Review: “Magonia” Redefines Young Adult Sick-Lit
Madeline Chambers // Blog Writer
Magonia by Maria Dahvana Headley
HarperCollins // April 28, 2015
320 Pages
Barnes & Noble // HarperCollins
[This review contains spoilers.]
Magonia begins by introducing Aza Ray and her unique disease that is so rare it is literally called “Azaray Syndrome.” Doctors have been giving estimates of Aza’s life expectancy for all of her life, and the most recent age they named was sixteen. This age is fast approaching, and Aza’s deteriorating condition worries Aza, her family, and her very special best friend Jason. However, it soon becomes clear that Magonia is not another of the many books focused on a character and their illness.
Through a myriad of strange events that involve voices, birds and hallucinations, Ava’s sickness and life quickly become far more interesting. Most remarkably, Aza sees a flying ship that she feels an unnatural attraction to. She also hears voices that encourage her to seek out and join the ship, which only makes her hallucination seem stranger. Almost everybody chalks these events up to the different medicines she’s taking. The only one who puts any real stock in the situation is her best friend Jason, who began extensively researching past stories of the same hallucinations. He finds that throughout history, sightings of flying ships have been common, along with missing crops. There are even stories about a mythical floating city called Magonia. Soon after these hallucinations start, Aza dies, devastating Jason and her family. However, death has more in store for Aza than she could have imagined. Instead of truly dying, she was brought to the mythical flying ship and turned into her true form – part human, part bird. She is introduced to the ships crew, and quickly learns that the captain is her real mother. Aza is thrown into a new world that is on the brink of change, where she has to make difficult decisions, move on from the past (and from Jason), while remembering the person her earth family raised her to be.
During all of this, Aza’s best friend and family are mourning her loss and planning her funeral. When at the funeral, Jason hears Aza yell out to him from the sky. He immediately puts together this strange event with his previous research on Magonia and throws himself even farther into researching sightings. He becomes convinced that his best friend is still alive and is willing to do anything to find and help her.
This book explores loss and the adaptability of human nature. It also serves as a story that reminds everyone the importance of thinking for themselves and making their own decisions based on their ideas of morality and rightness. It also illustrates the importance of discovering your own voice, and finding what you will use that voice to say. These themes are investigated while Headly illustrates the importance of staying loyal to the ones we love through her portrayal of Jason and Aza’s bond and their ability to always keep each other sane and motivated.
Magonia fast paced with a writing style that is easy and enjoyable to read. Headly also manages to create a voice that stays faithful to Ava’s age without undermining her individuality or intelligence. Despite this, the ending of this story was predictable, and Ava often ignored explanations and warnings in a way that was occasionally unbelievable. Despite this, story and world is original enough to keep you entertained throughout the entire book.