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February 3, 2023

Review for the Water Door

Aggie L. Jae

Author

The Water Door is a middle-grade fantasy book written by Aggie L. Jae. The story revolves around 12-year old Jeremy Lockwood and his family. 

Are you in the category of people who always feel intrigued after reading books that are written from a fictional perspective? Do you love adventurous books? Do mystery thrillers fascinate you? If any of these categories fits you, then I highly recommend this book to you because you will enjoy it. 

Late one night Jeremy and his 11-year-old brother, Josh, are unexpectedly driven to their grandparents’ house by their parents so they can travel to Africa. Jeremy is confused as to what warranted their dear parents’ abrupt departure. During the night, he has a frightening nightmare and begins to experience some strange symptoms described in this book as the “Nudge.” One of the mysterious symptoms is that his blue eyes glow! Also, water swirls in his glass in response to his presence. 

The next day things start to get more suspicious after communication ceases between the boys and their parents. The grandfather receives an unexpected phone call from his mischievous brother Thaddeus, who tells them that he has kidnapped the parents in exchange for the family’s treasured heirloom – a giant blue diamond they have hidden on another planet! The grandparents are forced to reveal to their grandsons that they are the guardians of a secret intergalactic hydro-portal they call the Water Door. Considering that he has “received the Nudge,” a unique ability for someone so young, Jeremy and Josh wonder: Would he be able to flow through the Water Door in the springhouse to get the diamond and save his parents’ lives? Read this book to find out. 

The roles Gramma and Grampa played in their grandchildren’s lives were beautiful to read. Gramma trained the boys to be dutiful at home, helping with preparing meals and doing chores. This created a spirit of responsibility in them and a consciousness of their place in the family. This principle also works in the real world, where eating becomes more enjoyable after one has genuinely and legitimately participated in the creation of a meal and felt satisfaction from the accomplishment as people share and enjoy it. I love how Grampa made the boys feel at home with his recurring jokes and stories. He and Gramma always have a listening and understanding ear for Jeremy and Josh’s questions. Furthermore, even though the boys deeply felt their parent’s absence, the arrival of their grandparents’ twin sons, Henry and Leon, who are their mother’s brothers, ignited happiness in Josh and reduced Jeremy’s grumpy mood because the two men played with them. It was more like a happy family reunion after years of not being together.

Josh also played a big part. He was always curious, energetic, and was gifted with an intuitive ability. He could tell what made things go wrong or when something was off about a particular individual or situation, which helped Jeremy throughout the story. He was able to analyze, comprehend, and draw conclusions from his brother’s dreams and experiences with the Nudge, his grandparent’s responses to their questions about the spring house, their family history, and the description of Tetherae, the planet where the diamond Thaddeus wanted was hidden. 

I rate this book five out of five stars. The beginning and end of the plot are related to each other; this shows that the story was carefully written, and I commend the writer for that. This book was also exceptionally edited, considering that I didn’t stumble upon any errors. Its content was very detailed and engaging, and this appealed to me. I didn’t encounter any aspect of it that I disliked. 

Review for the Water Door by: Nwaogazie C. Goodness

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