Review by Booklist Review
McGuire's author's note tells us that seven-year-old Antsy runs, which is a necessary warning for the grim beginning of her story. One day, Antsy loses a series of terribly important things, starting with her father. When her mother brings home a new beau, Antsy doesn't like him. She tells herself it's just because she doesn't want him replacing her father. When the beau finally reveals what he's been angling for, Antsy runs. She leaves home looking for a phone to call the one adult who might believe her. Instead, she finds a place that looks like a thrift store, with "be sure" written over the door. Inside, the first being she meets is a magpie. There are doors leading to other worlds in the shop, and for some time Antsy lives in the store, visiting markets in other worlds, reasonably content. Portals don't come for free, though, and there is a price to be paid for the safety the shop has offered her. Antsy is a pleasing addition to the lore of Wayward Children (after Where the Drowned Girls Go, 2022), promising plenty of intrigue to come.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Hugo Award winner McGuire manages to make some extreme tonal shifts work together beautifully in her bittersweet eighth Wayward Children novella (after Where the Drowned Girls Go). By the age of seven, Antoinette "Antsy" Ricci has lost many important things, among them her father, who had a heart attack in front of her; her trust in grown-ups, which is destroyed by her mother consistently believing her creepy new husband, Tyler, over Antsy; and her ability to feel safe in her own home, as Tyler watches her constantly. When Tyler makes his pedophilic intentions clear, Antsy runs away. The squirmy dread of this domestic opening gives way to whimsical adventure once Antsy stumbles upon the Shop Where the Lost Things Go, a mystical nexus between worlds. She's greeted by talking magpie Hudson and Vineta, an elderly woman, who show her the ropes of her strange new home and use Antsy to open doors to other worlds. This setup allows McGuire to have a lot of fun in myriad alternate realities (including some Easter eggs for series fans). But so much world-hopping exacts a toll on Antsy as the high stakes of the opening--the threat of innocence lost--come back in an unexpected way. Antsy's emotional coming-of-age will have readers hooked. (Jan.)
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Review by Library Journal Review
Antoinette Ricci lost her father, then eventually knew she had to get lost herself before something awful happened to her. Now unsure of almost everything, Antsy has landed in the Shop Where the Lost Things Go and finds that every door she opens leads to a place worlds away from home. As she explores new places with her new friends, she learns who she is meant to be. She also discovers the shop's origins and sees that even if she finally finds herself, the shop may not open the door to lead her back home. McGuire's powerful writing shines here as do the courageous protagonist and intricate setting descriptions. Cameos of previous worlds and characters are sprinkled in the storytelling, serving to strengthen the ties between all of the series titles and characters' backstories. McGuire serves readers a trigger warning at the beginning (and promise of escape) due to early situations of grooming and child abuse. VERDICT The eighth book (after Where the Drowned Girls Go) of McGuire's "Wayward Children" series is a haunting adventure about the loss of childhood innocence and ultimately, about finding strength and belonging.--Kristi Chadwick
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