Review: "The Song of Us" by Kate Fussner

The Song of Us by Kate Fussner
Published May 2023 via Katherine Tegan Books
★★★★

What a delight. The Song of Us tells the story of Eden and Olivia through verse, and theirs is a love song for the ages—not only as an Orpheus and Eurydice retelling but as a fiercely compassionate, creative story about two girls finding their footing in the treacherous ground of middle school.

I'm cautious about quoting from ARCs, because things might yet change before the publication date, but Fussner's use of verse here is wonderful. Mostly free verse (I'm not a poet, so don't quote me on that either) with occasional slips into concrete/shape poetry or something more stream-of-consciousness, there are little nuggets hidden throughout to call back to the original myth (Olympus Middle School, a character acting like she's read this story in English class already, an interlude from the Chorus—I laughed out loud at the last one). I occasionally wanted a little more from some of the side characters (Eden's father, for example, remains murky to me by the end), but I think that's the price one pays for a tightly woven story in verse.

Fussner has a teaching background, and she clearly knows her audience—this feels pitch-perfect for the age range (right set of middle-school emotions and petty disagreements) while also being engaging for older readers. Highly recommend if you're looking for a power ballad, a dance song, a theme song of a book.

Thanks to the author and publisher for providing a free review copy through NetGalley.