Review: "Midnight at the Electric," by Jodi Lynn Anderson

I'm not sure how to adequately summarize this book. I read it because it has been chosen for the 2018-2019 Intermediate Sequoyah Masterlist in Oklahoma. The book jacket tells us that the story takes place in three time periods - 2065 Kansas, 1934 Oklahoma, and 1920 England. BUT - none of this story is IN Oklahoma! Yes, it is during the Dust Bowl, but that portion of the story takes place in Canaan, Kansas. So how did Oklahoma end up on the book jacket blurb? I'm perplexed. I was also under the impression that this was the one and only science fiction book that made it on the list this year. But, it's not really science fiction. It's historical fiction if anything. "Midnight at the Electric" refers to a traveling fair that promises immortality if you pay $10 to touch an electric-infused glass ball. Desperate to save her sister from dust pneumonia, Catherine (in the 1934 section) pays the money. In the 1920s section, Lenore is writing her friend, Beth (Catherine's mama) about a wounded soldier she found living in an abandoned part of her property and their mutual love for one another. And in 2065, Adri is one of the few hundred colonists chosen to travel to Mars and settle the planet. She travels to Kansas before the launch to stay with a long-lost unknown cousin named Lily, and this is where she finds the letters - from 1919-1920 Lenore to Beth and from 1934-1935 Catherine to Ellis. Tying all three stories together is Galapagos, a tortoise who has lived through all three of their lives.

Slow-moving story that will have more appeal to historical fiction or romance lovers than dystopian or science fiction fans. It is a good story, don't get me wrong!

Mrs. Denney's Rating: **1/2

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