If you’ve read Middlegame, Over the Woodward Wall is the story within a story from that book. If you haven’t read Middlegame yet, I’d highly recommend going and reading it. But this novella doesn’t require you to have read Middlegame. Instead, you would just have a slightly different reading experience.

As always, every sentence is beautifully crafted. This reads exactly like a fairytale or children’s story should, which is to say there’s a lot of things that shouldn’t make sense but absolutely do. There’s also some excellent social commentary about gender roles, parenting, and friendship. While the ending was a bit abrupt, it still worked with the story. And leaves the door open for sequels.

Overall, I loved finally getting to meet Avery and Zib in their own story! Seanan McGuire will forever be one of a my favorite authors and I can’t wait to see what she comes out with in the future.

*Disclaimer: I received an advance copy of this book for free from the publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Even though this book is for younger viewers, I really enjoyed it. I do think the setup for the book could have been a little better but the fact that it is for younger readers, I can see why they did it quickly.

The thing I love about this author is he is a true story teller. Everything is so beautifully descriptive and well written. I loved this and I thought it was whimsical (and a bit terrifying!)

I highly recommend grabbing this and reading it immediately!

Thank you kindly to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for this review copy.

I’m losing track of all of Seanan McGuire’s pseudonyms.

This is a charming, quick read. It’s a twinkly, mostly gentle fairy tale that has delightful magic, clever humor, and some artfully subtle lessons about kindness and courage.

I appreciate Baker’s ability to render a land of make believe that doesn’t delve too far into nonsense and absurdity or get too earnest and moralizing.

The lessons here are good ones, sweet and subtly rendered and prettily woven into a unique magical landscape.

It’s clear at the close of the book that this narrative is just the beginning of the story for these characters and their adventures on the other side of the wall. I look forward to the next installment.

Seanan McGuire, writing as A. Deborah Baker, brings a book within a book to life with Over the Woodward Wall.

A. Deborah Baker is a character first introduced in Middlegame, where she is the author of a book called, Over the Woodward Wall; snippets of which you get interspersed throughout Middlegame. My recollection, although hazy, is that Baker was high-up in the alchemical world and was involved in some way with Roger and Dodger and other children like them.

In Over the Woodward Wall we follow two children, Avery and Zib, who live in the same town, on the same street, attend the same school, but have never met one another. One morning on their respective walks to school, they both encounter a detour. Said detour leads them to a wall, the only option is to go up and over.

They do and find themselves in an entirely different world with no immediate evidence of a way to return home. From there, the kids are forced to become acquainted rather quickly as they work together to survive the somewhat hostile fairy tale landscape known as the Up and Under.

Meeting an intriguing cast of side characters along the way, including talking owls and a girl made entirely of crows, Zib and Avery, come to trust in and rely on one another. A far jump from where they started. This story is absolutely enchanting. There are so many fine details, I know I didn't get everything I could out of this first read.

McGuire is a master at making every sentence count. Every word is placed for maximum impact. It's truly an impressive display of skill.

Do I think people who haven't read Middlegame can enjoy this? Absolutely, 100%, yes!

You could compare this to so many things, yet it is like nothing else. I feel Alice in Wonderland. I feel The Wizard of Oz. I feel The Chronicles of Narnia. But at the same time, it is different. If you have read and enjoyed any of McGuire's, Wayward Children series, you should definitely pick this book up. I feel like it could easily be incorporated into that series.

I have so many thoughts on this, but as you can tell, they're a little discombobulated. As always, I appreciated McGuire's subtle social commentary with regards to gender roles and the effects of unnecessary expectations placed on children, not just by parents, but by society as a whole.

Although, the ending was a little too abrupt for my tastes, and I would have liked a bit more to the story, overall, I did really enjoy it. I will end up rereading this at some point, maybe simultaneously with a reread of Middlegame. I am also hoping we see more of Zib and Avery's adventures in the future.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Tor, for providing me with a copy of this to read and review. I certainly appreciate the opportunity and will continue to pick up anything this author writes, under any name!

I feel that this title is too YA or even middle grade for me. I couldn’t finish, but I won’t be posting negatively about this title on my Goodreads and Bookstagram platforms. Thank you for the opportunity.

This is a story about a world sort of like ours-but with sardonic owls!

I’m a huge Seanan McGuire fan, so I knew I would like this, but was surprised by how much I loved it. I will say that you really need to read Middlegame first, it’s linked in a manner that makes the book really exciting to explore... if you’ve not read that one, I think you’ll enjoy this- but it may not have the same impact.

