Michael Leali (The Civil War of Amos Abernathy) weaves a delightful tale of magical realism, influenced by the story of Pinocchio but not bound to it. It’s a coming-of-age tale that gently but thoughtfully explores family expectations, peer bullying, coming out, and more within an original storyline and a dash of the fantastical.
Eleven-year-old Matteo Lorenzini is tired of trying to be the perfect son. He strives to do well at baseball, like his dad, but just can’t quite seem to be good at it. His parents aren’t mean—in fact, Matteo still loves hearing the story about how they found him in a basket at the foot of the grand tree that overlooks their small town—but Matteo feels the weight of their expectations. His former friend Omar Jones, who had drifted away over the past year, seems to be on his side again, however, standing up for him against the team’s bullies. But Omar is a crush as well as a friend, and Matteo worries that liking boys doesn’t fit the vision for his life that he and others expect.
As he muddles through all this, he alarmingly starts to sprout bark and leaves whenever he lies. At the same time, the town’s tree, where his parents found him, seems to be dying and is slated to be cut down, something Matteo senses is the very wrong thing to do. He and his best friend Azura Gonzalez work to discover what is happening to him, save the tree, and help Matteo harness his strange new powers. In the process, Matteo discovers more about his own origins as well as secrets from his adoptive family’s history—while also becoming more comfortable being his own person.
Fun and recommended.
Matteo and his family are White. Omar is Black and Azura is Latina.
