i absolutely loved this book, the characters, the plot, the atmosphere, It was such a quick and easy read and i was invested from the very beginning. I really was not expecting the plot twist but it made so much sense once i thought about it. Will definitely be reading more from this author in the future.

This book caught my eye firstly because of the stunning cover and secondly because it takes place in Jamaica. Jamaica has a special place in my heart and I try to read books that take place on that amazing island.
This short book follows Clara, a twelve-year-old girl that lives with her mum and dad in Sycamore, Jamaica, and it takes place during the summer holiday. From the very beginning we learn that something has happened the summer before, but not what as Clara has no memory of this evening. Everyone says that since the previous summer Clara has changed and she is unruly, and disobedient. She gets teased about it as well, especially by her best friend Gaynah. The two girls have a fall out and Clara decides to spend more time and go on adventure with the new comer to the island, Rudy. A girl born in England, but whose grandma lives on the island.
One of their adventures the two girls, together with Calvin (the son of the pastor) and Gaynah, leads them to Eldorath’s house. Eldorath is Clara’s uncle, but also the person everyone in their town avoids because he can speak to the ghosts. Can he speak to the ghost? Read and find out.
The night a tropical storm hits the island is also the night Clara and Gaynah get stuck with Elorath in his house on the hill, and Clara finally remembers what she has forgotten. This enables her to move forward and understand why her behaviour changed.
I didn’t guess what the mystery was and it surprised me.
This is a middle grade book, but it is well written and engaging even for an adult. I loved the story and the way it was written.

This is a gorgeous middle grade novel that takes you to the beaches and towns of a small tropical island, where Clara and her friends live. Their home is the small town of Sycamore where the children fill their days with inventing games and teasing each other about the adults around them. There are so many interesting characters in the story - Ms Gee, Eldorath and Pastor Brown - that play important roles in the lives of the children and the town. They all treat the children differently, but slowly you realise that something has happened to Clara the previous summer that caused her to lose her memory.

It's not often you read a middle grade book where the setting is so well created and there is such complexity and depth to the plot. I loved how the reveal of what had happened to Clara was just dropped into the story and how all the strands slowly wove together.

Pushkin press are one of my favourite publishers for children as they produce such original and rich books - this is no exception and I'd recommend it without hesitation. I'll be picking up a paperback copy for the library as soon as it is published.

A beautifully evocative story about the power of friendship and community, with a mystery that keeps you guessing and an unexpected twist.
With a beautiful setting and a community of characters who will touch your heart, Kereen Getten deals with friendship, families and shifting relationships with compassion and skill. At the heart of this story is a message of acceptance and compassion with more than a nod to the power of imagination and friendship. We loved it.

Well, I am honestly not sure what to say about this one!

Have you ever read a book, that you know you have enjoyed but thought there were these subtle nuances that maybe you didn't quite get the beauty of? This is how I felt with this one. Like I know its a good book, and it's a good story, but I am not quite sure if it was for me? I have bought the paperback though and will definitely give this a re read in the future!

Beautifully written, full of heart, almost certain to bring you to tears. Kereen Getten paints such a vivid picture of the island she calls home.

Full review to follow.

This was a really sweet middle grade. It was enjoyable to follow Clara and her friend Ruby, and also to see the development of childhood friendships. The island setting was a lot of fun, and it felt like a real summer read, which was nice to read mid-September.

I liked how the friendships developed and way we followed Clara, trying to remember what happened last summer. I thought the book highlighted how easy it is to block off feelings and emotions but how slowly we can begin to understand what these things mean.

The book wasn't overly long, so I felt like there wasn't quite enough time to connect fully with the characters, but I think this would work for a slightly younger reader. Overall, enjoyable and fun.

This book gave you an insight to life growing up in Jamaica.

Clara live in Sycamore a small village by the sea, she loves hanging out with her best friend Gaynor and eating the ripe mangoes that grow in her garden. The only problem is that Clara cannot remember what happened the previous summer and why she is afraid of the sea.

Also why does everybody avoid her Uncle and call him a Witch Doctor.

Clara wants to find out more about her Uncle and does it relate to her problem?

The pace of the book was slow to start with but the mystery of Clara's lost summer and her Uncle soon drew you in and you wanted to know more.

I thoroughly enjoyed this contemporary middle grade from Kereen Getten, set within a close knit, tropical island village, with themes of family, friendship, loss and community. 12 year old Clara used to love surfing, until last summer; now she's afraid of the water, and she can't remember what happened. Why is her best friend being unkind to her, and why are her family behaving so oddly around her? The story was heartwarming whilst dealing with some really important issues. I think it could have been a touch more fleshed out (especially as there is a twist towards the end that sends the story in a whole new direction), but for a middle grade it was very well written. Thank you for letting me read it.

