Small Spaces (Small Spaces Quartet)

“You might get to know characters in books, Ollie thought, but getting to know a human was an entirely different thing.”

Small Spaces is Katherine Arden’s debut middle grade novel and I loved it so very much friends. Many of you know that The Bear and the Nightingale is one of my favorite books of all-time, and even though these stories are nothing like one another, the beautiful writing, amazing characters, and important themes shine through. I went into this expecting a fun and spooky read (which it was), but what I also got was such a beautiful love letter to grief, depression, and trying to live in a world that has taken away someone who you feel you cannot live without.

In a small town in Vermont, our main character is riding her bike home from school one fall afternoon, when she notices a woman attempting to throw an old book in the water. Ollie, being the book lover that she is, feels obliged to stop and see what’s going on.

➽ Olivia Adler - But she mostly goes by Ollie. A twelve-year-old, sixth grader, who loves to read and is trying to live her life while grieving a terrible loss. And the only way she truly knows how to cope is the escapism of books. (Also, there is a brief mention of her mom having brown skin, but I am not 100% sure of Ollie’s race.)

➽ Coco Zintner - The tiniest child in Ollie’s class. She has a somewhat famous mother and has recently moved to the school. But her innocence and eccentricities constantly make her a target for bullying.

➽ Brian Battersby - Jamaican and your typical middle school jock, who Ollie has known her entire life. And Ollie learns very quickly that you should not stereotype people, because they might surprise you.

And their paths truly cross unexpectedly once Olivia begins to read the book that was almost abandoned. She learns of a farm, and a girl, and two brothers, and a missing persons case that was never solved. And now Ollie and her friends are going on a field trip to a farm that is very reminiscent of the story she has been reading about.

And yes, friends, this is a spooky book. I mean, it’s nothing too scary or too much, but Katherine Arden for sure paints an eerie atmosphere and some extremely creepy monster like characters. And I truly think this will make the perfect Halloween read this year, for so many ages, but this book was also so much more than that.

This is a book about healing and friendship and learning to let go while simultaneously never letting go. This book is about escapism through books and how books carry some of the most powerful healing magic imaginable. And this is a book about healing at your own pace and in your own time.

“Maybe, she kept thinking, when she came back from one of those other worlds, when she woke up from book dreaming, she would come back to a world where […] wasn’t dead.”

Ollie is really dealing with some very serious depression and grief throughout this book. Like how we give up things that make us happy, just because those things remind you of the person who made you happiest. How sometimes the world feels too heavy, too loud, too empty, all because it’s missing someone who was your entire world. Yet, this is also a love letter to how the ones we lose will never truly be lost; they will always remain with us. Always.

Overall, I loved this book more than words. I wasn’t expecting it to make me feel everything that it did, and when I closed the book it truly felt like a cathartic experience. I recommend this book to any and every person, but especially during the autumnal season. I read this in a single sitting, I never once wanted to put it down, and I fell so deeply in love with it.

"Wherever you go in this big, gorgeous, hideous world, there is a ghost story waiting for you."

Such is the wisdom of Katherine Arden’s eerie middle grade novel Small Spaces; she doesn’t know it, but she has written the words that will one day go on my tombstone. Perhaps I’ll add a small engraving of a scarecrow to give ghost hunters an extra fright…

But I digress. Small Spaces is the story of Ollie Adler, a sixth grade math whiz and fierce feminist who has withdrawn from her friends and dropped all school activities in the wake of her mother’s death. Her only solace is in books, so when she finds a woman trying to throw a book in the river one day, she steals the book from the woman in order to rescue it. When Ollie reads it, she finds that the book is a diary of horrific events that happened in the very place where her class will soon be taking a field trip…and that history may be about to repeat itself.

This is one of the creepiest books I’ve read this year. Don’t scoff just yet — I know I review a lot of cute board books on this site, which aren’t really all that terrifying, but I also review books for adult horror fans on my other blog, so when I say that this book scared me more than almost anything I’ve read all year, you know it’s legitimately creepy. There’s a sense of dread that seeps slowly throughout the book, and once we get to the action (hinted at by that glorious Halloween-y cover), Arden demonstrates that she understands exactly how frightening scarecrows truly are. They’re always staring at you. They seem to move as soon as you turn your back on them. I’ve been convinced for my entire life that one of these days I’d catch a scarecrow moving before I’d even had a chance to turn away, and Arden has finally confirmed my suspicions.

But enough of my nightmares! In addition to Ollie’s feminism, I appreciated Arden’s characterization of Ollie’s classmate Coco. She’s a very pretty, feminine young girl who cries quite often, but as Ollie discovers: “Coco didn’t cry because she was weak. Coco cried because she felt things.” Differentiating feeling from weakness — and differentiating femininity from weakness — is an important distinction to make, particularly in a middle grade book. The earlier you can teach kids this vital lesson, the better.

Arden deliberately breaks down racial and gender stereotypes in this book, as Ollie’s classmate Brian, who is Black and immigrated from Jamaica at a very young age, is a star hockey player, and Ollie’s dad knits and bakes. Arden does this in a positive, organic manner that supports the already well-drawn characterizations. Ollie’s dad in particular is such a nurturing figure that I can’t imagine him not having a project on the needles or something delicious in the oven. And Ollie’s mom was a bold adventurer, a strong athlete, and a fierce protector. We don’t see much of her interacting with Ollie, but what we do see is heart-wrenching. Arden’s handling of Ollie’s grief is subtle and gentle; she slowly tells us more and more about what happened to Ollie’s mother and how Ollie has dealt with (or denied) the loss.

Despite a slightly rushed ending, Small Spaces is a deliciously suspenseful tale of loss, survival, and friendship. Katherine Arden’s prose is gorgeous, filled with dreamy, lyrical asides. The story alternates between eerie and pulse-pounding; when we can’t see any monsters, dread still rolls in like fog. Whether Ollie is running from scarecrows or denying her own grief, Arden has a message for her: whatever demons you’re trying to avoid, you can’t hide forever.

Keep in mind I’m 20 yrs old, and this novel is certainly not targeted at my demographic - however, I knew that going in, so I was not let down.

This is excellent middle grade horror! I loved Goosebumps as a kid and this is right up there with those - but more sophisticated. The characters are 6th graders, but the writing is mature and well thought out. The main characters were wise beyond their years. It was a pleasure to read about them.

I loved the writing style. I just had a clear feeling about all of the scenes described. Beware! Maybe don’t read this book on an empty stomach. Graphic depictions of delicious food are involved! Lol.

This author really depicts grief and loss in an authentic way, without info dumping on the reader, or being overly morose and dramatic. I was also impressed with the clever backstory and original villain. Very spooky!

I like these middle school horror novels because they’re usually not terribly scary (to me) and I can still appreciate the creepiness and suspense. Really well done! Will consider buying the sequel when it comes out!