3.25/5

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for sending me an advanced copy of this title in exchange for an honest review.

Cutie Grackle is an Appalachian girl who has had a tough hand dealt her way. She has no parents and lives with her uncle who isn't very responsible to say the least. We open with her being driven to the food pantry for her monthly allotment by a sympathetic woman who works at Cutie's school. Cutie is smart, responsible, courageous, and all the other characteristics you would want your middle schooler to be.

I loved the setting and ambiance of this story. I grew up in the foothills of Appalachia and I can say for sure that Shawn K Stout got the vernacular and setting absolutely perfect. I loved hearing Cutie saying "tarnation" and "murderation" and having full-on conversations with her "friend" the garden gnome.

The story is firmly magical realism-- a great amount of fantastical elements for the age group. I think a lot of kids 8+ would enjoy the magical bits and would also relate to the realistic parts like being financially/food poor and having trouble relating to the others around you.

Shawn K Stout really shines in the prose. Some of my favorites include: “What we find connects us to the past. It may be an ugly, shameful past, but we have the responsibility of owning up to to it so we can know better and then do better.”
and
“I wished I could undo it. But things couldn’t really be undone, could they?”


Where this book fell a bit flat for me was the pacing-- the beginning was good and then it dragged in the middle 50%. Things picked up when Cutie finally figured out the curse and what she needed to do, but I think some of the middle could have safely been cut. The ending was satisfactory, but I was hoping for a bit more of a happy ending than we got.

If your kids are sensitive to animal harm, I would cautiously recommend this book. There is some injury to crows, one crow is blind in one eye and that eye looks bad, someone shoots at crows at one point in the story.

Really enjoyed this book. Mysterious and heartwarming; we follow the main character Cutie and her quest to uncover and break the curse that has been plaguing her family for years. Cutie is a resilient and kind character who stops at nothing to rescue her family and friends and it was her characterisation that ultimately made me enjoy the book so much. It was great to see such a courageous and resilient female character and root for her in her fight against those who have wronged her and her family. Dealing with the mess of friendship, belonging and family this was a heartfelt read with just the right sprinkle of magical realism.

I was expecting a highly adventurous and mysterious story. However, I thought that the book actually moved pretty slowly.

Cutie Grackle's life feels impossible. There is a curse on her family and the only relative she has left, Uncle Horace, lives his life in a fog. It is hard for an 11-year-old to stretch that monthly box of food from the food pantry. Then one day five ravens seem to be following her. Are they trying to tell her something? Why do the little treasures they bring her give her visons of the past? You will fall in love with Cutie and her quest partner Galen. He thinks she is like Luke Skywalker in her commitment to undoing the curse on the Grackles (he LOVES Star Wars). I caught some Lord of the Ring references as well in the narrative. This is an unforgettable story that will give you hope and teach you some things about Claude Monet, too.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.

AAAA, this was a cute story and not only because the protagonist was named Cutie. It's a story about bravery, with a main character that many children will love!

The story got me interested because I expected anbadventurous story to break a curse that haunts Cutie's family. The story I got, however, was very boring without anything happening and even though Cutie was slowly revealing secrets, it was in very dull way. The writing style is all over the place with mentions of so many stuff unrelated to the actual story with a minimal amount of important information I stopped half way through and there was no plot progression done and it felt like it's still only beginning.

To give some positives, I like Galen as a character and he could've been introduced earlier. Some insights from the raven perspective were the best parts in the whole book.

A beautiful, heartfelt middle grade story. It's set in a real world, but sprinkled with magic and old curses and mysteries which we see slowly unravel.
The story gripped me at the very beginning and didn't let me go to the very end. The pacing was great, the plot intriguing, the writing beautiful, yet easy to follow. The amazing cover art really fits the atmosphere in the book!
The story also tackles several heavies themes (such as poverty, hunger, loneliness, missing parents, health issue called fibular hemimelia) but not in a way that would feel too jarring and take you out of the story.

I would definitely recommend this book to younger readers and everyone else who enjoys middle grade books alike. It's full of bravery, bittersweet feelings and hope.

