Quintessence

by Jess Redman

Overview

A 2021 NCTE Charlotte Huck Award Honor Book
A Bank Street Best Book of 2021

Quintessence is an extraordinary story from Jess Redman about friendship, self-discovery, interconnectedness, and the inexplicable elements that make you you.

Three months ago, twelve-year-old Alma moved to the town of Four Points. Her panic attacks started a week later, and they haven’t stopped—even though she’s told her parents that they have. She’s homesick and friendless and every day she feels less and less like herself.

But one day she finds a telescope in the town’s junk shop, and through its lens, she watches a star—a star that looks like a child—fall from the sky and into her backyard. Alma knows what it’s like to be lost and afraid, to long for home, and she knows that it’s up to her to save the star. And so, with the help of some unlikely new friends from Astronomy Club, she sets out on a quest that will take a little bit of science, a little bit of magic, and her whole self.

This title has Common Core connections.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780374309763
Publisher:	Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Publication date:	07/28/2020
Pages:	384
Sales rank:	851,055
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.20(h) x 1.30(d)
Lexile:	720L (what's this?)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Jess Redman is the author of The Miraculous, which Kirkus called “layered, engaging, and emotionally true” in a starred review. She is a therapist and currently lives in Florida with her husband, two young children, an old cat named SoulPie, and a fish named Annie.

Editorial Reviews

04/06/2020

A girl suffering panic attacks after her family moves to a new town finds purpose when she’s lent a special telescope that allows her to witness a star falling to Earth in child form. To help the Starling recover its power and return home, 12-year-old Alma Lucas and her new friends, including supersmart but socially awkward Hugo and multitalented, popular Shirin, must collect and unite pristine samples of the four classical elements—earth, air, fire, and water—from locations around the town of Four Points. But with a bully on their tail, the Starling proving difficult to catch, and Alma’s episodes increasing, this quest won’t be easy. Mixing modern science and alchemical traditions, Redman (The Miraculous) delivers a fanciful adventure with a rich emotional core and a fairy tale flair. An emphasis on Alma’s mental health and circular thought patterns proves an effective complement to the story’s magical elements, as her new endeavor and friends grant her the resilience to navigate her needs. Reminiscent of Neil Gaiman’s Stardust, this is a clever, entertaining story with its own distinct identity. Ages 8–12. Agent: Sara Crowe, Pippin Properties. (May)

Publishers Weekly

06/26/2020

Gr 5–8—When unconventional Alma, who loves to be outdoors and wear dried flowers in her hair, moves from Old Haven to Four Points, anxiety, negative self-talk, and panic attacks set in. Indeed, Alma grows to be a deeply depressed recluse until a flyer for an astronomy club at school sparks curiosity. Through a borrowed quintescope, a unique telescope, Alma sees a girl fall from a star into her backyard, setting in motion a true quest and personal journey. Alma and her stargazing comrades must work together to save the "starling" and find themselves along the way. Alma's story will set readers' imaginations alight. This quirky novel mirrors its main character with its distinctive and spunky narrative voice. Readers will decode passages from the fallen star's perspective to reveal plot clues, and eagerly observe Alma beginning to create a positive self-image. Short chapters keep the story moving at a quick clip. At times the adventure seems too easily fulfilled, quickly closing doors and lessening connections to the plot. Similarly, the conclusion seems overly optimistic. However, readers will appreciate that Alma's panic attacks and depression are openly addressed with her family—perhaps that's the true quest. VERDICT Will appeal to science fiction adventurers with its unique voice and lively plot, but may not leave them thirsting for more. Recommended as a fresh addition to the science fiction tween genre.—Mary-Brook J. Townsend, The McGillis Sch., Salt Lake City

School Library Journal

2020-03-15
Fantasy with a STEM infusion.

Alma has what her family calls “episodes,” or panic attacks, and her parents are worried. They’ve recently moved to Four Points, and they really want Alma to fit in. She doesn’t. But when she sees a flyer for Astronomy Club, she knows it’ll please her parents, and so she goes. There are only two other kids when she gets there: Hugo, who doesn’t attend regular classes because he’s very advanced (and also socially awkward), and Shirin, who is the first person to notice that the flyers seem to have been very specifically placed to attract these particular children. Then there’s the ShopKeeper, whose store is never open but whom Alma is always running into—and who always seems to know what she needs to do next. What’s next is convincing her friends that the other night, Alma saw a star fall from the sky, and as it fell, it became a person—a Starling. This complicated setup gives way to a quest involving astrophysics and cosmology, as the children sneak around town trying to put together all the elements required to send a star back to the sky where she belongs. Both Alma’s severe anxiety and panic attacks and Hugo’s social ineptitude are portrayed sensitively, not as jokes. Alma is white, Hugo appears black, and Shirin is Persian American.

This won’t fly off shelves, but it’ll be just the right mirror for a very particular reader. (Fantasy. 8-12)

Kirkus Reviews

A fanciful adventure with a rich emotional core and a fairy tale flair. An emphasis on Alma’s mental health and circular thought patterns proves an effective complement to the story’s magical elements, as her new endeavor and friends grant her the resilience to navigate her needs. Reminiscent of Neil Gaiman’s Stardust, this is a clever, entertaining story with its own distinct identity.” —Publishers Weekly

“Redman’s writing shines [in] the portrayal of Alma’s mental health and its effect on her sense of self and on those around her. . .Reassuring, especially to kids struggling to articulate their own feelings in the face of lingering stigma about mental health.” —The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

“A wildly imaginative tale full of wonder and hope that is grounded in our everyday world and the very real problems that today’s children face.” —Megan Frazer Blakemore, author of The Story Web

“A magical, wondrous book. . .The story is beautifully written and gave me chills almost constantly—with that magic-just-around-the-corner feeling.” —Gillian McDunn, author of Caterpillar Summer

“As bright and magical as a falling star, Quintessence is a beautifully told story that collided with my heart and set it aglow.” —Heather Kassner, author of The Bone Garden

“While firmly grounded in real-world issues, Quintessence shimmers with the perfect amount of magic. Redman’s deft, sympathetic portrayal of anxiety, a welcome and important addition to the middle grade canon, blends with scientific references to astronomy that are sure to engage young readers. Well-rounded, relatable, and resilient characters working together in a captivating setting make this the perfect read for fans of STEM and the stars.” —Sarah Baughman, author of The Light in the Lake

From the Publisher