The Key to Extraordinary

by Natalie Lloyd Narrated by Kate Simses

Overview

The highly anticipated new standalone novel from rising star Natalie Lloyd!



There's a lot Emma wants to tell her mother about: her job leading cemetery walking tours, her new drum set, and the fact that the town's most famous ghost, the Morning Glory, seems to be trying to send Emma a message. But Emma can't share any of this, because Emma's mom is dead. Luckily there's a loophole.



The women in Emma's family all have a special destiny that comes to them in the form of a dream, and when they finally achieve this destiny, they're rewarded with a vision of all their extraordinary ancestors. Emma has spent her whole life waiting to discover her destiny and maybe see her mom again, even if just for a moment. But the dream never comes....



Just when she's about to give up, she learns that the Morning Glory is sending her messages, hints about a secret in Emma's family that could change everything. But can she solve the mystery in time to prove her destiny...and say a final farewell to the mother who was taken from her too soon?

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Praise for A Snicker of Magic "This tale offers all [the] earmarks of fine storytelling, including colorful, eccentric characters, an original, highly likable narrator and a mighty spindiddly plot." — Kirkus Reviews, starred review "From every angle, Lloyd's first novel sparkles and radiates warmth . . . Working in the folksy vein of Ingrid Law's Savvy, Lloyd offers a reassuring, homespun story about self-expression and the magic that resides in one's mind and heart." — Publishers Weekly, starred review "A delightful and inspiring debut . . . Mibs Beaumont and her magically gifted clan from Ingrid Law's Savvy would feel right at home here. As Felicity loves to say, Yes...yes...yes! — School Library Journal, starred review

School Library Journal - Audio

★ 06/01/2016
Gr 3–6—Emma Casey, her brother Topher, and their Granny Blue call the Boneyard Café home. On weekends, Emma conducts tours of the haunted graveyard next door, while Topher warms visitors with his irresistible peach-lavender muffins and famous Boneyard Brew (aka hot chocolate). When their cozy haven is threatened by a greedy developer, Emma channels her late mother's promise that the women in their family are destined to be extraordinary. Since the late 1700s, the so-called Wildflowers have each had a "destiny dream" in a field of blue flowers to point the way to becoming a spy, teacher, trapeze artist, inventor, firefighter, or another exceptional path—all of which were recorded in the Book of Days. Armed with two friends—one old, the other brand-new—a flowery legacy, and a healthy dose of magic, Emma has quite the extraordinary undertaking ahead to save her family's future. VERDICT Kate Simses adds the perfect blend of sass and wonder to Lloyd's latest, making this a charming addition to any middle grade collection. ["This novel will be appreciated by younger middle grade readers who enjoy mysteries with an ample dose of magic and whimsy": SLJ 3/16 review of the Scholastic book—Terry Hong, Smithsonian BookDragon, Washington, DC

School Library Journal

03/01/2016
Gr 3–6—A young girl from a long line of special women fights to save her home. Emma, like all of the women in her family, is a Wildflower. Each woman is destined to live an extraordinary life, experiencing a Destiny Dream that reveals her unique path. Shortly after the death of her ex-rocker mom, Emma feels a deep emptiness, but she consoles herself by helping out in the Boneyard Cafe, the family business situated on the edge of a cemetery, and giving tours of the cemetery to tourists. The café has fallen on hard times, and when it looks like Granny Blue, her tough, tattooed, ex-boxer grandmother, might sell the place to a developer, Emma looks for answers within the local folklore about a hidden treasure and a ghost. When she finally has her own Destiny Dream, it seems to point to the treasure, but the clues are frustratingly vague. With the help of a small cast of quirky characters and magical flora, Emma finds her true destiny and eases her troubles through the journey. The prose is bubbly and light, with a cheerful, optimistic tone despite some of the seemingly darker elements. Though not as multilayered as Ingrid Law's Savvy (Dial, 2008), this novel will be appreciated by younger middle grade readers who enjoy mysteries with an ample dose of magic and whimsy. VERDICT Fans of Lloyd's first book, A Snicker of Magic (Scholastic, 2015), will be pleased with this frothy, pleasant tale.—Kiera Parrott, School Library Journal

MARCH 2016 - AudioFile

Narrator Kate Simses’s portrayal of 12-year-old Emma is youthful, spunky, and, at times, tinged with the sadness of “the Big Empty,” a feeling that began with the recent death of Emma’s mother. Simses’s Southern accents give a sense of Black Bird Hollow and the Boneyard Café, owned by Emma’s tattooed, motorcycle-riding Granny Blue. Doing great justice to Lloyd’s colorful descriptions and flights of fancy, Simses skips through unique similes, heightens the tension of the haunted graveyard, and bursts into the songs embedded in the story. Her expression of the magical words and situations is as strong as her voicing of Emma’s confusion about the Destiny Dream that will steer her future. S.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine

Kirkus Reviews

2016-01-20
A girl awaiting her destiny must uncover lost treasure to save her home. Orphan Emma lives above the Boneyard Cafe, her family's business, right next to the cemetery. She comes from a long line of Wildflowers: the women in her family each experience a Destiny Dream, a specific dream that steers them to extraordinary lives. When it looks as though Emma's grandmother (Granny Blue, a tattooed retired boxer) will be forced to sell their home, Emma looks for answers in a graveyard legend. The Conductor, a Civil War-era ghost, is said to have left treasure in Blackbird Hollow. With the help of Cody Belle, her trusty best friend, and Earl Chance, a boy newly returned to town and traumatized into muteness after a close encounter with a tornado, and guidance from her own less-than-clear Destiny Dream, Emma uses town lore to hunt for the treasure. Despite ghosts and graves, the story avoids the macabre and instead focuses on the relationships among memory, sadness, and joy, especially as Emma's still recovering from her mother's death. The mystery's as much fun as a treasure hunt should be, and the clues are augmented by magical flowers. Blackbird Hollow is as largely white as might be expected of an Appalachian holler, but the story avoids twee with such details as Granny Blue's Harley and Emma's fondness for rock-'n'-roll. A bouquet of quirks, whimsy, sweetness, and magic. (Fantasy. 8-12)

Product Details

BN ID:	2940171291440
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	02/23/2016
Edition description:	Unabridged
Age Range:	8 - 11 Years

Read an Excerpt

From The Key to Extraordinary

It is a known fact that the most extraordinary moments in a girl’s life come disguised as ordinary days.

It is a known fact for me, at least.

Because that morning started out mostly the same as all mornings before: I woke up to an ache in my chest, the smell of chocolate, and the sound of the ghost making a racket in the kitchen.

Now, I’m not the sort to dwell on doom and sorrow. Life is too short for that. But I should at least try to describe the ache briefly:

It is not the kind that comes from eating tacos too late at night.

It’s the kind that comes from being left behind. I think my heart is smart enough to know there’s a place I should be filling with new memories, new jokes, and wondrous adventures with the one person I loved most of all. But that person is gone now. And so, my heart has a giant hole. I call it The Big Empty.

I squeezed my eyes shut tight and reminded myself of these affirmations

: Tonight I could have my Destiny Dream.

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