Review: The Key to Extraordinary by Natalie Lloyd

Author: Natalie Lloyd
Genre: Fantasy, Mystery, Middle Grade
Series: None

Synopsis: “Everyone in Emma’s family is special. Her ancestors include Revolutionary War spies, brilliant scientists, and famous musicians–every single one of which learned of their extraordinary destiny through a dream.

For Emma, her own dream can’t come soon enough. Right before her mother died, Emma promised that she’d do whatever it took to fulfill her destiny, and she doesn’t want to let her mother down.

But when Emma’s dream finally arrives, it points her toward an impossible task–finding a legendary treasure hidden in her town’s cemetery. If Emma fails, she’ll let down generations of extraordinary ancestors . . . including her own mother. But how can she find something that’s been missing for centuries and might be protected by a mysterious singing ghost?

With her signature blend of lyrical writing, quirky humor, and unforgettable characters, Natalie Lloyd’s The Key to Extraordinary cements her status as one of the most original voices writing for children today.”

I started reading this book when I was younger but didn’t get into it very much and abandoned it. So I decided to come back to it a little while ago and I stuck with it through the end. I’m very glad I did.

The story follows Emma, a young girl who comes from a family of extraordinary people. Each of them got their destiny through a dream. All of the adventures that her ancestors have taken are kept in the Book of Days, a large volume that collects and keeps the dreams of her family before her. Emma wants to be able to add to it, and she especially doesn’t want to let her mother down, whom she promised to fulfill her dream to.

I like the concept of the Destiny Dream and how the cemetery is tied into Emma’s story. It added more mystery and adventure. I feel like the dead parent aspect was slightly cliche, but it was necessary for the story and to have the graveyard be of so much importance to Emma, so I let it slide.

I loved Emma’s friends, Cody Belle and Earl Chance. I enjoyed the very slight romance with Earl, and the relationship that they formed.

Something also that I liked about Emma was that she had a facial. . . ugh, I had the word “deformity.” A facial difference, I’ll say. People like that aren’t often displayed in literature. I could really relate to Emma, because I have experience with facial differences. I don’t have as big of feelings about it as Emma does, but I understand what it’s like to feel what she does.

A unique aspect of this book was that on the first page of every chapter, the page looked as if it was a piece torn from a notebook or something, and there was a leafy design around the chapter title. Not many books do that and I think it was a nice touch.

“. . . courage and fear always come as a pair. If you’ve got one inside you, you’ve surely got the other.”
Natalie Lloyd, The Key to Extraordinary

The Key to Extraordinary is a wonderful and adventurous story. I really enjoyed it, even though it’s aimed at younger kids.

My Rating: 4/5 dragons