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The Bottom Line

Cage of Stars by Jacquelyn Mitchard tells the tale of Ronnie Swan, a Mormon teenager whose happy, sheltered life is horrifically torn apart when a schizophrenic man murders her two young sisters. Set in Utah and later southern California, Cage of Stars deals with complex issues of grief, retribution, and family along with more common literary themes including coming-of-age and first love.

Cage of Stars will appeal to fans of Mitchard?s previous books, including The Deep End of the Ocean.



Pros

• The Swan family?s experience with tragedy, grief, acceptance and forgiveness is moving.
• Mitchard provides an interesting and educational glimpse into Mormon culture and beliefs.

Cons

• Some of the more suspenseful passages are confusing, making them less tense than they should be.
• The novel is unevenly paced: sad and slow at the beginning and rushed at the end.

Description

• Cage of Stars is about a girl?s response to her sisters? murder & her efforts to honor their memory.
• Cage of Stars describes two responses to murder--anger & mercy--and their effect on the bereaved.
• The book serves as both a coming-of-age story and a family drama.

Guide Review - Cage of Stars by Jacquelyn Mitchard - Book Review

Ronnie Swan is a 12 year-old-girl playing hide-and-seek with her younger sisters when a stranger brutally murders those sisters, and her life is changed forever. Cage of Stars opens with this sad tale, and the first portion of the book both contrasts the Swan family?s struggles to cope with the tragedy with descriptions of their previously idyllic life as a Mormon family living in a close-knit Utah mountain community.

The tone of the book is both descriptive and instructive, as Ronnie continually needs to educate others on the practices and beliefs of her Mormon faith.

Cage of Stars can?t be described as light or easy reading thanks to the intense subject matter, but the writing is accessible and the narrative and plot, especially in the second half, grab the reader. Once Ronnie moves away from her family to deal with her grief and anger as an adult, she struggles to understand the man who killed her sisters. In doing so, Ronnie becomes a more interesting and complex character.

Cage of Stars will probably appeal to fans of The Deep End of the Ocean since it is a moving portrait of how Ronnie and her parents respond differently to the murder. Cage of Stars raises provocative issues like anger, vengeance, and mercy. Other readers, though, might not be tempted into spending so much time with such a sad story.