In Over the Woodward Wall, we learn the full story of how Avery and Zib meet, through a strange series of events, and discover a large wall that mysteriously appears in their neighborhood. Avery and Zib can't be more different in their views on the wall what course of action they should pursue. As the two children cross the wall and enter the land of the Up-and-Under, they meet unlikely creatures and hear tales of a Queen of Wands who will give the children the ending of their story's adventure and return them home. Finding the Impossible City via the improbable road is far more challenging than the children expect and their very different ways of thinking and solving puzzles often puts them at odds. But the children discover they have a connection and a shared goal and sometimes, that is the most important thing you need in an unlikely adventure.
I loved this story. It's such a fast paced adventure packed with interesting characters. Avery and Zib felt incredibly real and had genuine reactions to every obstacle and puzzle. I'm a big fan of the book within a book and after reading this, went back and reread Middlegame to find all the connections between the two stories. The Up-and-Under felt like a twisted combination of the worlds found in The Wizard of Oz and Wonderland. There were talking owls, a Crow Girl, and a deep understanding that everything made sense to everyone except for Avery and Zib.
Over the Woodward Wall is another excellent book from Seanan McGuire and is a must read for those who enjoyed Middlegame.

Thank you to Netgalley and Tor for the opportunity to read and review this title. All opinions and mistakes are my own.

The nitty-gritty: Two children enter a magical land and learn some hard lessons in this tale-within-a-tale by Seanan McGuire.

“People say I look like a girl, but that won’t ever make me one.”

Zib blinked. “You’re not? But I thought--”

“Oh, I’m a crow girl, but I’m not a girl girl.” The crow girl’s smile was swift, there and gone in an instant. “I’m a murder. The skin’s only for the outside people. The real me is all feathers and thorns, and not a girl at all.”

You probably already know by now, but “A. Deborah Baker” is a pseudonym for Seanan McGuire, and this novella is the first installment in Baker’s Over the Woodward Wall, a “book” that is featured in McGuire’s novel Middlegame. Baker herself is a character in Middlegame, and her book is a child’s fairy tale full of Baker’s hidden beliefs and teachings (think The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis). Are you still with me? 

If you haven’t read Middlegame, then Over the Woodward Wall is a perfectly delightful fairy tale geared toward the middle grade crowd—this is definitely a children’s story as opposed to YA—that really doesn’t require any knowledge of its source material to enjoy. However, if you have read Middlegame, you’ll discover some interesting parallels that might make you want to do a reread, at least that’s what happened to me.

The story takes place in a small, ordinary town where nothing earth shattering ever happens. Hepzibah, or “Zib” as she likes to be called, is an exuberant child who loves to explore the nearby woods, can’t keep her clothes neat and clean to save her life, and loves math. Avery is the same age as Zib but is the complete opposite: he’s always neatly buttoned up in freshly pressed clothes and shiny shoes (that will be important later). Although both kids attend the same school and live on the same street, they have never met before.

But all that changes one day when, on their respective walks to school, Avery and Zib run into road construction and are forced to take a detour through the woods. Not too far in, they stumble upon a wall that shouldn’t be there. Because why would there be a wall inside the woods? Nevertheless, they can’t get to school unless they climb the wall, and so they do. But once they get to the top, they’re shocked to see that their little town has vanished. With no other choice, the kids climb down the other side, and that is where their adventures begin.

They have arrived in a land called the Up-and-Under, populated by ruthless Kings and Queens, talking owls, and girls made of crows. And the only way home, it turns out, is to follow a road of iridescent bricks called the Improbable Road to the Impossible City, where the Queen of Wands awaits to help them.

If you think that sounds familiar, then you’re probably right. I mentioned this in my review of Middlegame, but there is a definite Wizard of Oz vibe to Over the Woodward Wall. I also felt twinges of Alice and Wonderland and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, not to mention McGuire’s own beloved Wayward Children series. Yes, it’s a mixture of many familiar riffs and themes, but it also has a charm all its own that I really enjoyed.

Along their weird and fantastic journey, Zib and Avery meet all sorts of interesting side characters, who—in typical fairy tale fashion—impart nuggets of wisdom to our clueless children while offering them friendship and hope. By far my favorite of these characters was Crow Girl, a sweet but sad girl who is actually made up of crows. She can magically burst into all her crow parts and fly away, then transform back into a girl again. There are several mentions of Crow Girl’s past before she was captured by the Queen of Swords and turned into a Crow Girl, and I would love to read that story sometime.

