Historical Fiction

The cover led me to believe this book was fantasy, but it's actually a story within a story. It's 1955 and Laurie's best friend Dickie contracts Polio and ends up in an iron lung. Laurie goes to visit him and tells him an elaborate tale of a terrible giant and a boy named Jimmy whose destiny it is to slay the giant. The characters in Laurie's story represent the real kids in the Polio ward, and the giant pretty obviously represents Polio.

The giant story is not really told like it would be if a kid were telling it to a bunch of other kids. Laurie talks through where they are in the story and then it transitions into very writerly writing. This didn't really bother me because the giant story took up more of the book than the real world story did.

I was a little confused by the way the climax worked, which was a letdown, but I liked the book overall. Some of the fantasy elements of the giant story bled over into the real world story and I ended up thinking about the power of make-believe, especially to children, and especially especially to children who are struck by tragedy. ( )

When her friend is stricken with polio in 1955, an 11-year-old girl tells a fantastic, ongoing story about a giant-hunter to entertain, comfort, and ultimately empower her friend and the other children in iron lungs (tank respirators)

This book is just so cute. Truly enchanting and magical. A cross between fairy tale and tall tale. I love it!
( )

Not quite as subtly, enchantingly metaphysical as I'd hoped.  The boundaries between the story world and the real were never in doubt, never blurred.  Still, a powerful and engaging story that I had real difficulty putting down, but couldn't quite bear to read in one go. ( )