I find Lauren DeStefano’s middle grades books hard to explain, and The Peculiar Night of the Blue Heart is no exception. To be clear, I like DeStefano a lot — I’ve found something weirdly compelling about every book of hers I’ve read. But when I sit down to talk about them, I’m never sure who her books are actually FOR.
Like The Peculiar Night of the Blue Heart. This is a middle grades book in the sense that it’s shelved with middle grades fiction, but I wouldn’t just up and hand it to any middle grades reader. Lionel and Marybeth have found a family in each other at the orphanage where they are growing up — even though they’re very different people, they recognize each other as kindred spirits. So when Marybeth is possessed by an eerie blue light that makes her act totally different, Lionel knows immediately — and he’s determined to help his friend. But to do that, they will have to figure out what the spirit controlling the blue light wants. (Spoiler: It wants them to solve a murder. I include this spoiler because that’s something I would want to know about a middle grades book, right? That’s what I mean about this book being hard to pin down.)
It is, though, a really lovely little book. Marybeth and Lionel’s friendship is the best part — you know that feeling when you’ve found a friend who completes you? This book captures that so simply and well. And the book manages to carry an eerily whimsical tone all the way through, which is no easy feat: It’s utterly enchanting, in the most wonderfully weird ways. So while I’m not recommending it without caveats, I cannot help but recommend it: If you are intrigued, chances are good you will not regret picking it up.

I didn't enjoy this one quite as much as book one, but it's still a really enjoyable series and will be a great addition to our classroom library.