The Mortification of Fovea Munson

by Mary Winn Heider, Chi Birmingham (Illustrator)

Overview

Fovea Munson is nobody's Igor. True, her parents own a cadaver lab where they perform surgeries on dead bodies. And yes, that makes her gross by association, at least according to everyone in seventh grade. And sure, Fovea's stuck working at the lab now that her summer camp plans have fallen through. But she is by no means Dr. Frankenstein's snuffling assistant!

That is, until three disembodied heads, left to thaw in the wet lab, start talking. To her. Out loud.

What seems like a nightmare, or bizarre hallucination, is not. Fovea is somebody's Igor, all right. Three somebodies, actually. And they need a favor.

With a madcap sense of humor and a lot of heart (not to mention other body parts), this is a story about finding oneself, finding one's friends, and embracing the moment.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781484780541
Publisher:	Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication date:	06/05/2018
Pages:	336
Product dimensions:	5.87(w) x 8.67(h) x 1.12(d)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

A graduate of the Vermont College of Fine Arts Writing for Children and Young Adults program, Mary Winn Heider lives in Chicago, where she is a member of the theater company Barrel of Monkeys. Through the company, she teaches creative writing to 3rd–5th graders. She also briefly worked in a cadaver lab. Yep, there were heads. You can visit her online at marywinnheider.com.

Editorial Reviews

04/30/2018
In this lively middle grade caper, a 12-year-old girl has the experience of a lifetime when she reluctantly serves as summer receptionist for her parents’ cadaver lab, where doctors experiment on, and learn from, corpses. Fovea isn’t eager to be associated with the creepy business, especially since her classmates already call her Igor and make body-part jokes. Things take a turn for the outlandish when she discovers a trio of talking heads, and then things spiral out of control when a fourth head vanishes. To retrieve the wayward noggin, Fovea has to help fulfill the heads’ dream of becoming a barbershop quartet, which entails a wild midnight adventure with a host of colorful characters, including her death-obsessed grandmother and her former best friend. Despite the silly premise, this tale, Heider’s debut, actually plays its vaguely explained core conceit—talking heads hanging on to a semblance of life—in a straightforward if frenetic manner. Fovea is a normal girl existing in a suddenly off-kilter world, and her struggle to help her family and newfound friends is relatable and satisfying. Ages 8–12. Agent: Tina Dubois, ICM Partners. (June)

Publishers Weekly

"Hilarious and disgusting in equal measure. In other words, exactly what you’ve been waiting for."—Adam Gidwitz, Newbery Honor–winning author of

“Equal parts screwball comedy, coming-of-age story, and tearjerker—I loved, loved, loved it!”—Varian Johnson, author of

"Heider’s tale is darkly comic and wholly original. Despite the gruesome premise, this is more comedy than horror."—SLJ

"Fovea is a normal girl existing in a suddenly off-kilter world, and her struggle to help her family and newfound friends is relatable and satisfying."—Publishers Weekly

"I absolutely adore this book! The Mortification of Fovea Munson is not only hilariously zany, and clever, it's also full of heart. Mary Winn Heider is a brilliant new voice in kid's books."—, Matt de la Peña

"In her hilarious debut, Heider has crafted a unique plot interweaving gory bits dripping in pun-filled humor and a realistic tween-age drama about losing friends and finding oneself. This one’s bound to have wide appeal."—Booklist

"While the book occasionally overdoes the absurdity, readers will still appreciate this offbeat exploration of life and death."—BCCB

From the Publisher

06/01/2018
Gr 5–8—Poor Fovea Munson. Life is hard in seventh grade when your parents own a cadaver lab and your classmates know that your parents work revolves around dead bodies. And it doesn't help that Fovea is stuck working in the lab this summer because her camp plans fell through. When three thawed heads start talking to Fovea, though, her summer gets a whole lot more interesting. As it turns out, these heads need a hand—and Fovea may be the only one who can help them. Heider's tale is darkly comic and wholly original. Despite the gruesome premise, this is more comedy than horror. VERDICT Highly recommended for kids who like fantasy, science fiction, and light horror. Destined to be a popular summer reading selection.—Mitchell Berman, Zion-Benton Public Library, IL

School Library Journal

2018-04-16
Fovea Munson's mortification isn't unfounded: Her parents are surgeons…who operate on dead people ("Sorry. Cadavers").Fovea, whose name means "eyeballs" in "medical lingo," would rather spend the summer at "a chewed-gum landfill" or in "a yurt in Siberia" than set foot in the lab. However, the 12-year-old's eternally cheerful, medical-wordplay-loving parents have other ideas: Fovea can replace their former receptionist for the summer. All Fovea has to do is clean up after lunch, keep out wily medical-device salespeople, and take delivery of body parts (bull urethras, anyone?). As long as she stays out of the lab, she'll be fine. Right? Alone one afternoon, Fovea hears voices coming from the lab. When she investigates, she gets the shock of her very short life: heads talking to one another. As in medical specimens without bodies, defrosting on a table, and they need a favor. Shenanigans ensue as Fovea dodges a blackmailing cremator, searches for a missing biohazard, attempts to win back her former best friend, and hides her escapades from her parents and her Henry VIII-admiring Filipina grandmother. Fovea's wry first-person narration ("I miss the good old days where I fell off horses all summer") anchors the hilariously unbelievable action. Mixed-race Fovea's non-Filipino heritage is unspecified, implying a white default.Sure to tickle the most fickle funny bone. (Fantasy. 8-13)

Kirkus Reviews

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