4.5 stars

Why you may not like this book: It's weird! It is also a slow book that definitely has a built in sense of urgency, but is in no rush to reveal it's mysteries. It jumps between times. The writing can also be very science-heavy at points, though I'm not vouching for the accuracy of the science. If you are the kind of reader that finds themselves skipping over details to get to the meat of the plot, this is probably not the book for you. Also, if you are someone who struggles with bright children as characters, we follow Neda as a super smart 11-year-old in the pieces of the past story.

Why I loved this book: It's so weird! I loved the wonder of the story, something Swyler creates with her young, wide-eyed protagonist, with her space setting and with that science-filled writing that still felt like magic. I think my favorite part of the story is the way that Swyler takes big ideas and grounds them in experiences of loneliness and grief and feeling lonely in your grief, even when surrounded by other people. She takes a good look at a complicated family, existing around each other until a big event makes them really consider their relationships. My feelings for Nada's mother did such an about face. By the end, most of the knot in my throat was for her, the baker, the chemist, the mother, and the damn hero of this story.

This is a book that will stay with me. The story, the construction, the melting of historical fiction and sci-fi-- I'll be thinking about it for a while.