Wednesday, December 18, 2013

My Own Miraculous

My Own Miraculous: A Short Story by Joshilyn Jackson
HarperCollins: 11/12/2013
ebook, 128 pages
ISBN-13: 9780062307323
www.joshilynjackson.com/ 


From New York Times bestselling novelist Joshilyn Jackson comes an e-original short story that gives a fierce and funny character from Someone Else's Love Story a standalone adventure all her own.
Shandi Pierce got pregnant when she was only seventeen years old. She fell for her son—deeply, instantly, completely—but as she sat at the table feeding him, her own mother was sliding eggs and bacon onto her plate, feeding her.
Now, four years later, Shandi is still more parented than parent. She lives with her mom, her dad pays her bills, and her best friend, Walcott, acts as her white knight. But Natty is no ordinary kid, and when his savant behavior catches the attention of an obsessive stranger, only Shandi sees the true menace.
To protect her son, Shandi must grow up—fast—and find an answer to the question, how can a girl remake herself into a mother?
My Thoughts:

My Own Miraculous is a short story by Joshilyn Jackson that is a prequel to her latest novel Someone Else's Love Story (which will be reviewed tomorrow).  

Shandi Pierce is the narrator of My Own Miraculous. She is the mother of a son, 3 year old  Natty (Nathan) and best friends with Walcott. Shandi found herself pregnant at 17 under mysterious conditions. Her pregnancy resulted in her dropping out of high school, but her mother and Walcott are both there to help take care of her and Natty, so she has yet to experience the fierce protective love a mother can have for her child. An encounter with a strange young woman and her mother at the local blood drive results in Shandi's sudden realization of two facts. First, Natty is not like other three year olds; Natty may be a genius. Second, Shandi discovers that she will do what it takes to protect her son when the strange teen's behavior becomes threatening to Natty.

As Jaskson writes at Goodreads: "One of the main characters from the novel narrates, and the action takes place about 2 months before SELS begins. It's about how we become mothers, But not in the obvious, biological way. *grin* It's about the transformative nature of parenthood." 

My Own Miraculous is a compelling story, as well as an excellent introduction to the characters in Someone Else's Love Story. I already loved Shandi, Walcott, Natty, and Mimmy which made Someone Else's Love Story that much better. Jackson has the ability to make her characters feel like real people and there is always an element of humor even when the circumstances seem dire.

I can see why Jackson chose to release My Own Miraculous as a separate story rather than the opening to Someone Else's Love Story. Although many of the characters are in both, this short story needed to be separate and stand on its own rather than with the novel.

Very Highly Recommended - and then get Someone Else's Love Story.
 

Disclosure: My Kindle edition was courtesy of HarperCollins via edelweiss for review purposes.

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