Gnome is Where Your Heart Is

Written by Casey Lyall

Greenwillow Books (Imprint of HarperCollins)

978-0-06-323982-1

304 pp.

Ages 8-12

May 2023

You believe in aliens, right? Lemon Peabody certainly does, and she's determined to prove that her Grandpa Walt was telling the truth when he claimed he'd met one named Gnemo over thirty years ago. In fact, she's so sure that she's making Project Validation her summer project, even if she must hide it from her father Patrick, a true non-believer, who was humiliated by his father's claims, especially when everyone in the town started putting out green-faced, red-capped garden gnomes. Now, Lemon's parents are insisting that she partake in a normal activity for the summer. So, she and her best friend Marlo join the Junior Forest Rangers because it offers her the opportunity to investigate the very woods where Grandpa famously met Gnemo and chatted with her.

Unbeknownst to Lemon, the Gnar Five, a ship of the Interplanetary Natural Archives Alliance is out on a mission when forced to land on the Isolated Community of IC 525-1 a.k.a. Earth, a planet with restricted access. As Chief Gneelix tries to repair their ship, Captain Gnemo, Commander Gnilsson, Doc Gnog, and Ensign Gnedley attempt to stay under cover of their shields and follow protocols. But the Captain can't inform HQ of their situation because their external comms are down. And though Ensign Gnedley knows he's supposed to follow the emergency measures handbook, he'd joined the Alliance to see the universe. After all, Commander Gnilsson was able to go out and investigate, even returning with a miniature gnome statue that he is convinced speaks to an encounter with the locals, strictly against protocols.  

As Lemon and Marlo and their new friend Rachel, a science fan, pursue the clues to find evidence of the aliens and maybe even meet one, thus vindicating Walt, Lemon knows time is running out. Her grandfather's Alzheimer's is slowing making him more forgetful and agitated, and Lemon would do anything to help him. But Gnedley has his own problems, knowing that he's been seen by the Humans and worried that Captain Gnemo may be hiding a secret. Can both alien and human help each other?

 

Casey Lyall has always given us a good mystery in her Howard Wallace P. I. middle-grade novels and humour in her picture books Inky's Great Escape and A Spoonful of Frogs but in Gnome is Where Your Heart Is she blends that humour with some sci-fi and a solid intergenerational relationship that warms the heart. Gnome is Where Your Heart Is feels like E.T. meets Cocoon meets Star Trek. There's a crew of interplanetary travellers, with a clever captain, a right-hand commander, an acerbic engineer, and an inexperienced ensign. There's a child trying to help their grandparent against their parents' wishes. And there's a trio of friends investigating alien activity. There's fun and wit and angst and resolution. Best of all, there's humour. From the cheeky Gneelix–who, when asked for more power, suggests "Should I get out and push?"–or the irritated Marlo–"Tell me why you broke into my room at rude o'clock in the morning"–there is honest but saucy humour. But could we expect anything less in a story with gnome-looking aliens, magic mushrooms, and scrummy marshmallows? I think not.

For middle-graders who enjoy speculative fiction firmly based in the reality of family and friends, albeit with a cloud of Alzheimer's, and told with humour, distinct characters–both human and not–and the buzz that comes with the unknown, Gnome is Where Your Heart Is checks all the boxes for a lively summer read.

The Magic Cap

Written by Mireille Messier

Illustrated by Charlotte Parent

Milky Way Picture Books

978-1-990252-21-1

32 pp.

Ages 4-7

May 2023 

 

Oh, to have a magic cap that could fix everything! 

When Isaura and Arlo's pet hedgehog, Crispin, falls ill, the two children do everything to make him feel better. "They made him his favorite slug soup, brewed pots of cucumber tea, and even took turns rocking him for hours under the moonlight." Isaura is convinced that if they could find a gnome, it could heal Crispin. But how to lure a gnome?

From The Magic Cap by Mireille Messier, illus. by Charlotte Parent

Because food is rare, they give up the last of their milk to lure the gnome. Heading into the woods, they place the milk out and wait. And they wait and they watch. The bowl of milk becomes very popular, with visits from a deer, a squirrel, a badger, a frog, a fox, a boar and even an insect. Sadly, all the milk is gone, and no gnome has visited it.

From The Magic Cap by Mireille Messier, illus. by Charlotte Parent

The next day, hungry and with no food to offer, the two head out to search for some food, and, though they collect numerous berries, a hungry frog eats them all and leaves only a red-capped mushroom. So, with a lone mushroom as incentive, the children wait. And wait. And then they nap, along with all the animals who'd been keeping them company.

From The Magic Cap by Mireille Messier, illus. by Charlotte Parent

As they sleep, a red-capped gnome appears and is quite taken with the mushroom that offers shelter from the rain. In exchange, she leaves them two gold coins. Though that will help sustain them for a very long time, it won't help poor Crispin who is still unwell and shivering.

From The Magic Cap by Mireille Messier, illus. by Charlotte Parent

Unbeknownst to them, while they're out looking for something to warm their friend, a gnome offers its red cap to a bird to take down to the listless hedgehog. When the children return, still disappointed at never spotting a gnome, they are delighted to see Crispin wearing a jaunty red cap and feeling much better.

From The Magic Cap by Mireille Messier, illus. by Charlotte Parent

This is a picture book that will charm in every way. From the heartfelt wish of hungry children to heal their friend, to the numerous undetected gnomes that populate the woods, and animals who are community to Isaura and Arlo and Crispin, Mireille Messier's story feels like a fairy tale, and not the kind that scares. Mireille Messier's stories always have heart but here she gives us children living independently in the woods, managing with what little they have, and problem-solving how to heal their dear pet. And she gives us the magic and the happy ending. With a sweet story about benevolence, The Magic Cap is the best kind of fairy tale.

Bringing colour and shape to Mireille Messier's story are Charlotte Parent's coloured pencil illustrations. The detail and lushness of the art, from patterned clothing and quilts to verdant forest rife with textures of leaves, flowers and wildlife, takes the story from the page to a cottage in the woods where magic happens. 

We may not all have access to a magic cap that can heal, but Mireille Messier and Charlotte Parent's The Magic Cap can still transport us to a place where kindness prevails, community gathers, and small, mythological beings delight and do good.

 

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The French-language edition, Le Bonnet Magique (comme des géants, 2023), is also available.