I Wish...

I recently read I Wish... by Wren Emerson, a fun story about a young girl coming to terms with who she really is.
Thistle Nettlebottom grew up in an RV, constantly on the road with her mother, grandmother, and family friend Shep. Being home schooled while on the road, she had no friends and dreamed of a normal life.
No one ever talked about any other family or where they were from in front of Thistle, so she was blown away to learn that her family was suddenly returning to the town where she was born in order to take care of her ailing great-grandmother, who she did not realize was alive.
Upon arriving in town, Thistle was blown away to find she had an aunt and uncle as well as two cousins living in the idyllic town of Desire. She was even more shocked to realize that she wasn't Thistle Nettlebottom at all. Her entire identity and life to this point had been a lie.
Within hours of entering Desire — her one chance for the normal life she had always hoped for — she realized that people in the town hated her just for her name. No one was going to take the time to get to know her.
I Wish... is a great story that really demonstrates the old saying “looks can be deceiving.” While Desire may look like the perfect town, Thistle quickly learns that it is not.
On top of the normal struggles of fitting in in high school, Thistle has to adjust to an unrecognizable matriarchal form of government, people who want her dead just because of her place in the family, and the idea that everyone female in town—including herself—is a witch, each with their own special power.
Thistle's journey to acceptance of these facts is believable and full of rebellion as she learns more about her place in the town.
This is a quick, fun read, invoking a mix of emotions, from humor to fear to sympathy.
My only complaint about the book was that then ending was a bit abrupt. Still, it left me looking for more, which is always a good quality for the first book of a series. :-)