And because this is a Seanan McGuire story, you can expect lots of diversity. There are both trans and non binary characters, and McGuire’s trademark message of “be yourself” shines through. Because of this, I’m pretty sure anyone who is a fan of her Wayward Children series will enjoy this story.

As to how this fits in with Middlegame, Zib and Avery are reminiscent of Roger and Dodger, the children in that story. Baker is connected, in a sense, to both sets of children, which raises lots of questions. I mentioned before that I’d love to read Middlegame again, if only to pay closer attention to the Woodward Wall sections to see how they relate to each other.

I believe this is only the beginning of a series, although on Goodreads it’s hard to tell, since the series name isn’t listed. But I’m definitely on board for any future installments, as Baker’s story isn’t resolved at the end. Readers who enjoy magical stories that dig into the emotions of childhood will love this.

Big thanks to the publisher for supplying a review copy.

Over the Woodward Wall

I received a copy of this eBook courtesy of the publisher. I think it is worth noting that this book is a companion novel to Seanan McGuire’s book “Middlegame” and (though I have not read it) this book is in fact a fictional book mentioned in the original novel, now brought to life by the author under a pseudonym. While it is a standalone, there may be things that readers of McGuire’s book may have picked up on that went over my head.

“Over the Woodward Wall” by A. Deborah Parker is a fantasy novel about two children, Avery and Zib, who despite living on the same street have never met one another. One day on their way to different schools, Avery and Zib each must take a detour which finds them standing side by side before a wall blocking the street. Without even noticing each other, they both climb the wall and find themselves in a peculiar world called the Up and Under with no clear way to return home.

This is an unsettling book that draws upon fantasy and science fiction canon to produce something quite different. Parker is a clever yet oblique writer and the books is narrated in the third person with the omniscient narrator switching between describing the events and feelings experienced by the characters and providing broader commentary about their lives. Despite being a book about children, I don’t think that this is a book for children. Parker spends a lot of time considering the impacts of different parenting styles on the straight-laced Avery and the carefree Zib, and how that affects their ability to make their way through not only the Up and Under, but life generally. Zib and Avery meet several unusual characters along the way and struggle not only to assess who is friend and who is foe, but to manage a blossoming friendship between two such different perspectives.

I have heard a few people compare this book to “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz“, presumably because of the superficial resemblance between the books because each has a road to be followed. However, I found the premise more similar to “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” with the well-known playing card royalty replaced by queens and kings affiliated with more mysterious and sinister Tarot suits. The improbable road reminded me a lot of the “Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” and the infinite improbability drive. However, while there are glimpses of wonder, this book has a much darker tone than these predecessors and while it is certainly surreal and quirky, it doesn’t have the same amount of humour.

This is a compelling and cryptic book that ends on a grim note which makes me feel that Parker is probably not done yet with this story, and I’m curious to see what happens next.

Over the Woodward Wall by A. Deborah Baker (aka Seanan McGuire) is the children's story mentioned in her adult novel Middle Game. However, you don't need to have read Middlegame in order to read and appreciate this story- it stands alone and doesn't reference that book. This one is more reminiscent of her Wayward Children series, albeit with younger characters, and I think if you enjoy those books this novella is definitely worth a read.

It follows a girl named Zib and a boy named Avery who are very different children from very different families, and yet end up on a magical and perilous adventure together in a world somewhat reminiscent of Alice's Wonderland, if a bit less bizarre. This very much feels like a Seanan McGuire story, but one that could be appropriate for a mature middle grade reader. It approaches some darker topics, but in a less direct way. I enjoyed my time with this and hope she writes more! The ending is well written but not satisfying in the way I wanted it to be, even if it is appropriate to the story. I received an advance copy of this book for review via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Thinking back, I’m amazed at how few portal fantasies I read as a kid. I have vague memories of reading the first Oz book and parts of Alice in Wonderland and the first two Narnia books, but really I was more familiar with Oz and Wonderland from the movies than the books themselves. So I may not be the best judge of how Seanan McGuire (writing as A. Deborah Baker)’s new middle-grade novel compares to those seminal works. What I do know is that I loved every page of this, and plan to give copies at the holidays to the fantasy-loving middle-grade readers I know. And maybe several of the fantasy-loving young adults and adults and elders I know, as well.