Below is the review I will be sharing for my blog tour slot on October 22nd. I have added the links below for the profiles of where I will share, but I will also add to Amazon and include the link at a later date.


Thank you to Poppy Stimpson at Pushkin Press for having me along on the book blog tour for 𝘞𝘏𝘌𝘕 𝘓𝘐𝘍𝘌 𝘎𝘐𝘝𝘌𝘚 𝘠𝘖𝘜 𝘔𝘈𝘕𝘎𝘖𝘌𝘚 by Kereen Getten.
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𝘞𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘦'𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘧𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘰𝘳 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘦 𝘶𝘴
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Although When Life Gives You Mangoes is categorised as Pushkin Childrens, I thoroughly enjoyed it, and think readers of all ages would appreciate it.
Focussed around Clara as the main character, it explores themes of friendship, loss, acceptance and community.
It felt special in that the main character is a young girl, overcoming the odds and learning to accept and love herself, to grow into the person she is meant to become.
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𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘯𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘤 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘙𝘶𝘥𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘴
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I love the portrayal of friendships between the characters throughout the book. The intensity of feeling that comes with being young and falling out with friends seemed very true and real.
Rudy in particular seems somehow more worldly wise and grown-up, and her straightforward, direct approach to life clearly has a positive effect on Clara.
The story felt like it took place during a long hot summer, which is reminscent of the reader's own childhood and summer holidays that seemed to always have good weather and last longer than they really did.
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𝘐𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘴, 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘱𝘴 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘨𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘤𝘳𝘢𝘻𝘺
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I don't want to give any of the plot twists away, but the atmosphere built through the oncoming storm, and the damage it causes, parralels the microcosm plot between the characters well.
Only once things are truly addressed, with an element of destruction, can things be rebuilt and be strong enough to weather the next storm.
Everyone needs support from friends, family, and their community to flourish and thrive.
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𝘚𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘴𝘶𝘪𝘵 𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳, 𝘙𝘶𝘥𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘌𝘭𝘥𝘰𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘩. 𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘪𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘵'𝘴 𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴
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One element of the story that I loved was how the older members of the community embraced learning from the younger members, instead of dismissing them.
It's no secret that the parents within the community have not dealt with loss and breakdowns in friendships in the best way, for themselves as individuals or for the wider community.
Clara and Rudy lead the way in encouraging this to change, and the end results benefits everyone.
I think this reflects true life well, especially for younger readers who are often not given full answers to things, and instead are met with a brick wall from caregivers. Children often understand much more than adults give them credit for.
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𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘴𝘬 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘯𝘴, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘪𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘶𝘮𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘦
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I read When Life Gives You Mangoes in one day, because the writing is really engaging. I loved Clara's character and really felt for her at times, and rooted for her when she needed it.
I would highly recommend this to other readers of all ages, and I think the poignancy of the topics covered make this a really special book.
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𝘐 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘪𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦... 𝘥𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶?

Thank you to Net Galley and the publishers Pushkin Press for my eArc in exchange for an honest review. I have seen a lot about this book shared on Instagram and Twitter and was really intrigued to read it.

This book follows 12 year old Clara who lives on an exotic island that she doesn't see as anything special. Clara lives on the hill above the town with her parents and all the people that have always been around, because new people don't usually come here.
>Clara loves to play with the other children on the hill and going to her secret hide out with her best friend Gaynah. Clara and Gaynah have been friends since they were little, partly due to being the only girls of that age in the village and have always had lots of fun together. Lately, however, Gaynah hasn't been so fun and arguments that would have previously blown over seem to go on forever between the girls.
Part of the reason for this is Gaynah's constant teasing of Clara over her memory loss. Something happened last summer that Clara can't remember, even though now she doesn't forget things, she just can't remember that one time.

I was so intrigued by what had happened that Clara couldn't remember and didn't want to put this book down till I knew! I was not expecting what it was though at all. The book is so well written and is one of the first books I have read in a long time that I wasn't able to predict the end for!

While reading I was easily able to visualise the setting due to the wonderful descriptions throughout and I am sure many children and adults would love this book like I did!

A contemporary middle grade about friendship, loss, family and community.

Beautifully atmospheric and an unexpected twist as well. I would definitely like to read more by this author as this is her debut novel. Highly recommend this.

Thanks to NetGalley for my review copy.

Full review will be on my blog from September 30th.

This book is something else. I wasn’t expecting the story that I got, honestly. I knew When Life Gives You Mangoes was a story about friendship and loss, but that didn’t prepare me for the absolutely beautiful middle-grade read that it was. The initial hook, knowing right away that Clara has lost her memories of last summer, but that we don’t know what she’s forgotten or why she forgot it, had me page-turning fast, desperate to have Clara recover her memories and desperate for me to find out what had happened and why she couldn’t set foot in the water.

