by Wendy Mass is a fictional story about a 13-year-old girl named Mia Minchell who has a condition called synesthesia. Synesthesia is a phenomenon that causes sensory crossovers. In her case, Mia sees colors and shapes from hearing sounds and reading letters and numbers. Mia has difficulty hiding her condition and eventually must accept who she is and let others around her know. Throughout the book, Mia learns more about her condition and meets others like her. Grief is a large part of Mia's story, as she learns to overcome the past and move forward. A lot more happens; I honestly haven't read this in several years :)

I found this book in 6^th grade while searching for something to read during class. The orange on the cover caught my eye, and I decided to give it a try without knowing what it was about. My expectations were very low, but I was pleasantly surprised when I enjoyed it and resonated with it. I connected with this book for many smaller reasons, but especially because of grief. I hadn’t ever had to or ever heard anyone else talking about the challenges of grief, so I felt deeply for Mia. Dealing with the things she put into her own mind, like thinking she could have prevented what happened, or that it was her fault, was difficult to witness. I saw myself in her because, at the time, we thought similarly, and I figured that she did almost exactly what I thought I would do in her situation.

  

Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper, Restart by Gordon Korman, When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead, Blended by Sharon M. Draper, Fish In A Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt, and Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan are a few of many books that are similar to A Mango-Shaped Space. Each is written to a similar, younger audience with closely related themes and writing styles. I recommend all of these to you, but I personally feel closer to A Mango Shaped Space :)

Pros: Easy to read, with an engaging plot and characters. Revolves around touchy subjects like grief and neurodiversity, in case you want an introduction from someone's (fictional) experiences (this could be a con depending on your preferences, but generally, it’s best when you expand out from what you're comfortable with). Since it’s for younger audiences, it may remind you of something you would have read at a younger age, which can make it feel more personal or special than other books.

Cons: Targeted mostly towards younger female children/teens, so not everyone might resonate with it (many themes of puberty and such). There is only one book, so if you really like it, you constantly have the reminder in the back of your mind that it’s the only one and is finished once the book ends :(

Even though this is an easy read, it has a great plot and was highly entertaining as well as informative. Books like A Mango-Shaped Space are for the times when reading a more intellectual book sounds too exhausting. In fact, taking time to put down the challenging books and go back to ones like this can be refreshing and may even reset your relationship with reading if you're in a slump. The best books are the ones that make you feel like you aren’t reading, and this one did it for me. If you like books about self-development and growing up, I would recommend this book to you :)

-Ana