The Impossible Destiny of Cutie Grackle by Shawn K. Stout is a wonderful elementary to mid-grade fantasy book that explores themes of bravery, courage to be yourself, and the love of family.

Cutie Grackle is a loveable character who has always felt different. She lives with her eccentric uncle who claims her family is cursed but won't give any further details. Cutie is thrust into a fantastical race to save herself and her family legacy when mysterious ravens appear bearing magical items that give her a glimpse of the past. This story was well written with sympathetic characters and a fun second point of view from the head Raven, Claude.

Kids will enjoy the mystery and thrilling quest that Cutie seeks to unravel and find comfort in the knowledge that what makes you different is what makes you extraordinary. I would recommend this to readers 8 and up with a thirst for fantasy or mystery.

A good choice for middle-schoolers offering a unique blend of realism and fantasy. The book describes the realities of hunger for a young girl, and could provide an opportunity to have conversations about wealth inequality/poverty with younger readers. Cutie's journey is well-paced and gripping.

Free Netgalley book for review!~~. This was interesting and an enjoyable read, and I’d read more by this writer the future as well. Pre teen me would have been thrilled with this book.

I will say if you’re not a Star Wars fan or if you haven’t watched the movies, there’s quite a few references to the original trilogy although no actual spoilers for Return of the Jedi. M

I liked the adventure and how strong Cutie is as a heroine, too. I was never quite sure how it would finish up, and it was a fun ride. I’d recommend this to any fantasy fan. As an artist I also appreciated all the Monet references as well.

Don't lose heart. That's the motto that keeps Cutie Grackle going as she faces the impossible.

Cutie is a 10-year-old girl who lives with her absentminded uncle in a rundown shed on the edge of a mountain in nowhere West Virginia. Her only friends are Toot, a lunch lady who helps Cutie visit the area food pantry, and Mr. Pitts, an old beat-up garden gnome who's obsessed with Claude Monet.

At the start of summer, Cutie's life takes a turn when a flock of ravens begin to follow her and she's pulled into a vision from her family's past. As the raven's continue to bring her clues about a curse, Cutie embarks on a journey to find her destiny and maybe bring her family back from the dead.

Part outdoor survival adventure, part fantastical quest, Shawn K. Stout's "The Impossible Destiny of Cutie Grackle" is a book that's hard to put down. I loved so many things about this story. Stout's writing is vivid, suspenseful, and heart-wrenching. Each character is unique with a distinct voice. The weaving between past and present never feels out of place or forced. But, what I loved most is Cutie's tenacity to move forward despite the many obstacles in her path.

I'm going to be real, there were some parts in this book that were tear-jerking. Cutie's life is difficult. Her constant battle with hunger is heart-breaking. But what's great about Cutie is that she doesn't lose heart--she's a survivor. Cutie teaches us that no matter what we face, there is light in the darkness.

"The Impossible Destiny of Cutie Grackle" is for middle grade readers. It's fun, suspenseful, and will make your heart soar.

couldn't help but cheer for Cutie in the midst of hardships, hope, and a race to change history, so much packed into this magical mountain mystery

The ARC of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Impossible Destiny of Cutie Grackle gets it right. The fantasy elements wove seamlessly through the story without extreme world building or intentional suspension of disbelief. The author touches on serious topics, but not in a way that would be too dark for young readers. The symbolism of the ravens and their shiny trinkets was a delight. Kudos to the author.

I was initially drawn by the beautiful cover of this book.
Whenever I pick up a book based solely on the cover I start the read with low expectations, because having a story that’s equally as beautiful is just too good to be true but, to my surprise this middle grade story absolutely exceeded all my expectations.

The characters, storytelling, setting and plot were all very engaging and left me wanting more.

We follow Cutie Grackle (as you already know), who is living with her uncle on a mountain. When a series of events lead her on adventure to find the answers behind her mysterious mother.

I enjoyed this from cover to cover. I would highly recommend this book if you love middle grade stories with a mystery and adventure.

