Synopsis: Dry, sarcastic, sixteen-year-old Cam Cooper has spent the last seven years in and out hospitals. The last thing she wants to do in the short life she has left is move 1,500 miles away to Promise, Maine - a place known for the miraculous events that occur there. But it's undeniable that strange things happen in Promise: everlasting sunsets; purple dandelions; flamingoes in the frigid Atlantic; an elusive boy named Asher; and finally, a mysterious envelope containing a list of things for Cam to do before she dies. As Cam checks each item off the list, she finally learns to believe - in love, in herself, and even in miracles. (Goodreads.com)
Let me just put it out there, I do believe in miracles. I am a rather optimistic and hopeful person in general. I was definitely bordering more on the Perry (Cam's sister) side of believing in unicorns than not believing in them. That being said, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and it may just turn out to be one of my favorites of 2011.
Cam is sad, she is angry but I think more than anything, she is resigned. She knows her body's battle with cancer isn't getting better and when she receives those horrible words directly from her doctor, well, what more is there to do except pack it all up and head to Promise, Maine, where she can be healed by the miraculous town? It's not Cam's idea, but rather her mother's idea. No one is giving up on Cam yet, except Cam herself.
There is quite a bit of dry humor in this book as Cam uses humor to distance herself from her family, from making new friends in Promise, and from the fact that this may be the end for her. I think I'm making Cam to be this truly depressed person but she isn't. She is in fact filled with life and though she doesn't acknowledge it, she has some hope left in her.
There was a somewhat otherworldly, unreal quality about this story that really worked in its favor. The many coincidences, the many miracles Perry records in her notebook, all of it could have ended up on the too cutesy side. Cam's Flamingo List? Saving a puppy that was the runt of the litter? Having her pet bird show up in Maine after it flew away way back at her Nana's house? It could have been unbelievable but Wendy Wunder writes so that I believe in these things. I believe in what is happening to Cam one hundred percent. I don't have the words to truly describe what I liked about Wunder's writing but for me as reader, it just worked. There is a nice balance of humor, honesty, the improbable, and the all too hard-hitting reality of what Cam is going through.
I love the cliches that were explored in this book too. Asher, the town football hero, having a seedy affair with a thirty-year old. It just reminded me of Pacey in Dawson's Creek so points to Ms. Wunder again for playing into my TV show nostalgia. Even the somewhat out there characters of promise, the Catalog kids, all very Gilmore Girls or Dawson's Creek. And it worked! Cam knew these teens were somewhat of a joke, at least initially. She stereotyped them as surely as the Make a Wish Foundation stereotypes what kind of wishes they grant. But these were real teens and she fortunately had the strength to get to know them on a more personal level.
I also enjoyed the exploration of Cam's Samoan background and heritage. At first, I thought it was kind of shoved into the story rather awkwardly. But as the story progresses, the flow of how she lets herself explore dance and her heritage worked in the story's favor. The celebration of life through dance was beautiful and Wunder does some great things with language as she describes how Cam moves, particularly in a wonderful scene where she discovers Asher's background.
I cried several places in this story. I cried for Cam as she struggled with her disease. I cried with her as she imagined a future where she isn't part of her family anymore. But it's surprisingly not a depressing book. If anything, this is a book about celebrating life, the little miracles to the big miracles to the most fun moments of just being a teenager. This debut from Wendy Wunder is rather magical.
The Probability of Miracles comes out on December 8, 2011 from Razorbill. This is one book I can't wait to own the finished copy. I love the cover (I really like pink!) and it fits with the story very well I think.
Other reviews:
The Flashlight Reader reviews The Probability of Miracles
