Keeper of the Lost Cities

Author: Shannon Messenger

Keeper of the Lost Cities is about a 12-year-old girl, Sophie Foster, who is a high school senior and child prodigy and who has never felt like she’s belonged anywhere (most especially since she can hear other peoples’ thoughts).  When a boy named Fitz meets Sophie and reveals to her that she is an elf and a telepath, Sophie is stunned.  But, even after Fitz takes Sophie to the Lost Cities (where elves and other fantasy creatures live), Sophie still feels like an outcast.  When Sophie learns of a threat that threatens both the human and the elf worlds, she needs to find some way to save both of her worlds.  This book (the 1^st in a very long series) was fantastic!  I feel like it was a mix of Harry Potter and Percy Jackson and Pegasus with a little bit of its own style (and yes, I’m quite drawn to the trope of “magical kid who doesn’t belong in human world until they find their magical found family”).  I really loved the writing and the worldbuilding in the book.  In the Lost Cities, places like Atlantis exist and animals like dinosaurs never went extinct because the elves saved them!  I also loved how the elves were vegetarians!  I have just concluded that I am part elf.  I also really loved the characters; I liked Sophie a lot and I had mixed feelings about Fitz initially but liked him better by the end of the book.  I thought Keefe and Dex were the best out of all the guy characters for sure. They were very funny and loyal to Sophie, and I’m curious to see how they develop in later books.  What I liked most of all about the book though were how lots of things tied into being neurodivergent.  Because Sophie was a telepath, she would get headaches and be exhausted by the constant stream of human thoughts all the time; and even though I’m obviously not a telepathic elf (or am I? Just kidding!), I related to this because the human world is exhausting and I’m almost always tired and burned out from the constant sensory overload of it.  It was also relatable how, even in her own community, Sophie still felt like an outcast; and sometimes I feel that way because a lot of spaces for autistic people are built only for White men not for girls/women (like me) or people who are BIPOC (Black Indigenous People of Color) like a lot of my wonderful friends (I’m thinking of you, Pepper and Koi!).  I also feel like autistic people with chronic health conditions or who are physically disabled often get left out of the equation.  We need change.  We need more people to meaningfully include autistic/disabled people from all different backgrounds; we need neurotypical people and/or people who do not live with any physical disability to really be our allies, and not just say they are but actually show it through their actions.  The world may not be built for people like me but that’s no reason to not make safe spaces for disabled and neurodivergent people.

“I would rather be punished for making the right decision than live with the guilt of making the wrong one for the rest of my life.”

“Am I supposed to help Frodo destroy the ring and save Middle Earth?  Or do I have to make toys in the North Pole?”

“Humans do the best they can—but their minds can’t begin to comprehend the complexities of reality.”