Eleven-year-old Zadie Ma has what her younger brother Teddy calls a “superpower”: some of the stories that Zadie writes come true. It’s true of the ants whose lives Zadie saves from her mother’s wrath by writing a story about a little ant who anticipates the poison. It’s true of a fox she writes about that then appears. And now, she’s written a story about a dog named Jupiter because the only thing Zadie wants is a dog and, as she tells herself:
“If I want something bad enough I gotta make it happen… And I will”
Author-illustrator Gabrielle Wang sets Zadie Ma and the Dog Who Chased the Moon in 1955.
Zadie and her family live in a Melbourne milk bar, with Zadie’s mother predominantly running the corner store. Zadie’s father has not been himself since the war, ‘“his brain was all mixed up like scrambled egg.”
Zadie helps her mother after school and on the weekends and, although loves her younger brother, she also can’t help but wish some of her mother’s affections would come her way. But even when they don’t, Zadie remains helpful—although when a story comes to mind, she must find a way to write it. One day, Zadie arrives home from school eager to start writing, but her mother wants her to help stock the store.
“There are cha siu bao in the steamer,” said Mama. “And when you’re finished having afternoon tea, the biscuits came in.”
“Can I put them away later?” asked Zadie. There was an urgency inside her now like a seed about to burst up through the dirt. She had to write her story down, water it, before the sprout withered and died.
At school, Zadie is quiet and has just one friend, a girl with Italian heritage who understands what it’s like to be different (Zadie observes that while she’d love to bring her mother’s leftovers for lunch, she fears being made fun of). But one day, a new neighbor and classmate arrives. Sparrow and Zadie become fast friends. When Zadie finds a dog she needs to keep hidden from her mother (who does not want a pet), her new friend comes to the rescue.
Shortlisted for the Prime Minister’s Literary Awards, Zadie Ma and the Dog Who Chased the Moon is a moving story about friendship, family and courage. Wang intersperses Zadie’s story with the stories that her protagonist “writes”, adding a further dimension to the novel and enhancing its magical elements. Readers get a better sense of Zadie through “her” stories, and these stories may serve as inspiration for readers to write some of their own. Wang also adds in her own illustrations of key moments and people in the story—what is billed as the graphic novel component of the book.
Wang has written a smart, empathetic story that is likely to resonate with a number of middle-grade readers. Zadie’s friendship with Sparrow and her relationships with her mother and younger brother feel familiar, as are her desires for a dog and for Zadie to fit in among her peers. The relationship with her father requires more nuance, one that is helped along by one of the shop’s regular patrons.
“Shell shock is a terrible thing,” Mr O’Leary said quietly and he patted Zadie’s hand.
“What’s shell shock Mr O’Leary?” she asked.
“It’s the nightmare that comes from fighting in war,” Mr O’Leary said.
There are a number of tender moments in the novel and Wang has sought to layer larger themes of racism, history and belonging. Wang keeps the plot moving and a dramatic finish leads to lessons learned (on all sides) and a sense that loyalty, friendship and conviction will be rewarded, while differences can be overcome.