As befits a book aimed at younger readers, Over the Woodward Wall doesn’t spend overlong on set-up, and doesn’t linger overlong at any point in the story. The first chapter introduces us to prim, fussy Avery (please, don’t try and call him anything shorter than that) and messy, free-spirited Zib (short for “Hepzibah,” but please don’t call her that), explains why they live on the same street but have never met, and gets them to and over the mysterious Wall of the title – and from there, there’s no looking back. Avery and Zib keep moving from adventure to adventure. They have a goal: follow the Improbable Road to the Impossible City, and ask the Queen of Wands to help them get home. But the Improbable Road isn’t a straight line by any means, and the circuitous route enables the author to introduce us to a large swath of the realm of the Up-and-Under. (“How can a place be both Up and Under,” Avery asks at one point. “Up a tree’s still under the sky,” the Crow Girl answers. A perfectly logical and perfectly magical way of thinking, in my opinion.) It’s a wondrous place full of talking animals, boulders who become men, girls made of crows and of water, and a set of kings and queens who are by turns malevolent and kind, and by the end of this book we haven’t seen near all of it. (Never fear, the sequel has already been contracted for by the publisher – and McGuire hopes to write at least four books in all.)

Portal fantasies, I believe, are about self-discovery. The children who come home from a portal adventure are not the same as when they started. They may not have “grown up,” but they have grown. Avery and Zib’s adventures definitely change them: Avery slowly becomes less certain that everything he knows is true, while Zib starts to realize that adventures and total freedom aren’t always as wonderful as they sound. Avery becomes less stolid while Zib becomes more thoughtful. They learn about each other, with hints of how each one’s home life might not have been as happy as they make it out to be. Each does something to hurt the other in the process of making themselves feel better, and those actions have repercussions. But they also move from traveling together because they need each other (as their only reminders of home) to actual friendship.

And they make other friends as well, with the addition of the Crow Girl and Niamh (the watery girl). These girls have their own mysteries hinted at and their presence has an effect on Avery and Zib that only becomes noticeable near the end of the book: the loners aren’t so alone anymore. McGuire has always excelled at building found families out of very disparate personality types, and the way she builds this group is perfectly paced within such a fast-moving narrative.

Fast moving … and fun, as such books should be. There are, as I mentioned, boulders who turn into men and owls who talk and impart wisdom. There are also thrilling mudslides and fruit that tastes like anything the eater loves (sort of like Wonka’s berry-flavored wallpaper or Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans without the limitations or the bad tastes) and magic swords. There are thrilling fight scenes and literal flights from danger.

Every portal fantasy needs a villain. We’re told early on that the realms of the Queen of Swords and the King of Cups are dangerous places, and of course the kids end up there (not quite of their own doing but through their own lack of understanding of the world around them and their easily-trusting natures). Both realms hold their own challenges for Avery and Zib to overcome – but both monarchs also seem distant and almost secondary to the narrative, just another pair of challenges to overcome. Although the possibility is set up for either one to be the Big Bad of the book/series, I don’t think either is. Because neither one scared me as much as the Page of Frozen Waters. If we’re looking for a Wicked Witch/White Witch/Red Queen analog, I think it’s the Page; she’s not royalty but her actions put the kids at more risk and she doesn’t seem to care if anyone dies as long as she gets her way. I will not be surprised to see her play a larger role in the sequel(s).

In addition to local friends to guide and enemies to overcome, another trope of portal fantasy seems to be the absent or absent-minded benevolent force. The King of Coins and Queen of Wands are mentioned, and meeting the Queen is as much Avery and Zib’s goal as meeting the Wizard was Dorothy’s or meeting Aslan the Pevensie kids’. But benevolent adults are always at a premium in portal lands because the kids ultimately have to learn how to deal with change and challenge on their own. Learning is part of the experience, and if learning comes with danger and injury, well, to quote my favorite band Paradise Fears, “to not have some battle scars is to never have lived.” I’m sure we’ll eventually meet these other two monarchs (however helpful or ineffectual they may be) but that’s not the focus of this book. I also think it’s an important point that the Kings are of Cups and Coins – passive symbols – while the Queens are of Swords and Wands – aggressive symbols. That has to come to play more as the series continues.

It also is not lost on me that our main characters’ names are Avery and Zib: A and Z, alpha and zeta, the start and end of the alphabet – and perhaps the start and end of knowledge? Each thinks they know the way the world is supposed to work while the truth is somewhere between them. They’ll have to work together to get through the adventure.

