IVY AND FOREST REWRITE THE WORLD

A boy everyone calls “Forest the Failure” seeks someone who can give him a better future.

Though just 13, Forest Fogwren has been a target for the townsfolk’s mockery ever since a stubbed toe resulted in misdirected magic, the death of his friend Hargren, and the failure of his quest to save the kingdom of Lumin from the invading Ombrous wizards. Following instructions from his mentor, Wyldemar the Wise, Forest enters a magic portal in search of the Author, a mysterious person who can rewrite Lumin’s history. Once he’s through the portal and in Blisstopia, Forest is dazzled by the friendly animals, everpink trees, and happy residents. He finds the Author lying in a hammock at the palace: She’s Princess Ivy, a girl about his age with lavender hair and periwinkle eyes (though she can change her hair and eye colors). After some initial confusion, Ivy realizes that Forest is the hero from her story, The Lanterns of Lumin, come to life. By traveling through story portals, Ivy and Forest encounter First Draft Forest, Wyldemar the Wicked, and a still-living Hargren—along with frightful shadow creatures. Footnotes add wry humor to this story-within-a-story, whose layers go deep but adhere to an internal logic. Ivy, who’s savvy about genres and tropes, isn’t as carefree as she at first appears, and Forest grows to embrace a new definition of hero. Bricking’s sweetly magical illustrations enliven the chapter headings. Main characters appear white.

A thought-provoking adventure that explores selfhood and reality.