A Mango-Shaped Space

Paperback, 240 pages

English language

Published Oct. 19, 2005 by Little, Brown Young Readers.

(5 reviews)

Thirteen-year-old Mia Winchell has a secret: sounds, numbers, and words appear to her in color. Mia has synesthesia, the mingling of perceptions whereby a person sees sounds or tastes shapes. This coming-of-age novel chronicles Mia's developing appreciation for her gift.

5 editions

nerd teacher [books] reviewed A Mango-Shaped Space by Wendy Mass

Something feels off.

1 star

I kept getting confused about synaesthesia, as this book made it felt like it was either detrimental to a person's life or completely euphoric. Even if I'm not a synaesthete, it felt entirely unrealistic to what they would experience in real life.

I also find parts ludicrous, as it would have either been illegal or something someone was scared to do in Illinois (where I grew up) for fear of a lawsuit. A child going in for something like acupuncture without their own parents' permission wouldn't have happened at all, for one.