Lessons must be learned before a portal fantasy can end. Avery and Zib do learn quite a bit in these pages, but they haven’t learned everything they need to. I for one am glad their time in the Up-and-Under is not over yet.

(Note: for those wondering why the pen name for such an established author, “Over the Woodward Wall” is a book every character in McGuire’s novel Middlegame has read as a child, and the book has much significance to the world-building. In Middlegame, “Over the Woodward Wall” was written by Asphodel Deborah Baker.)

I received an e-ARC of this book to review through NetGalley.

When I saw that Seanan McGuire had a new book out under a new pseudonym I had to read it! Thank you netgalley and tordotcompub for the ARC.

This is a spin-off from Middlegame. I haven’t managed to get my hands on a copy of that one yet. But, my understanding is that Over the Woodward Wall is a book used by a character, A Deborah Baker, in Middlegame. That being said, you’re not going to miss anything by reading this one without the other. Avery and Zib live in the same town, but lead very different lives. Avery is prim and proper, while Zib is a wild dreamer. When the two children find themselves over the Woodward wall, they must learn to rely on each other in order to make it back home.

Seanan McGuire is a master storyteller and does not disappoint with this new middle grade book, which I believe will be a series. Even adults will love this book. McGuire doesn’t talk down to her audience. This isn’t an adventure that is all sunshine and unicorns. This book is wonderfully balanced. It’s funny, but bittersweet. Whimsical yet terrifying. I highly recommend picking up a copy.

The first thing you should probably know is that Over the Woodward Wall began its existence as that most magical of things – a book inside another book. In Seanan McGuire’s Middlegame, Over the Woodward Wall is the name of book written by a genius alchemist to sneakily teach the principles of alchemy to the world’s children.

More or less.

With Middlegame gaining a huge amount of acclaim, someone was smart enough to ask McGuire if she’d also like to write Over the Woodward Wall. And, using the pseudonym her fictional alchemist used, she did!

In Over the Woodward Wall, two perfectly normal children, Zib and Avery, encounter a wall on their way to school – a wall that shouldn’t be there. And for different reasons, they climb over it.

When they drop down on the other side, they’re not in our world any more. And the wall has disappeared behind them, leaving them stranded in a place called the Up-and-Under. How to get home? And do both of them even want to?

It’s impossible not to draw comparisons between Over the Woodward Wall and The Wizard of Oz, simply because both books feature an all-important road that the main characters must follow to their destination. But it’s not a fair comparison, because the road of Over the Woodward Wall is not like other roads – just like this book isn’t like other books. Instead of a yellow brick road leading to a wizard who isn’t, the improbable road is…well, I’ll let one of the inhabitants of the Up-and-Under explain it;

“Bricks made from sunlight on sand and moonlight on mist and starlight on water? Improbable! A single road that runs the length of an entire kingdom? Improbable! A city of untold marvels and incredible wonders waiting at its end? Improbable! So this, then, must be the improbable road, and if you walk it long enough, all your questions will be answered, for what could be more improbable than a happy ending?”

It’s to the Impossible City that Zib and Avery need to go if they want to go home – or even if they don’t. And off they go.

Over the Woodward Wall is full of McGuire’s signature wry humour and wisdom; there’s something in the tone of it that’s reminiscent of her Wayward Children series (and maybe that’s only to be expected, since both feature a set of wayward children. I wonder what Door would open for Avery, if he got a Door instead of a Wall? I’m willing to bet Zib, at least, would get a Nonsense Door.) But if the Wayward Children books are written for adults who remember being younger (and who haven’t quite given up on their Doors), Over the Woodward Wall very much belongs to actual children – whether that means people who are still children by number of years lived, or the inner child inside the most grown of grown-ups. This book is for either or both.

“Not knowing things means you have room to learn, and leaning’s about the most important thing there is, so the more ignorant you are, the more important you can be.”

Like all the best writers, McGuire doesn’t talk down to her audience. And like the very best writers, she doesn’t try to simplify or prettify things for younger readers. It’s as Madeleine L’Engle said: “You have to write the book that wants to be written. And if the book will be too difficult for grown-ups, then you write it for children.” There’s an extra layer to this if you’ve already read Middlegame, and know that Over the Woodward Wall is meant to be spreading the secrets of the universe at the feet of children. But even without that aspect of it, there’s plenty of pointed reminders and lessons here for children and grown-ups alike.

