Dreaming of Flight by Catherine Ryan Hyde
Publisher: Lake Union Publishing
Genre: Contemporary, Young Adult (8 – older)
Rating: 5 stars
Reviewed by Ginger

Never knowing his parents, eleven-year-old Stewie Little and his brother have been raised on a farm by their older sister. Stewie steadfastly tends the chickens left by his beloved late grandmother. And every day Stewie goes door to door selling fresh eggs from his wagon—a routine with a surprise just around the corner. It’s his new customer, Marilyn. She’s prickly and guarded, yet comfortably familiar—she reminds the grieving Stewie so much of the grandmother he misses more than he can express.

Marilyn has a reason for keeping her distance: a secret no one knows about. Her survival tactic is to draw a line between herself and other people—one that Stewie is determined to cross. As their visits become more frequent, a complicated but deeply rooted relationship grows. That’s when Stewie discovers how much more there is to Marilyn, to her past, and to challenges that become more pressing each day. But whatever difficult times lie ahead, Stewie learns that although he can’t fix everything for Marilyn or himself, at least he’s no longer alone.

I don’t know where to start on my review about this book. I enjoyed it tremendously! The writing style, the characters, the realness of the story and the teachable moments – all of it. I enjoyed it all.

This conversation between Stewie and Marilyn’s daughter, Betty will stay with me.: “You’re just upset because she doesn’t say the same things she would have said before. Instead of being so sure about exactly how you want her to be, why can’t you just be glad because she’s there?”

In a world where I’ve found myself drawn to watching more television shows and movies than I read, this book made me want to read. I enjoyed the time spent following the story of eleven-year-old Stewie Little. A young boy who has lost several loved ones at a very early age. He lives with his older sister, Stacey and brother Theo.

Stewie continues to take care of his deceased grandmother’s chicken. One day on his egg delivery route he meets a new customer, Marilyn. Marilyn seems to be a tough character to deal with, but Stewie took a liking to her, as her spry ways and mannerism reminds him of his grandmother.

This starts the beginning of a relationship that Marilyn didn’t want to happen. Neither did Stacey, Stewie’s older sister. Stacey’s concern for Stewie is touching to read. She recognized the many losses that Stewie has faced but she didn’t know what to do. Though their family was small I felt the closeness that the three must have needed to cope. At times it seemed they walked on eggshells for Stewie, but I like that Stewie is a strong and courageous young boy. I liked that if he didn’t understand something he spoke up. This was humorous in how he stated he didn’t know what words or phrases meant. Marilyn always took the time to explain it to him. Marilyn came into Stewie’s life at a time when Stewie really needed her. And Stewie in turn was there for Marilyn. I enjoyed and took to heart the words of wisdom from Marilyn to Stewie, in fact I’ve highlighted them on my Kindle; they are just that impacting. Towards the end of the book Stewie starts to give Marilyn and others, words of wisdom. (Hence the quote at the start of this review)

The relationship between the two is beautiful and heartwarming. I found joy that Stewie had someone he could be close to, that didn’t take advantage of him and also able to sense what he needed. Marilyn uplifted him up, educated him and filled a void that Stewie had. Stewie didn’t have biological parents or grandparents, but he had a village. Dr. Briggs helped Stewie through his complicated emotions by giving him thought provoking questions. It was a little concerning that Stewie didn’t have friends his age, but I could see that Stewie was mature for his age and didn’t seem to fit in with others of his age.

The ending felt true to life, but also hurt. The author touched on a lot in this book. Loss, and grief, from both Stewie’s view and also Marilyn’s view. Overcoming what life throws at you and having someone or people to help you along the way. That family or people that love you aren’t always blood related. That we should pay attention to those we love in case they do need help. Getting help is okay. Doing something good for someone else also helps you in return. It also gives some insight of those that are of age who feel like they have lost their freedom, their choice, and maybe even their personal rights once they’ve been moved into an assisted living facility.

I can go on and on about how much I enjoyed this book. So instead of reading my review I suggest you go ahead and get a copy of the book and enjoy it for yourself.