Naked Mole Rat Saves the World

Naked Mole Rat Saves the World
Karen Rivers
Algonquin, 2019 293 pages
Grades 3-7
Realistic Fiction/Magical Realism?

Life tends to be confusing and sometimes overwhelming for kit. Her name begins with a lower case "k", because her mom claims that she looked like a small naked mole rat upon birth and was too tiny for a capital letter. Kit also suffers from a condition known as Alopecia, leaving her bald, and an agoraphobic mother with numerous fears of her own, which she shares with her offspring. After kit watches her best friend Clem get hurt on national television in an acrobatic accident, the stress causes kit to turn into a naked mole rat, who scurries around the small apartment until she has her emotions under control. After the accident Clem is not the same. She goes goth and becomes obsessed with a dead grandfather who joined Jim Jones' cult. Clem's brother Jorge feels guilty about dropping Clem and isn't quite right either. Finally, former friend Jackson has become moody and mean. Will the group every find their way back to friendship? Meanwhile, chapters in Clem's voice narrate her feelings and experiences and we see her side of the tale. A school talent show, a rescue dog, and a local robber bring the kids back together and apologies are made, hurts are forgiven and relationships are mended.

This is an interesting book. The cover makes it appear to be frothy and funny, but, although there are humorous moments, this is a deceptively deep book. All of the characters suffer from troubles and poor kit could really use some help. Her mother is clearly mentally ill and though she tries to "keep it together", she is often unsuccessful to the point of sharing her neurosis with her daughter and putting her in dangerous situations. Kit is one of those kids who is put in the unfortunate position of being the grown-up and taking care of her parent, instead of the other way around. It is hard to tell if kit really is morphing into a naked mole rat or if this is a coping mechanism that is her brain's way of trying to get control of certain scary situations. It was never made clear to me if the transformation was really happening (no one else witnesses it), so therefore I am not truly positive that there is magic at work. All of the characters are interesting and developed. Their friendship finds resolution a bit too quickly and easily at the end of the story, yet readers will be satisfied at the happy and hopeful ending. For some reason it took me a long time to get through this book and I'm not quite sure why. Kids who enjoy unusual and quirky books will be best served by this title.