“Some monsters speak, child,” said the beast. “The very best monsters speak like kings and queens, eloquent and alluring, and the trick is learning not to listen. If you listen to those monsters, they’ll have your heart out before you realize how much danger you’re in.”

Which is not to say, at all, that Over the Woodward Wall is just a 200+ page book of morals or something. It’s strange and wonderful and there’s a lot of laughter mixed into the bittersweet, just as there’s a perfect balance struck between whimsy and a special kind of terrifying.

“Everything with wings is a coward,” said the Crow Girl. “Even the things that want to be brave, the hawks and eagles and vultures and pelicans, they’re all cowards. To have wings is to know how to fly away.” She paused before adding, thoughtfully, “Maybe emus aren’t cowards. They have wings, but they’ve forgotten how to fly. Maybe they can learn to be brave.”

You don’t, at all, have to have read Middlegame to appreciate Over the Woodward Wall – it stands alone on its own two feet without any need for bulwarks, and should be judged for itself, not for its connection to Middlegame. Even if those who’ve read both will see plenty of connections between the themes, and even the characters, of both books, I don’t really think Middlegame will help readers understand Over the Woodward Wall. For that, you need to study this book as if every motif in it is as deeply meaningful as I’m sure it is; you need to read each page twice, and maybe three times, and think about what you’ve read.

I mean, you can also just read it as a fun story! Because it is that, and it doesn’t have to be more than that if you don’t want it to.

But you can also ponder the symbolism of the King of Cups and Queen of Wands – figures originally from the tarot, but given new layers of meaning here. You can think over the power of names, and nicknames, and screams. If you’re an adult, maybe you’ll be reminded that children are people too, and to treat them as if they are. There’s different kinds of bravery, and different ways to be good, and no one can live up to all of them all of the time.

Sometimes anger is a good, true thing, because the world is so often unfair, and unfairness deserves to be acknowledged. But all too often, anger is another feeling in its Sunday clothes, sadness or envy or–most dangerous of all–fear.

Over the Woodward Wall might have started its existence as a secret alchemical primer within another book, but it packs a hell of a lot more punch than that now. It’s McGuire whispering the secrets of life, the universe, and everything in your ear, guiding you along the shining improbable road to your own Impossible City.

“Frightened means you’ve the sense to be afraid, and it’s cowards who get things done, more often than not.”

The only way to reach the Impossible City is to walk the improbable road. So pick up this book and get walking. How else are you going to get there?

4.25- This was such a fun nonsensical read that made me think of Alice in Wonderland and The Wizard of Oz. I loved the world, the things that talk in this world that never would in ours and the contrasts of the two kids personalities in this book. My younger self who always had an adventurous mind would have loved this book as much as my older self does. I discovered this book upon reading Middlegame by Seanan McGuire and she had used passages from this book in Middlegame. I didn’t realize this was to be more than one book, so I’m eagerly anticipating the next book in this series. What a great start!

“𝗦𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼𝗼, 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗱 𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗼, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗯𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗵𝗮𝗱 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗱, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗲𝗱.”—A. Deborah Baker

Wizard of Oz meets Alice in Wonderland, with a dose of Narnia. In the Up-and-Under, everything is a contradiction. Avery and Zib are two similar children who are also very different. When they both find themselves on the other side of the Woodward Wall, they must travel the Improbable Road and find the Improbable City where the Queen of Wands can help them find their way home. But things are not as they seem in the Up-and-Under. And a new adventure waits at every turn.

Charming. Enchanting. Captivating. Wholesome. Over the Woodward Wall is a middle-grade fantasy with catchy prose that will leave you smiling. It’s full of silly contradictions. Impossibilities. Curiosities. Most of all, its great fun! It’s full of queens and kings, some evil and some not. It’s full of giant owls, girls who can turn into murders of crows, and bramble bears. There’s rainbow mud waterfalls, and trees with glass leaves. Everything that’s impossible and improbable is suddenly possible and probable.

Avery and Zeb are from the same boring town, but they are very different children. Avery is prim and proper. Zeb is wild and messy. The kind of children whose parents would keep them apart. They couldn’t be more contradictory to one another. Yet, when they find themselves on the same journey, tied together, they must come to understand one another and rely on each other. Their only goal is to find their way home. But they cannot finish the journey alone. Together, they go through a transformation.

