When the World Tips Over

Starred review from June 24, 2024
In this multigenerational epic sprinkled with magic, Nelson (I’ll Give You the Sun) tackles grief, love, and the ways in which history commingles with the present. Fall siblings Dizzy, 12; Miles, 17; and 19-year-old violin prodigy Wynton—named by their winemaker father for his favorite trumpet players—live with their chef mother in paradisial Northern California wine country. Dizzy has never known her father, who’s been gone since before she was born. His absence has taken its toll on the whole family: Miles has been navigating depression (and an inexplicable ability to read dogs’ minds), Wynton and Miles’s relationship is in ruins, and Dizzy—who can see ghosts—longs to feel loved. Salvation, Dizzy believes, comes in the form of Cassidy, a rainbow-haired 19-year-old who saves Dizzy from being hit by a truck. As Cassidy gradually becomes an integral part of the siblings’ lives, she sets them on a path toward healing. This intricately rendered unfolding of a family’s past is lengthy but never dull. Via myriad alternating perspectives interwoven with magical elements and textured narrative interstitials, Nelson takes readers on a whirlwind journey toward a profound and satisfying destination. Major characters read as white; the Falls are Jewish. Ages 14–up. Agent: Holly McGhee, Pippin Properties.