My Fate According to the Butterfly

May 13, 2019
Superstitious Sab, a 10-year-old Filipina girl, has always believed her father’s story that a visit from a black butterfly is a harbinger of personal or familial doom. And when the otherworldly butterfly lands on her prized locket one week before her birthday, she begins preparing for her inevitable death. With only a week left to live, Sab enlists the help of her American best friend to mend the rift between her father and her sister, Ate Nadine, who have been estranged since her father’s mysterious stay in a hospital. Chaperoned by Nadine, Sab’s quest for knowledge about her dad brings her deep into Manila, where she learns difficult truths about him and the world in which she lives, such as the government’s brutal crackdown on drug dealers. Debut author Villanueva deftly incorporates a touch of the magical alongside vibrant details about contemporary Filipino life (jeepneys, cheese-flavored ice cream) and a universal story about growing up, reconciliation, and family. Ages 8–12. Agent: Alyssa Eisner Henkin, Trident Media Group.

May 1, 2019

Gr 4-6-Sab's 11th birthday is approaching, but when she sees a black butterfly, she is afraid that she will die before then, since her father told her that the creature is a harbinger of death. She would like to spend her birthday with her father and Tito Wendell at the resort her grandmother ran before her death, but her sister Nadine has not spoken to her father in more than a year. Nadine is a journalism major in college and is working on a story about drug use in their neighborhood in Manila, the Philippines. Sab decides to investigate the cause of the rift and finds a friend of her father's from college. Sab begins reexamining things she already knew, which leads to the realization that her father was a drug addict. Sab is able to celebrate her birthday with the people she loves, and her awareness of her father's situation helps to bring the family back together. Told in simple, easily understood language, this novel combines elements of the mundane with a timely story about how drug use and other issues can affect families. VERDICT A gentle title that skillfully addresses difficult issues of drug addiction and family tension from the perspective of a young girl. For those who appreciated Marie Miranda Cruz's Everlasting Nora, Padma Venkatraman's The Bridge Home, or Erin Entrada Kelly's The Land of Forgotten Girls.-Karen Yingling, Blendon Middle School, Westerville, OH

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from April 15, 2019
A superstitious girl tries to fix her broken family before death catches her. Ten-year-old Filipina Sabrina "Sab" Dulce believes all the superstitions her artist dad used to tell her before he and Mom split up. So, when she sees the Butterfly, a giant black omen of death, she knows she only has a week left to live. Determined to make the most of her last days, she convinces her American best friend, Pepper, a white girl, to help her reunite her family. Sab must uncover the truth behind the broken relationship between her college-age sister, Ate Nadine, and their father. Spying on her sister's journalism work and adventuring across Manila, Sab discovers family secrets that change her forever. Villanueva's debut is a beautiful #ownvoices middle-grade novel. Tough topics--the brutal war on drugs in the Philippines, family reconciliation, and recovery--are addressed, but warmth and humor, often in the vehicle of Sab's pet duck, bring lightness to Sab's story. The detailed writing offers a true look at life in Manila, with alluring descriptions of Filipino foods and landscape. The text is interlaced with Tagalog phrases and words, especially cultural honorifics. Sab's father is now in a same-sex relationship with a man Sab considers Dad No. 2, while her mother's boyfriend is Dad No. 3, details shared matter-of-factly and with love. This immersive novel bursts with life. (Fiction. 8-12)

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June 1, 2019
Grades 4-7 Sab's father used to tell her that a black butterfly signals the death of someone you love, maybe even yourself. When she watches one land softly on her locket, she's convinced she has one week left to live and needs to accomplish a few things. Among them, she wants to dye her hair blue; spend more time with her busy journalist sister; celebrate her eleventh birthday; figure out why her sister hasn't spoken to their father in over a year; and then then mend their relationship. Spying on her sister sweeps Sab and her best friend Pepper through Manila in the Philippines, exposing Sab to a painful past she may not be ready to confront. Villanueva captures readers right off the bat with quick dialogue and Sab's intriguing superstition. Immersive details about Filipino culture, including food, customs, and language?Tagalog words are dispersed throughout and easily understandable through context clues?seamlessly enrich the story. Although Sab's clever voice, at times, sounds beyond her age, Villanueva's debut delves into a difficult topic with the grace of a butterfly.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)