“𝗕𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗸𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘀𝘂𝗻𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗼𝗻 𝘀𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗼𝗼𝗻𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗼𝗻 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗼𝗻 𝘄𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿? 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲! 𝗔 𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗹𝗲 𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗿𝘂𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗵 𝗼𝗳 𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗱𝗼𝗺? 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲! 𝗔 𝗰𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘃𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘄𝗮𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗲𝗻𝗱? 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲! 𝗦𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻, 𝗺𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗱, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗮𝗹𝗸 𝗶𝘁 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵, 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝘀𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱, 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗯𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗮 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝘆 𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴?”

The writing was fantastic. I loved the way the Baker added direct opposites to the sentences, writing in a contradictory manor that gave the world so much feeling. Such catchy prose. Almost like reading rhymes. It flowed so well. I found myself frequently highlighting various passages.

“𝗙𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝗹𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗳𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗯𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗾𝘂𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝗲𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝘂𝗽 𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝘁.”

I adore middle grade. This was such a cute read. But it was also filled with wonderful messages for middle-graders. So very wholesome! I can definitely see kids loving this story. Even as an adult I thoroughly enjoyed it. It made me feel like I was whisked away in an Alice In Wonderland-esk world following the Yellow Brick Road looking for a lamppost in Narnia. Except in this story, it’s a rainbow road full of improbabilities. The story ends in an incomplete way that suggests there will definitely be subsequent books. After all, even though the children reach their destination, they discover that their adventure is not quite over yet. I will be looking forward to the next installment. MY RATING: 4.5/5⭐️

Thank you to Netgalley and Tor.com for providing me with a copy of this in exchange for my open and honest review.

Over The Woodward Wall by A. Deborah Baker is a complicated book to review. A. Deborah Baker is the newest pseudonym of prolific author Seanan McGuire and goes hand in hand with one of her other works, Middlegame. It is meta, Over the Woodward Wall was mentioned in Middlegame, and now we have the full children's book to go with it. Honestly, I wasn't even aware of the connection until I had an a-ha moment about halfway through the story. You don't need to have read Middlegame to appreciate Over The Woodward Wall. Still, I think readers will have a fuller appreciation and understanding of the story if they have read Middlegame.

“Humans always look the same to me once they’re old enough to leave the nest. Hatchling humans are one thing, but the rest of you? Pssh.”

The story is about two children who are polar opposites of each other in almost every way. Avery, who is calm, collected, systematic, and rule-abiding, is half the duo. While Zib, who is loud, frizzy, wild, and free-spirited, is the other half of the pair. Together they balance each other and cancel each others strongest tendencies. The only thing Zib and Avery have in common is their age. That is... until a chance meeting while on a wall to the Up and Under intertwined their destinies. Now, in a land completely different than our own, the two of them have to work together because they will never escape otherwise.

Seanan McGuire is a master storyteller. If you haven't had a chance to check out the myriad of her novels, series, and short stories, you should. She has a way about writing that is lyrical enough to dance across the pages, but substantial enough that a reader does not get lost in the words. All that being said, I don't think this is her best work. That is a relative thing. Even on McGuire's worst days, she still is a fabulous writer.

But, Over the Woodward Wall was missing something.

The story has a lot of good. The worldbuilding is well done. There are giant talking blue owls, waterfalls made of mud, a crow girl, and so many other fantastical things. It is reminiscent of Alice in Wonderland and McGuire's Wayward Children series. The world is an elaborate creation, and it is believable and whimsical at the same time. I can see two children getting lost in all this.

"Neither of them could see the cliff they fell past, but if they had, they would have understood the mud a little better, for the stone was banded in pink and blue and purple, stripes of one color sitting atop the next, like something from a storybook."

Avery and Zib are fun lead characters that balance each other well but learn to adapt to the situations as they arise. It is a good lesson for kids because, technically, this is written for children. But I think the lessons were too heavy-handed; every character Avery and Zib crossed had something to teach them, some lesson. That is generally important in a fable; it seems too much. Even fables and children's stories have subtleties. Because it was apparent what each of the characters was doing, I could not get engaged in it as much as I would have liked to.

On the flip side, the story did not seem long enough. It felt incomplete. I wanted more. Maybe that will be realized in future books, but I ended this story slightly dissatisfied. It was a weird combination of too much info in one part of the story and not enough in another.

“A piece can represent the whole,” said Meadowsweet. “If the human child wants to hold up a branch and say it means the entire tree, I don’t see where it’s another human child’s place to stop it. Representative symbols are an essential piece of making so many things. Without them, we wouldn’t have maps, or books, or paintings. Peace, human child. Let your fellow be.”