It was fascinating to read, knowing that everyone around her knew what was wrong and what had happened, but that Clara was struggling to piece it together, and it made me really root for her from the start as she tried to navigate a world that knew more about her than she did. It’s Clara’s relationships with others, and the relationships she sees around her, that are the true treasure of this book. When Life Gives You Mangoes looks at friendships, and how they can guide you out of the past or bury you there. It also looks a lot at how trauma impacts relationships, how hard it can be to let go even when that’s the only option.

There’s a moment most of the way through this book that honestly made my heart skip a beat. It was a gasp out loud moment, which doesn’t happen to me very often in middle-grade books. I loved the way it made all the pieces fall together, explaining everything that’s been going on and the reason that Clara doesn’t remember things. I honestly think this is going to be one that I reread, because I think there’s going to be so many poignant things that show up on the reread. The writing in this book is as lush and beautiful as the settings, and so vivid that it made island life that I’ve never experienced seem so real that I felt like I was running through the banana grove with Clara. I highly recommend this one, it’s a perfect read with so much depth packed into two hundred pages.

This book completely blew me away. Many other reviewers here have spoken about the twist in this book, and while I did see it coming (I've read something similar) I still really loved the execution of it. It does also change the course of the book in a way I didn't expect.

I also adored the setting of this book. I've never read a book set in Jamaica before but this book painted such a beautiful picture of the island.

This book deals with family, friends, changes in relationships, and grief in such a beautiful way. I'm not a very prolific MG reader but this book has absoluutely won me over to them.

I'm not carrying books on the bus, so am catching up on #NetGalley proofs - today I finished 'When Life Gives You Mangoes' by @kereengetten. Inspired by her childhood in Jamaica, it is a wonderful story about friendship, family, & community...& forgiveness, fears, & memories. https://t.co/d9NoWwlUnY

Thought this was a lovely delightful read. I was hooked in by Clara's story from the start and could not wait to uncover the twists and turns in the book. A real community feel with loss, grief and friendship all thrown in together. Perfect middle-grade read. Thank you for the opportunity to read this one!

12 year old Clara lives in Sycamore and is spending the long days of summer playing with her friends, including her best friend Gaynah. The story follows Clara through these days, introducing you to life in Sycamore; however, all the time, you are aware that something has happened that has changed Clara but she is having trouble with her memory and cannot remember what occurred.

Set in Jamaica, the backdrop is that of glorious sunshine, sandy beaches and small-town life on the island; however, you also get a glimpse of the effects of a tropical storm and I feel that the contrasts in weather reflect Clara and her varying emotions: she is clearly a young girl with a lot of anger and she really isn’t sure why, or how to control it.

Towards the end of the book there is a twist in the story that made me gasp and I defy anybody to say they predicted it - I know I didn’t! It helps to explain everything g and draws you even further into the plot.

Friendship and community are at the heart of this novel, but there is also a strong message about accepting yourself and letting go of the past. It portrays Clara and her struggles so well and with such compassion (using the first person narration certainly helps with this).

There’s a real war that to this book and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

I am unsure what I expected from this book, but it wasn’t what I thought it was going to be. I really enjoyed it. The twist was unexpected and shattered where I thought the story was going.
A story of family and friends, a close community, secrets and assumptions.

I haven’t read middle grade books and I now know that I am totally missing out.

This was such a heartwarming story about friendship, loss, bullying, grief, family and community. Clara has lost her memory from a year ago and is not in talking terms with her best friend Gaynah. She then befriends a new girl Rudy but Gaynah is always there with them even though they are not talking properly.
The mystery was so unexpected and absolutely loved it. I liked how close and helpful the community is. As this book isn’t very long I finished it in one sitting; it’s gripping, sweet and intriguing. Initially I read this book because of the name and the cover and so glad to say it didn’t disappoint.

So, if you want to read anything middle grade for yourself or to expand your children’s knowledge then I highly recommend it. I will definitely be reading more middle grade books. Thankyou Netgalley and Pushkin Press for the e-arc.

This book was definitely enjoyable and I can see it become lots of readers' new favourite. For me it wasn't the best middle grade I've ever read. I enjoyed the story and the premise, and I thought the intrigue was good, but I didn't love the writing style. I felt that the chapters moved quite slowly and I didn't really like that. I was always hoping for the plot to pick up but ultimately it didn't feel like there was much of a plot.
I know the author said that this book was about friendship, and I can see that she really tried with this book, but for me I couldn't really connect with any of the friendships. In fact I couldn't really connect with any of the characters besides the main character.
I also found the ending a little abrupt.
But overall and enjoyable read and I would definitely recommend this to younger readers, even if I personally had a couple of issues with it.