Posting this review and preordering this book asap!
Thank you netgalley

Well you've probably not read anything quite like this before. Yes, you'll have read about a girl with a destiny that's secret from her, and possibly one to focus on her lifting a curse from her family, but not exactly presented in this fashion. Not one starting with a lift to the local food bank, for Cutie has no other way of looking after her and the peculiar, away-with-the-fairies uncle she lives with. The lift comes courtesy of Toot, herself a slightly wacky woman, who is leaving Cutie behind while she's off to tend to her dying mother. But Cutie isn't really alone – she's clearly been joined by five ravens, one of them one-eyed and with a habit of giving her tiny, useless gewgaws – gewgaws that somehow let Cutie into a dream world of the past, where she can finally start to see what happened to her predecessors, and what the curse might entail...

Toot then is a minor player in this drama, but indicative of the merits to be had here. She certainly has a distinctive way of speaking, and this West Virginia rurality, where you can't exactly be convinced it's the 2020s, certainly feels well-wrought to an outsider like me. Talking of, there is definitely another merit in this being about outsiders – Cutie and her uncle in a shack together, teetering as it is over a mahoosive drop down the mountainside definitely makes a loner of her, and this is as much about current social issues of isolation and poverty as much as it is about oddball rural fantasy. And talking of, this may appear at times to be too bonkers for its own good, what with ravens on a mission, Mr Pitts and then someone else's hunt for indigenous relics, but it all holds itself together finely. I will stick my neck out and say not all of the target audience will take to it, but the great majority should, and for me it's as close to five stars as makes no difference. It really is the distinctive achievement.

This is the first middle grade that touched on a hungry child as a significant portion of the book. It starts off early on in the story with Toot taking Cutie to get food for herself and Horace. This and other things that happened in the book made me appreciate how the author could tackle real world problems, keeping the book grounded while also giving a nice mix of fantasy. I’d categorize this story as magical realism.

"Don't lose your heart."
Told in the 1st person with great characters, The Impossible Destiny of Cutie Grackle is a fabulous whimsical, fantasy middle-grade novel of acceptance in a journey to find truth, trust, and courage.
Cutie is left alone with her uncle Horace who also needs help. She worries about their next meal, what will it be, when will it be. Although everyone in town seems to know about the curse, no one knows how to break it. At first, Cutie isn't quite sure if she should believe in curses, but having ravens stalking her all the time makes it hard not to. She wants to bring her family back, by breaking the curse. Cutie finds help in extraordinary character and she must hurry, for the clock ticking and she gets only one chance before midnight.

Great writing style. It's easy to find the perfect quote to discuss or remember. The author's word choice gives it a whimsical but classical vibe. One of my favorite quotes is: "It was an idea so big I couldn't see its edges, and nothing was impossible to fit inside."
I love how the author weaves the flashbacks and stories into the narrative. The novel has a lot of pop culture and culture mentions with educational value. They add knowledge and facts that can be explored in a classroom environment or by educators at home.

Thank you Netgalley, author Shawn K. Stout and the Peachtree for the chance to read this ARC.

I highly recommend this one! The author has a beautiful, lyrical style of writing that grabbed me from the first page and entranced me into reading it in one sitting. I think young readers will find it equally engaging, and get a lot out of the story’s themes.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

Thank you, Peachtree, for the advance reading copy.

I see myself including this book for anything related to middle grade book recommendations that I am ever going to come up with.

It's awesome! Starting from the cover to the plot and the characters (don't just assume it's all about human characters!), I just couldn't stop thinking about this book after I absorb it all in one sitting.

I find the storytelling so beautifully done with a very accessible and engaging writing with the most unexpected characters turning up with bits of information that plays a very crucial role for the plot.

This is a story about Cutie Grackle who lives with her uncle on a mountain. My heart broke many a time when she talks about hunger and fear. No child should live like this. But she's strong and full of hope. Now comes the interesting part of a flock of ravens coming to her rescue. They will provide her clues about the family's past which involves the story of her long-lost mother.

You will thoroughly enjoy reading this story like I did. It's adventurous, mysterious and quite a wholesome middle grade read I would say!

The ending is so good. Totally recommending this book.