The Library of Unruly Treasures by Jeanne Birdsall

The Library of Unruly Treasures introduces readers to a race of tiny people with wings, and a human girl who may be their rescuer.

The Library of Unruly Treasures by Jeanne Birdsall. Knopf (PRH), 2025. 339 pages.

• Reading Level: Middle Grades, ages 8-10
• Recommended For: ages 8-15

Gwen McKinnon has parents who are barely parents. Now divorced, her dad cycles through wives and girlfriends and her mother treats Gwen like an unwelcome distraction. So, when her father decides to offload her on a hitherto-unknown uncle for two weeks while he puts his latest divorce behind him, Gwen is apprehensive but not exactly disappointed. Almost anything would be better, and Uncle Matthew turns out to be as warm and welcoming as any virtual orphan could wish. A widower with a grown daughter away at Oxford, he behaves as if an 11-year-old girl is the answer to his fondest prayer. And his pumpkin-colored pup, aptly named Pumpkin, takes to her after a brief period of sniffing

This is a familiar middle-grade trope: protagonist spends the summer with an unknown relative or guardian and discovers a new dimension to life. But the narrative veers into fantasy territory when Gwen learns of a miniscule humanlike race called the Ladukan. They are tiny people with wings, but not—repeat, not—fairies. Pumpkin can see them, and so can any child six and under. And, shortly after her arrival, Gwen discovers she can see them too. 

This is because she is a McKinnon: a descendant of Scottish-born Charlotte McKinnon, who came to Massachusetts with her brother in 1866 and brought her Ladukan clan along. “Her” clan, because Charlotte was their Qalba, or female human who acts as mediator and guide. Uncle Matthew’s daughter Nora was the last Qalba of Clan McKinnnon. But Gwen may be the next, and she’s arrived in an hour of danger. The McKinnon Library, the classical structure built and endowed by Charlotte, is about to undergo extensive renovations that will devastate the Ladukan’s home. This was prophesied in their archives, along with other cryptic prophecies about a rescuer. Could that be Gwen, who has no particular talents, who has never felt loved or needed, and who is afraid of many things, especially heights?

This is quite a setup, and the author’s whimsical style and vivid characterization, which won us over with the Penderwicks series, is equally winning here. She makes the little people believable and Gwen’s eventual triumph gratifying. The ending ties up a little too neatly, Uncle Matthew a bit too perfect, and the parents may be dismissed too cavalierly. Though she lacks confidence, Gwen seems quite well adjusted to have come from such neglectful, self-centered people. She has “inner strength,” according to her Ladukan friend’s venerable Grandmother, but no clue as to where it came from. There’s little spiritual dimension; the Ludukan venerate their ancestors and Gwen and her uncle joke about a “Pumpkin-like deity” being “the ruler of all creation.” But it’s an enjoyable fantasy and needs no more weight than that to be a fun family read-aloud. The illustrations by a renowned graphic artist are fun as well.

Considerations: none

Bottom Line: Whimsical and lightweight, an enjoyable read for a wide age range.

Related Reading From Redeemed Reader

• Review: Here’s our review of The Penderwicks, with links to subsequent volumes.
• Reflection: On that subject, Janie and Betsy discuss the Charm of the Penderwicks.
• Review: Neglected girls are realistically presented in Kate DiCamillo’s Nightingale series: Raymie Nightingale; Louisiana’s Way Home; and Beverly, Right Here.

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