School Library Journal Review
Gr 3-6-A charming story of magical realism. Margaret lives in an orphanage run by cruel, imperious Miss Switch. When the other orphans are barred from speaking to her, she finds escape with a group of moths whose voices only she can hear. Both Miss Switch's excessive abuses against the children (forbidding a boy from sleeping, making a girl stand on a building ledge) and Margaret's use of magic (the moths) to retaliate evoke the events in Roald Dahl's Matilda (Viking, 1988). Well-sketched characters and short chapters that often end on ambiguous notes will engage readers. While period and setting are left vague, the narrator's elegant asides and wry commentary imbue the novel with an old-fashioned air reminiscent of Lemony Snicket's "A Series of Unfortunate Events" (HarperCollins). Though the moths are positively filled to the brim with quirky traits (Rimblewisp and Pipperflit play games like Billabump and feast upon dreams that they call Nimblers), their scenes tend to drag, especially compared with the action at the orphanage. The power of physical beauty is a strong motif throughout; for example, the beautiful but evil Miss Switch divides the residents into two groups-the pretty, favored Pets and the unattractive Dregs, who are given the lion's share of the work. However, this theme is instilled with enough nuance to escape cliche. The Trogens breathe new life into the old trope of the plucky orphan in dire straits.-Mahnaz Dar, formerly at Convent of the Sacred Heart, New York City (c) Copyright 2012. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Horn Book Review
After the deaths of her parents and, one by one, her two unsuitable distant-relative guardians, ten-year-old Margaret finds herself in the care of The Concerned Ladies' Club: "Finding a Home for the Pitiful Foundling, for over Thirty-Seven Years." The ladies (who aren't really concerned so much as competitive with the next town over's philanthropic efforts) deposit Margaret at the utopian-seeming Hopeton Orphanage. Initially thrilled to have a home, Margaret quickly learns that the place and its proprietress are not as they appear. "Every story has a villain," warns the direct-address narrator, "and...the villain of this story is Miss Switch." Miss Switch is a baddie straight out of Dahl. She loves power, adores herself, and despises children, all the while hoodwinking adults into thinking she's the picture of altruism. She makes a mistake, though, by forbidding Margaret from speaking. This allows the girl to really listen -- and realize she can communicate with moths living on the orphanage grounds. With the moths' help, Margaret incites her downtrodden orphan compatriots to rise up against Miss Switch, leading to a climax that is both satisfying and humorous. Lightness of narrative tone affords the story's thought-provoking, dark, and poignant moments their place without slowing momentum. elissa gershowitz (c) Copyright 2012. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
(Fantasy. 8-12)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Ten-year-old Margaret has already had a tough life orphaned, neglected, and then raised by elderly relatives with strange habits when her great-aunt dies, and she is taken to the Hopeton Orphanage. Anything but hopeful, the orphanage, under the iron rule of Miss Switch, serves mush for breakfast and dinner, and Margaret endures daily backbreaking housecleaning and bullying by older children, until eventually she is condemned to silence. Ironically, the silence helps her learn to listen, and she soon discovers that she can hear the moths in the backyard talking as they frolic at night. Could the moths help Margaret to restore hope at the orphanage? While this novel isn't as dark as Lemony Snicket's Series of Unfortunate Events series, readers will recognize similar plot elements. The Trogen sisters create in Margaret an unlikely hero, and readers will cheer her on as she realizes what truly makes a home.--Moore, Melissa Copyright 2010 Booklist
