Across the Green Grass Fields

Starred review from November 30, 2020
Hugo and Nebula award–winner McGuire pulls off another hit with her sixth Wayward Children fantasy (after Come Tumbling Down). Horse-obsessed Regan Lewis spends her childhood struggling to “thread the needle of normalcy” after her best friend shames her for being intersex. At age 11, she discovers an unusual doorway in the woods that warns her to “be sure” before entering. On the other side, she finds the Hooflands, a world of magical equines, where she is met by a centaur and adopted into a herd. She learns that her arrival heralds enormous change in this world, as has the arrival of every human who’s stumbled upon the Hooflands before her. Though at first Regan is eager to return home to her parents, years pass swiftly in the Hooflands, and Regan loses her desire to leave as she finds new confidence and widens her worldview. When the time comes for her to step away from the herd to fulfill her destiny, she is joined by others who surprise her with their humanity, and she learns the truth of the Hooflands’ history. McGuire conjures a distinctive, remarkable world to nurture Regan’s moving coming-of-age. Series devotees will not want to miss this standalone addition, and anyone who appreciates off-the-beaten-path adventures will be swept away. Agent: Diana Fox, Fox Literary.