Hearth and Pages: The Painting by Charis Cotter

“It was a painting, set in a heavy wooden frame carved into thick swirls. A grassy foreground, a road leading through rocky hills to a lighthouse, and a vast ocean beyond. Something about it seemed familiar.”

I received a free digital copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Annie loves painting, her mother wants her to read more books and do better in school. It’s suffice to say that Annie and her mother don’t really see eye to eye. One day Annie finds an old painting of a lighthouse in the attic. She’s instantly drawn to it so she takes it to her room. Her mother on the other hand, wish that painting never leave the attic. Not long after that, Annie’s mother slips into a coma after a car crash accident. Since then strange things begin to happen to Annie. One night, she got sucked into the old painting she found in the attic. Inside that painting she meet a girl who lives in the lighthouse named Claire. Claire relationship with her mother, Maisie, is fraught, just like Annie and her mom. Annie then try to help them mending their relationship while also hoping that somehow it could also help her relationship with her mom and revives her mother from coma, and bring an answer as to why she could travel into the painting and why she is destined to meet Claire.

Though I might be about ten years older than the target audience, I really enjoy The Painting, it’s been a while since I immerse myself in a good children mystery book. Though the story is clearly different, this book reminds me of When Marnie Was There, not the book–I haven’t get myself to read that, though it’s been in my TBR for God knows how long–but the animated movie by Studio Ghibli. This book also peppered with quotes from Alice Through the Looking Glass and What She Saw There, and I love it. All the quotes that cotter pick from that book, is a great match to her story and give an otherworldly nuance.

The Painting offers young readers a deep mystery and suspenseful story with a touch of warming charms. This book also tells a story about mother-daughter bonds, childhood trauma, and also a humane story about guilt, loss, and how we as human deals with our misunderstandings and mistakes. Some parts of this book are really overwhelming and buried me with all the feels and tears, but that’s actually what makes me love this book. Most of them happened because I was emotionally drawn by the characters. And due to what the characters’ experienced in this book, there are lot of good lessons and messages in this book. Everyone in this book has their flaws, and as a reader I can understand the perspective of each character. I am really grateful of that, because it creates great messages to young reader and even parent who read this book. This book could also be used to initiate a talk and discussion about trauma and how we can heal it.

Over all, I love this book. Through “other-world” traveling and ghosts and mystery, Charis Cotter use The Painting as a media to give us a lesson about mother-daughter bonds and how to deal with our trauma, mistakes, and misunderstanding. I highly recommend this suspenseful yet warm and charming book to any young avid readers and their parents. I think this book could be enjoyed and adored by every age.

The Painting by Charis Cotter will be released on 19^th September 2017.