Friends, here’s a true confession: I have never written a book review. Truth be told, I have seldom read a book review. However, every great once in a while a book comes along that needs to be shouted from the rooftops. A book whose quiet, extraordinary voice needs to be brought to the attention of kids and adults everywhere. On Wings of Wonder by local author Doug Cosper and illustrated by daughter Anna Cosper is that book. It is that book, friends, and so I must be that person.

On Wings of Wonder is a fantastical tale of good and evil, fear and hope, despair and triumph, adventure, Wonder (capital “W” on purpose), friendship, and love. Set in part in a place and community we all know and love, and populated by some familiar faces and names, a young boy’s mother goes missing.

It is not unusual for Case’s mother to leave for long stretches of time, but it is certainly very unusual for her not to return. Or call. Or respond to her son’s texts. Case and his father and grandfather miss her deeply. They are all worried, but Case’s grandfather, Gramps seems to know more than he is willing to say.

A mixed up maelstrom of uncomfortable emotions boils inside of Case until one day he looks out the window to find an extraordinary adventure waiting for him in his butterfly garden. He packs what he thinks he’ll need, including his mother’s maps and treasured compass, and embarks on a journey to find his missing parent. On his trans-global adventure he learns that Wonder; that most treasured, extraordinary, priceless and critically essential of human traits is rapidly receding from the world. With the help of many friends, including Mira, a survivor of the Rohingya genocide in Burma, and Toma, a Bushman boy, he will seek to find his mom, and perhaps in so doing, release again the power of Wonder in the world.

When I read this little marvel of a book, I read it with three sets of eyes: as a teacher, as a mom, and as an avid reader and bibliophile myself. None of these three separate readers was left wanting which, I think, says something powerful about a story.

As I teacher I am grateful for the geography lesson on nearly every page, as well as the way the author doesn’t shy away from difficult topics: fear, anger, despair, genocide, humanity’s unfailing ability to be awful to one another. He presents all of these concepts, but he doesn’t leave the reader sitting there in that yucky place.

There is space for discussion, for learning, and for growth. The characters, with the speed afforded by fiction, sit and feel and learn, but never lose hope. There is always optimism. There is always a possibility. As a result, in the classroom, there is much to discuss and study. The book offers lessons on resilience, as well as politics, place and time.

Also, as a teacher, I relish his rich vocabulary. Who doesn’t want to include tasty words like “lepidopterist” in a vocabulary lesson?! (Go look it up! Also, the website “onwingsofwonder.com” has a fabulous “In case you wondered” section with the answers to all kinds of book-inspired wonderings, and there is a curriculum in development!). I also know that teachers have to work within the curriculum we are given. On Wings of Wonder would make an amazing independent study project, or cross-curricular learning experience for accelerated learners.

As a mom I appreciate the deep diversity of the book. It spans continents and, as it should be, is full to the brim with characters from those places that feel authentic and not staged. I am a world traveler, and it always makes me crazy to read characters from other places that feel two-dimensional, or like a trope. The characters (not always people!) in this novel do not feel fake, or like white North American kids dressed up as children of the world. Having a female heroine is also important to me. As a mom of two sons, it is critical for them to see badass women and girls doing badass things.

And for myself? Well, my teacher-self and my mom-self inform my reader-self, so I enjoyed all of the teacher and mom things. I also enjoyed the wide scope of the story coupled with the familiar taste of our mountain home. The book returned me to faraway places that I miss, and inspired me to visit others that I hadn’t yet considered.

On Wings of Wonder also reminded me of the strength and resilience especially of children, but also of hope, Wonder, and love. It calls me to create a space for my sons to Wonder, and reminds me to Wonder with them and not be a stodgy grownup with a brain too full of “life” to feel and feed my own flame of curiosity.

Anna Cosper’s art perfectly accompanies the narrative with their simplicity and life. One might think that black and white illustrations would lack the depth to tell such a rich story, but they are part of the essential spice that bound me as a reader to the book in hand. I often found myself skipping ahead to find her hidden gems sprinkled throughout the text. Ms. Cosper’s art breathes Wonder in every line and enriches the text with every appearance.

So, there you go! A book review! I have heard that in Scandinavia there is a lovely tradition where people give each other books and chocolate on the evening of Christmas Eve. After opening they snuggle in with a cozy beverage, and spend the rest of the night eating chocolate and reading books. If I had not already read it, and given it to everyone I know, I would sure spend my Christmas Eve with On Wings of Wonder.

I hope you will consider adding On Wings of Wonder to your Christmas list this year. I’m also hoping that you will forgive my ineptitude as a neophyte book reviewer, and let the book speak for itself. This is a book worth sharing with folks.

On Wings of Wonder is available right in town at Nature’s Own and the Carousel of Happiness! You can also find it on Amazon and at many bookstores “down the hill.” And, to ensure that all readers can own their own piece of doing good in the world, $1 from the purchase price of each book will be donated to nonprofit organizations supporting the Rohingya refugee and Bushmen communities.

Happy reading!