the shining people

I read Colby Sharp's review of The Real Boy by Anne Ursu and knew I had to read it. When Mr. Sharp says that a book has "it", you know that book is special.

Anne Ursu, who also wrote Breadcrumbs, gives us another beautiful fairy tale filled with magic and wizards, spells and charms, amulets, and packets of herbs.

The first paragraph:

The residents of the gleaming hilltop town of Asteri called their home, simply, the City.  The residents of the Barrow – the tangle of forest and darkness that encircled the bottom of Asteri’s hill like a shadowy moat – called the Asteri  the Shining City, and those who lived there the shining people.   The Asterians didn’t call themselves anything special, because when everyone else refers to you as the shining people, you really don’t have to do it yourself.

Immediately you are pulled into the Shining City of Asteri and the Barrow and all the shining people who live there. You will love Oscar, an odd and wonderful boy.

You must read this book. Like Mr. Sharp says... this book has "it".