Golden sunshine on a warm summer day. A library full of other worlds. Wonder at the beauty of the world. Friendship opening doors to new possibilities. Bright color that holds meaning.

All these things and more saturate the vivid story of Honey Butter by Millie Florence. It’s a sweet and thoughtful contemporary novel for children of all ages--and for anyone who enjoys a good story and appreciates the simple delights of ordinary life.

Jamie’s world seems humdrum, boring, uninteresting. She’s enduring a miserable and uneventful summer and hurting from a sibling’s repeated rejection. Her one unusual joy is the collection she treasures. Then a new girl moves in next door--and an unlikely and delightful friendship is formed. Together, the two girls show each other new things in life and help each other walk through the pain of past and present hurts.

Honey Butter is about friendship, family, and discovering the joys and beauty of the commonplace world around us. Its pages speak of healing, of appreciating the good things we have in life, and of treasuring and restoring relationships with the people in our lives. It’s a story of home and family, of the coziness and adventure of the ordinary, and of the beauty of the world around us--even in things that seem unremarkable or overly familiar.

I highly enjoyed Honey Butter, especially the central friendship and the family relationships in its pages. Jamie’s narrative voice is direct and sensible, spiced with vivid descriptions interspersed throughout. Her practical personality is balanced by her friend Laren’s expressive dialogue, and they mesh seamlessly without feeling overboard or out of place.

While reading, I kept trying to think of other books I’ve read to compare with elements of Honey Butter, but I couldn’t think of a good match. This story is unique and all its own--thoughtful and beautiful, down-to-earth and airily light, ordinary and golden with wonder.

I thought the protagonist, Jamie, and some of the other young characters seemed older than their stated age, but it didn’t affect my enjoyment at all.

One thing I didn’t like at first was the pronounced conflict between siblings. What I love most is siblings who have a good relationship and love each other, even though they clash sometimes--but a sibling relationship in this book went far beyond that into more hateful conflict. However, that was resolved at the end of the book, and I was glad. I love how the book showed that sibling relationships are to be valued and treasured--and that we should work to restore them when they’re broken. It’s a heartbreaking thing when those relationships are damaged or lost--and it’s a precious and wonderful thing to be friends with one’s siblings.

It was really special for me to share this book with my youngest sister. We enjoyed reading it at the same time, and it was especially inspiring for her, as a lover of art and beauty. Both of us felt enveloped in warmth and coziness as we read, and we were both inspired to think deeply and appreciate the world and people around us. I treasure our relationship as sisters, and I think we’re a lot like the two friends in Honey Butter, Jamie and Laren.

I’m so glad I finally read Millie Florence’s debut novel. I expected excellence from her, after seeing her around on social media, and I wasn’t disappointed. I would never have known that this was her first book, or that she was so young when she published, because her book is just as quality as some of the best indie books I’ve read. I will definitely be watching this author through the promising career ahead of her!

A small note for parents:

Some parents will want to know that this book depicts constant fighting between two siblings, including saying mean things to each other, yelling at each other, and anger on both sides. (minor spoilers) One sibling says they hate the other, but this is addressed by another character, who says that siblings shouldn’t say that about each other, that they don’t mean it, and that to hate is something stronger than they understand. The sibling conflict is brought to a resolution at the end, with apology and forgiveness.

Very young and/or sensitive children may also be affected by a mention of an extremely tragic event in a character’s life. (major spoilers) A character talks about a painful event in their past, when a family member was killed in a sudden fatal car accident. It’s briefly described in dialogue, along with some of how they felt about it. ( )