This was a heartbreaking, yet much needed middle grade book. An alternating point of view of Cora and Quinn, whom both are faced with guilt for different reasons. Both have lost a sibling due to a school shooting, one sibling is a victim and one sibling is the one who pulled the trigger. This kind of grief makes it hard to make a connection again. The guilt and pain that is hanging on both of their shoulders is real. Warga takes such an emotional experience and makes in accessible and REAL for young readers. It will definitely spark some discussion and will leave the reader in wonder.

The Shape of Thunder is a beautiful story of friendship, forgiveness, and moving forward, and Jasmine Warga has an incredible way of telling stories around relevant topics. Cora and Quinn have both suffered the loss of a sibling, however, one is at the hand of the other's. Chapters go back and forth between both girls' perspectives so the reader feels for both of them. I loved the letters Quinn writes to her brother at the start of each of her chapters.

Warga handles a timely and important topic with grace and sensitivity. The Shape of Thunder will provide a starting point for many crucial conversations with young readers regarding responsibility, grief, and acceptance. Highly recommended.

I will always choose to read a novel by Jasmine Warga. She has this phenomenal way of drawing you in with her words and creates a story that will touch your heart.

This novel took on some deep and heartbreaking issues, such as a school shooting, death of a sibling, and grief - but was done in a way middle schoolers could understand and relate to. I hope it will help to create a safe space for children to talk about such issues with people they trust.

Tragedy. Violence. Hate. These are the topics that we try to protect our families from. But when these topics force there way into a family... what then?

“The Shape of Thunder” is a unique view of violence from the perspective of two 6th grade girls. Used to be best friend girls. Impossible to separate girls. Until one morning when everything changes forever.

Drawing from cultural prejudices and unthinkable regret- this story is woven into a stirring tale of friendship, family, forgiveness and navigating tragedies we all hope our families never face. Brilliantly told, and gently crafted, this story will stay with me for a long time.

I don’t read many books in one day, but The Shape of Thunder was such a gripping story, I had to finish before bedtime. Cora and Quinn used to be best friends, before Quinn’s brother did the most awful thing one can imagine to Cora’s sister, Mabel and others at the local high school. The girls cannot be friends now. It’s impossible.

It’s been almost a year since that terrible day. Can the two girls ever come to terms with what happened and be friends again? Maybe not. Maybe. Only time will tell.

Jasmine Warga weaves such intricate stories — readers are lost in the woods with Cora and Quinn, looking for answers that may save their friendship once and for all. Can Cora and Quinn turn back the clock? Using the scientific method, is it possible to travel back in time and change the story of that fateful day?

Family dynamics are at the heart of this novel. There is trauma and grief, but also love, wrapped with feelings that no one can share. Parents are imperfect and siblings prove that difficult relationships can tear a family apart, and the consequences are far-reaching.

Thank you, @NetGalley and @BalzerandBray for the early read. Thank you @JasmineWarga for another wonderful title, which I’ve added to my list of 2021 books to purchase. (May 2021)

Recommended for upper middle and high school. Trigger warning: death/school shootings
My rating: ****

This is an excellent middle grade story about the aftermath of a school shooting and how two former friends cope with guilt, loss, and grief. I really love the alternating points of view. These two girls have experienced devastating trauma, and while one is receiving therapy and support, the other is not, and throws herself into her own attempt to “set things right.” My heart broke as I learned more of Quinn’s and Cora’s stories and the intense emotional turmoil they struggled through. Despite the traumatic events, this story is full of hope and positive messages about therapy, reaching out to others for help, and living for the future, not for the past.

I am struggling for words (and drying my tears). The Shape of Thunder is powerful, emotional, and complex. Like Jasmine Warga's Other Words for Home, it deals with difficult topics in a way appropriate for middle-grade readers. It also never felt trite or preachy.

Thanks to the publisher and to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

After reading the introduction author’s note, I went into it knowing it going to be dealing with some heavier topics, including a school shooting (it doesn’t describe the shooting itself but the fallout after). This was quickly confirmed in chapter one. However, these are topics that many children have already dealt with in some way or have seen on the news. I think it’s incredibly important to address them.

Quinn and Cora were best friends whose lives were completely alerted almost a year ago. Quinn comes up with the idea of using time travel to fix what happened that day and needs Cora’s help. This is a story of grief, healing, and friendship. Jasmine Warga did an excellent job of tackling this difficult topic.

The Shape of Thunder
by Jasmine Warga
HarperCollins Children's Books
Balzer + Bray
Children's Fiction
Pub Date 11 May 2021


I am reviewing a copy of The Shape of Thunder through Harper Collins Children’s Books:/Balzer + Bray and Netgalley:


Cora hasn’t spoken to her best friend in a year despite the fact they live next door to each other. They are both living in their own worlds of grief, Cora lost her sister in a shooting, and it was Quinn’s brother who was the shooter. Quinn carries great guilt for what her brother did and both misses him and hates him at times.



When Cora turns twelve Quinn leaves a box on her doorstep with a note. She has decided that the only way to fix things is to go back in time to the moment before her brother changed all their lives forever and stop him.


Despite herself Cora wants to believe so the two friends begin working together to open a wormhole in the fabric of the universe. But as they attempt to unravel the mysteries of time travel to save their siblings, they learn that the magic of their friendship may actually be the key to saving themselves.



