Chapter Two Hundred Fifty: We Ride upon Sticks

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel!  We Ride upon Sticks, by Quan Barry, is set in Danvers, MA, so it has local interest for me, taking place in a town right near where I grew up.  It follows the 1989 Danvers High School varsity field hockey team in their quest to go from the second-worst team in the league to the state championships.  How do they decide to get there?  A little modern-day witchcraft, of course.  That's where the second component of this tale comes in; let's call it a remix of the Salem Witch Trials, but mercifully 100% less deadly.

One thing that really stood out about this book is its narration, from the third person plural.  It's never clear exactly who's narrating, and I came to decide it was the team itself, somehow, though I'll admit that doesn't make sense entirely.  I can't quite square it in my head how that would work, but to me that felt like part of the magic at work in this story.  Or maybe it's The Claw or Le Splotch, which both get ascribed dark intentions and uncanny actions--you'll simply have to read the book to find out more about Them (always referred to capitally, even via pronoun).  That should also give you a taste of this story's humor, which was a major plus for me.  I love a funny book, and this one often had me chuckling aloud as I read.

Equally impressive is Barry's ability to create such a large cast of principal characters--a whole field hockey team's worth!--as well as secondary characters who all feel distinct.  In a lesser book, it could feel hard to keep the characters straight and separate in my mind, but each of the team members was so well-characterized that I had no trouble keeping them clear, which was essential since the story focuses on different characters at different times.  It was a wild ride, but I was happily along for it!  

We Ride upon Sticks reminded me a bit of Grady Hendrix's novels My Best Friend's Exorcism and The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires, though it was definitely lighter than either of those titles, so I enjoyed it even more than I liked those books.  Despite the witchcraft elements, it reads far more like realistic fiction than fantasy; above all, it's a story of friendship and self-discovery.  If you're looking for a coming-of-age story that manages to blend humor with more serious themes, it's well worth checking out.