Rooftoppers by Katherine Rundell

Summary from Goodreads:

Everyone thinks that Sophie is an orphan. True, there were no other recorded female survivors from the shipwreck which left baby Sophie floating in the English Channel in a cello case, but Sophie remembers seeing her mother wave for help. Her guardian tells her it is almost impossible that her mother is still alive, but that means still possible. You should never ignore a possible. So when the Welfare Agency writes to her guardian threatening to send Sophie to an orphanage, she takes matters into her own hands and flees to Paris to look for her mother, starting with the only clue she has - the address of the cello maker. Evading the French authorities, she meets Matteo and his network of rooftoppers - urchins who live in the sky. Together they scour the city for Sophie's mother before she is caught and sent back to London, and most importantly before she loses hope.

Review:

Ah. This was a beautifully written middle grade that I wish I had read either when I was in Paris or when I was a child. It had this almost lyrical/magical element to it, though it’s not written as fantasy at all. It’s just one of those stories that is almost too hard for me as an adult to suspend my disbelief and get lost in. Maybe if I were still in Paris, I could get sucked into this atmosphere better. I’m not saying this book was bad. I still really enjoyed it. I can appreciate its nuances and the writer’s skill at language, but also wish I was a little younger at the same time.

It almost read like 2 different books for me. The first half of the book read more like a classic British coming of age story. And I loved it. When the scenery changed to Paris, all of a sudden, being a homeless orphan is supposed to be awesome... The author does go into some detail about going hungry for days and even getting into violent fights with other homeless orphans over various neighborhoods of Paris, but still. She makes it sound too romantic.

The kids were like the Lost Boys, living on rooftops or trees, with no parental supervision. And the bad guys were the adults who wanted to educate them or put them in some kind of system. My adult brain was having a hard time letting things go and just enjoying the overall Mary Poppins-ish vibe the book otherwise had. I wanted them all to have beds, and food, and shelter.

There are adventures, fights, secret missions, music, swimming for treasure, French food, books, amazing characters, and just so much heart behind everything. Truly, there’s this underlying classic children’s story vibe that makes me want to watch Mary Poppins and re-read a Narnia book or two. And for that, I see why so many reviewers loved this. And I can see why kids would love this. I’m curious to see what else this author has written. And overall, I still read this rather quickly. I give it a 7.5/10.