The Shape of Thunder is a beautifully written and heartfelt story, perfect for Middle grade readers and above:



I give The Shape of Thunder five out of five stars!

In The Shape of Thunder, the “scientific hypothesis” of “magical realism” is set behind two characters, Cora: being the “only Hamed girl” left and Quinn: being the sibling that “should have done something”. Each is hoping that time travel will bring them back to “before” but learning that “growing up is like an imperfect theory in its own way.” The characters are well fleshed out and the adults are not mere side characters, each brings a wisdom that comes with parenting but still lets Cora and Quinn find their way.

I love Jasmine Warga’s work, and this is just proof that she’s getting better with every book. Warga intertwines the pain and love of family that you can’t understand any more, life that is Moaqqad, the importance of mental health, all with the hope of friendship,

The Shape of Thunder is a book that is going to spread through our Children's lit world like wildfire. I am already calling lots of book awards and nominations for this masterpiece.

The Shape of Thunder takes on a brave topic..school shootings. Instead of being scary or violent, the story is set in the aftermath of the event. It is told from the perspective of two, old best friends. Cora and Quinn.

These old, best friends had their lives, and their friendship, shattered when one of their sisters became the victim of the gun violence and the other best friend became the sister of the shooter.

Nonetheless, the two decide to join forces once again. Through their research on time-travel, the past best friends are hoping to return to the past to save their siblings from the heartache and tragedy that is to come.

The Shape of Thunder by Jasmine Warga is a beautifully told story about two friends and the aftermath of a devastating event. It has been almost a year since Cora's sister, Mabel, lost her life in a school shooting. The shooter was Cora's best friend's brother. That incident changed their friendship. Quinn, the sister of the shooter, misses Cora and wants to change the events that happened. She comes up with a plan and shares it with Cora. The two are so desperate to change what happened. Warga created characters that the reader will sympathize with. They are complicated and grieving. It is presented in a way that readers will be able to understand and reflect on.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

Loved this book! Alternating POV help shape the story. Examines heavy themes in a way that is accessible to MG readers. Opens the floor for important discussions on guns, safety, friendship, family, loss/ grief, forgiveness.

I loved this book. What a beautiful and heartbreakingly necessary story. This belongs in libraries and book clubs everywhere.

The Shape of Thunder was a wonderful, heartfelt middle grade story. The book is told from the perspectives of two former best friends, whose world's are shattered when one's brother kills the other's sister in a school shooting. The author slowly gives you details about the shooting but is not overly descriptive of the event rather focusing instead on the feelings and experiences of their siblings. All readers will be able to identify with the both characters' desire to go back in time and change what happened. This is a must add for all middle school libraries.

I really enjoyed this book! It was centered around two best friends figuring out how to deal with the aftermath of a school shooting. I think it's really sad that this book is so real and could happen in schools across the country. It also broke my heart to see the middle schooler protagonists blaming themselves for a shooting that was entirely the fault of lax gun control laws, irresponsible parenting, and a lack of common sense from a crazy teenage boy. I got through this book in one day, so it was a really fast and easy read. I also think this book places a lot of importance on educating youth about current issues, even if they are dangerous issues. If the child is young enough to be impacted by something, I think they have a right to not only talk about it, but have their words by validated and listened to. I would definitely recommend it, but I would've wanted some content warnings in the beginning of the book because the book has a lot of scary and dark content.

Get ready to cry! There is so much to love about this one - the writing, the characters, the different relationships and dynamics. I loved it all! Every character is unique and so well developed. I love how the characters interacted with each other, and how they grew throughout the novel (some more than others which is so realistic as well). The grief that they are all experiencing is palpable. This is a middle grade novel, and I love how Warga takes some VERY heavy issues and makes them manageable and understandable for middle grade readers. Warga is a forever favorite of mine, and I cannot say enough good things about this one!

Heart-breaking story about former best friends Cora and Quinn, whose friendship ended when Quinn's elder brother, radicalized on the internet, kills three women, including Cora's elder sister, in a school shooting before taking his own life. The middle school aged girls awkwardly reunite over the belief that they can use time travel to stop the terrible tragedy. Both girls' desperation and grief is palpable and Quinn's isolation in her grief and anger, as well as her own sense of guilt, leaps off the page. Read with tissues close at hand.

I LOVE Jasmine Warga's writing her books are perfect for middle grades students! This book was her best yet! The story alternates between the perspectives of two girls ( Cora and Quinn) who use to be best friends until Quinn's older brother shot and killed Cora's sister during a school shooting. Quinn is desperately wants her friend back, feels guilt for what her brother did and is very isolated. Cora is deeply grieving for her sister and feels like it would be an act of betrayal to be friends with Quinn again after what her brother did. Both girls are complex characters who experience a variety of emotions that makes the entire story feel real. The two girls end up coming together to try and use time travel to go back and stop this tragedy. What they end up discovering is the power of friendship and love. This book explores the reality of school shootings and the impact it has on the families if the victims and the perpetrators in a very honest and real but middle grades appropriate way. It is the absolute best book I have read written for middle grades students that gives this kind of honest and complex insight into gun violence and particularly school shootings. This is a must read!!