May Bird #1: May Bird and the Ever After by Jodi Lynn Anderson

My name is May, and I wish it was easier to make friends. Most people find me odd, and my mom doesn't believe in the ghostly monsters I've seen. I was starting to think things were getting very strange when I found a letter addressed to May Bird that was mailed fifty years before I was born! It said I was needed somewhere and that I should go to the lake in the woods to get there. I didn't know a lake existed, but everything changed when I discovered it. I now find myself in a world of ghosts, specters, and spirits, and Live Ones like me are rarely seen. As a matter of fact, I'll probably be killed if anyone sees me. I've been told no Live One has ever returned home, but I've met a very timid, nervous ghost named Pumpkin who's willing to help me. However, I have no idea who sent me the letter, and I have no idea what I'm supposed to do now.

I try to read a variety of speculative fiction books, and this one fit at the lower end of middle grade novels. May was ten years old, and the plot found her on an adventure to somewhere. Her uncertainty about where to go or what to do created confusion for me. She wanted to find a way home, but it seemed inevitable she'd end up with the spirits in the North. The question was would this happen in the first book of the series or in a sequel. The characters didn't have much depth, so it was more difficult to connect with them. Pumpkin said little about himself until later in the book, and even May's motivations were unknown. She just wanted to go home, while she was surrounded by fear and injustice in this new world. She wasn't even sure if she wanted to find the person who sent the letter in the first place. Strangely, the parts I most looked forward to were the occasional chapters about May's cat. Unbeknownst to her, Somber Kitty had also traveled to this world and was doing his best to find May. He took a much different path from her, and he was unaware that animals were forbidden and he'd most likely be killed if caught. Overall, the book's conflict didn't come to a satisfying conclusion, as the resolution simply led into the sequel. The book still has a certain appeal, and I'm sure it will connect with many readers. I recommend you give it a shot to see if it connects with you.