Fifteen-year-old Alex didn’t plan to start high school sidelined from field hockey by an ACL injury and separated from her friends—but her parents have just moved her and her older brother across the country to help her cancer-stricken aunt (who has a wife) run her “crystal emporium/bookshop/candle store.” Her parents have been fighting, however, and Alex fears they may divorce.
She feels disgruntled and awkward about having to start again. Then she discovers her Cuban grandmother’s book On Small Magics, which outlines various rituals, charms, and manifestations for things like “warding off bad spirits” and “attracting like-minded people.” She tries a spell for the latter, hoping to find a friend in her new town.
Alex soon strikes up an unexpected friendship with cool, goth, tarot-loving classmate Tess. They bond over Alex’s witchy book, and begin doing rituals together to make adjustments to their everyday lives. Alex wants her parents to stay together; Alex wants to get back together with an old boyfriend, the brother of Alex’s other new friend, Cameron.
Things don’t go exactly as planned, of course. Alex begins to realize she has a crush on Tess, which complicates their work to address Tess’s former relationship. Sweet and funny Cameron might have a crush on Alex. And Alex’s family situation isn’t improving, while Tess is dealing with grief from an earlier loss.
Things are … complicated, and it’s unclear if the inconsistent magic of the book will help, or is hitting unintended targets. What’s not complicated, however, is Alex and Tess’s queerness, which causes them no angst, even though they are still finding their way. When asked if she’s gay, Alex says, “No. Yes. I don’t know actually. I’ve had crushes on boys and girls. I guess I’m still figuring it out.” Tess says, “I guess I like boys and girls.”
Author Marissa Macy uses magic as a tool for helping the characters know themselves and work through grief and change; the focus is not on magic for magic’s sake. The concept of magic, however, lets the characters explore the question of how much control they have over their lives and what to do when there are things beyond that control. The book gives each of its main characters a thoughtful, nuanced arc of personal (and interpersonal) growth—but who’s to say that lighting a candle or two along the way didn’t help?
This recommended story of family, friendships, and relationships feels aimed at older middle grade/early YA readers because of the age of the protagonists, but there’s nothing that feels inappropriate for younger middle grade readers, should they have an interest in a book involving crushes.
Alex is Cuban on her mother’s side; her dad’s side reads White. Tess is biracial; her mother has “darker brown skin than Tess’s … and wavy black hair”; her dad is White. Cameron is Black. One minor character is nonbinary. An older two-woman couple plays a part that I won’t spoil.
