The Hope of Elephants by Amanda Rawson Hill - OPTIONAL

 The Hope of Elephants by Amanda Rawson Hill, 475 pages. Charlesbridge, 2022. $18

Language: G (1 swear, 0 ‘f’); Mature Content: G; Violence: G

BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - OPTIONAL

AUDIENCE APPEAL: LOW

12 yo Cass’s dad has had cancer almost every other year throughout Cass’s life. On her 12th birthday she finds out that not only does her dad have cancer again, but he has Li-Fraumeni syndrome which means he will continue to get cancer throughout his life. After reading a pamphlet the doctor gives her, Cass learns that she has a 50/50 chance of inheriting the mutation. She also learns that not only do elephants have the p53 gene that can help fight cancer, but 20 of them. With that knowledge she goes to the zoo and finds an emotional connection to the elephant there while wondering how the elephant could potentially help her and her dad. Cass struggles to figure out if she should get tested to see if she also has the syndrome. Cass wants to live a life with hope for the future, but often has a hard time throughout the book living in the moment and remaining optimistic.

Hill does a good job at showing the perspective of a white, Christian, 12 year old girl who has a family member experiencing cancer. The Hope of Elephants is written is a novel in verse, which makes it a fast read. Hill, however, never really digs deep into various plot areas - like Cass’ struggle with getting tested or the hope the elephants bring to Cass. Hill does well in showing that there can be various support for people and their family members going through cancer. Since Hill showed so many though, it feels like she never was able to deepen Cass’ connection with any certain group, making some relationships not fully developed.

Jaime Tuttle, Librarian