Of course, even with slight criticism of the plot, this is a fun story. The children's voices are engaging, and its meandering manner is thematic. You are meandering with the kids as they make their way through the world. And, even though this isn't McGuire's best work, it is still a fun read. Besides, I loved Middlegame. It was one of the best books I read last year, and the meta quality of Over the Woodward Wall adds another layer to the story and makes me appreciate Middlegame all the more.

If you are a fan of McGuire's work, you will undoubtedly appreciate this. And, even though it wasn't as engaging as I had hoped, this is still a very good story and worth the time it takes to read it.

3.5/5 stars rounded to 4.

This is a new novel by Seanan McGuire under a different pseudonym and I was really looking forward to diving into this story!

The author once again offers us a different and unique story with Over the Woodward Wall. We follow two children: Zib and Avery who are about to embark on an adventure that will change them both. They were used to a well-defined routine and will have to go off the beaten track. It won’t be easy with our two children who are very different from each other and yet they also complement each other perfectly. But will they be able to survive? Will they be able to go home to their parents?

It was a very nice novel once again and I enjoyed following the adventures of the two children. The universe is very rich and I was delighted to discover it throughout the novel.

A nice surprise!

Over the Woodward Wall by A. Deborah Baker delightful new Middle Grade fantasy series opener. I'm so glad I had the opportunity to give this novel a try via NetGalley. I jumped at the chance as soon as I realized that A. Deborah Baker is a pen name of Seanan McGuire, one of my favorite authors. Plus, just look at the cover - it's so beautiful! Luckily, the content are just as good as it looks. I particularly enjoyed the quirky and whimsical yet menacing fairytale tone. It's very reminiscent of McGuire's Wayward Children series and that really worked for me. There are also quite a few messages in the story which are really well disguised for younger readers. If you're interested in the author's style, you'll need to give this a try. I'm looking forward to seeing where this series will go in the future.

Two children, living on the same street, but never encountering one another, set off to school one day and encounter a strange wall that has never been there, nor will be again. They climb the wall and together enter a world unlike anything they’ve seen before. A world where the improbable is just the right mindset away, boulders are people, and owls can talk. The only rule is that the children succeed together or fail and never return home.

Seanan McGuire does it again folks!! Seriously, I simply don’t understand how she can be this skilled of a writer, building worlds that feel like places I can visit in 200 pages. Her books are some of the only stories I welcome being confused while reading because it becomes this journey of discovery. Although not part of the Wayward Children series, this REALLY felt like one of the worlds we would slip through the door of with a smattering of unlikely friends. My only complaint is that I just wish there were more.

This is a brilliant novel and premise, because while it is connected to Seanan McGuire's Middlegame and will provide some amazing context and easter eggs for fans of that book, it is also an excellent read as a standalone novel. AND it is easily approachable for middle grade and young adult readers who may be ready for some of McGuire's gorgeous weaving of faerytale and folklore, and maybe not quite as interested in as much of the blood or real-world stressors that her adult characters tend to encounter in her other books. Our characters are Avery and Zib who are as different as two children could be, and running late to school one day in their perfectly ordinary lives when they come to a huge wall blocking the road they usually take to school. They climb it to try to continue on their way to school, and so begins an adventure on the other side of the Woodward Wall.

There are a few things that make this book particularly excellent in my mind. First, is Seanan's mastery of folklore and how that fleshes out her world building of what Avery & Zib find over the wall from the descriptive colors of the plants and animals to the wandering nature of the tale and the improbable road the children take, there is just so much richness and texture to the world. Second, is the characters. As I said, Avery and Zib are as different as could be, and so their courage and fear and fierceness and loyalty comes through their characters in very different ways. It's well done in that while they may not always understand the other, and occasionally get frustrated, neither one is lesser in the other's eyes. They balance. There are also others they encounter along the way, some remain in the tale for a while and some who are there just briefly, and each character is striking and has just the right amount of detail. Third is the fact that there are and will be real world consequences for what happens over the wall, this isn't something they just get to wake up from and it was all an interesting dream.I personally like the weight and urgency this adds to their adventure.

As I said at the opening, fans of Middlegame will undoubtedly enjoy this book, and I also think it would do really well with fans of McGuire's Wayward Children series or other portal fantasies. And I do think this would be an excellent introduction for younger readers to McGuire's writing.