Mira, Mirror - Softcover

Mette Ivie Harrison lives in Orem, Utah.

Gr. 7-10. Mira, apprenticed to a witch, bonds with another beautiful young apprentice whom she thinks of as a sister. But the girl uses Mira to make herself beautiful, eventually turning Mira into a mirror made of wood and glass. One day, Mira's sister doesn't return, leaving Mira hanging alone on a wall for a hundred years. Harrison's story, which tucks in pieces of Snow White and Beauty and the Beast, is fresh in premise but convoluted in execution. Mira is found by a young peasant, Ivana, whom Mira intends to use to reform herself. She magically switches Ivana's face with that of the daughter of a merchant and, in the process, changes their lives and her own in ways more profound than cosmetic. This switch of identities may cause confusion for some readers as characters are addressed by their original names but act as one another. Perhaps overly ambitious, this is nonetheless richly written, and Harrison's points about what really matters and the real meaning of sisterhood ring true. Ilene Cooper
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