The Apothecary by Maile Meloy
Review by Chris Singer
About the author:
Maile Meloy (www.mailemeloy.com) is the award-winning author of the short story collection Half in Love and the novels Both Ways Is the Only Way I Want It, Liars and Saints, and A Family Daughter. This is her first novel for young readers. She lives in California.
About the book:
It's 1952 and the Scott family has just moved from Los Angeles to London. Here, fourteen-year-old Janie meets a mysterious apothecary and his son, Benjamin Burrows - a fascinating boy who's not afraid to stand up to authority and dreams of becoming a spy. When Benjamin's father is kidnapped, Janie and Benjamin must uncover the secrets of the apothecary's sacred book, the Pharmacopoeia, in order to find him, all while keeping it out of the hands of their enemies - Russian spies in possession of nuclear weapons. Discovering and testing potions they never believed could exist, Janie and Benjamin embark on a dangerous race to save the apothecary and prevent impending disaster.
Watch the book trailer:
My take on the book:
I received "The Apothecary" in the mail a while ago. It came in this fancy package with this little antique-looking jar filled with glitter or something. It actually was kind of a turn-off to be honest. I wasn't crazy about the title even, and admittedly I didn't read the synopsis on the back cover either.
I had forgotten about it until about a month ago when I came across the book trailer. The trailer was very cool (watch it below) and I decided I had to give the book a chance.
I wasn't disappointed at all. It was a very unique story and I really enjoyed the historical aspects of the Red Scare and the Cold War combined with the elements of magic and fantasy. While the magic, fantasy, mystery and intrigue of the plot will be what draws teen readers to this book, I loved the historical and political aspects included in the novel.
The novel is a quick read. I breezed through it over a weekend. This is Meloy's first crack at writing for teens and I was impressed with her effort. There was great balance in the story. Even while there was an underlying tension in the story where the main characters were struggling to save the apothecary and solve the mystery, there were also light moments of humor thrown in to keep readers wanting more.
I enjoyed the main characters (Benjamin and Janie), but Pipp steals the show. I won't give things away, but if this was a movie, he'd be the character everyone would be talking about.
If I had to make one small constructive criticism, I felt Meloy struggled with how she wanted to end the book. While the rest of the story was really paced quite well, I think some readers might labor a bit near the end. The ending seems to be set up for a second book, but it's not as clearcut and smooth as I would have liked it. This didn't change my feelings about the book and I really feel it's well worth your time.
Librarians and teachers will want to check out The Apothecary. I'm not sure I've ever read a book for teens set around the time of the Cold War where it actually was part of the story itself. The themes of the novel also make for great discussions in the classroom: the morality of war, moving away and trying to fit into a new school or even discussing what it would be like to live somewhere trying to recover from the ravages of war.
