Review: Rarity from the Hollow

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Lacy Dawn's father relives the Gulf War, her mother's teeth are rotting out, and her best friend is murdered by the meanest daddy on Earth. Life in The Hollow isn't great. But Lacy has one advantage -- she's been befriended by a semi-organic, semi-robot who works with her to cure her parents. He wants something in exchange, though. It's up to her to save the Universe. To prepare Lacy for her coming task, she is being schooled daily via direct downloads into her brain. Some of these courses tell her how to apply magic to resolve everyday problems much more pressing to her than a universe in big trouble, like those at home and at school. She doesn't mind saving the universe, but her own family and friends come first. Will Lacy Dawn's predisposition, education, and magic be enough for her to save the Universe, Earth, and, most importantly, protect her own family?

Genre: fiction / science fiction

Publication date: November 2015

Mature content: not explicit, but it is clearly a book for mature audiences

Review:  Rarity From the Hollow is a difficult book to read, and an even harder book to rate. I don't even know if it falls under the general fiction or the science fiction category. I do know I have never read a book quite like it. 

In a way, reading Rarity from the Hollow made me sad, because there's just so much darkness in it, so many troubles weighting on the shoulders of a little girl who has to deal with her family problems, the death of her best friend and still has to save the world. It made me think of my own two kids and how would they deal with even a fraction of all that. 

My only complaint about Rarity from the Hollow is that I felt the science fiction part detracted a bit from the seriousness of the underlying social issues. I know it is supposed to be a satire, but it's a bit a too dark one for my taste, especially in the last part of the book. In same chapters the story reads a bit like a teenage adventure, even though the problems faced by the main character and the language used are anything but.

Still, it is thoroughly original, and I'm glad I read it, so I'm thankful to the author for providing me with a free copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.


About the author: Robert Eggleton has served as a children's advocate in an impoverished state for over forty years. Locally, he is best known for his nonfiction about children’s programs and issues, much of which was published by the West Virginia Supreme Court where he worked from1982 through 1997. Today, he is a retired children's psychotherapist from the mental health center in Charleston, West Virginia, where he specialized in helping victims cope with and overcome maltreatment and other mental health concerns. Rarity from the Hollow is his debut novel. Its release followed publication of three short Lacy Dawn Adventures in magazines. Half of the author proceeds with the sale of Rarity from the Hollow are donated to a child abuse prevention program operated by Children's Home Society of West Virginia.

Happy Tuesday,