Book Read’s official review of Haggy Baggy

“Don’t worry too much. Teenagers are unpredictable.” When your teenage daughter disappears one day before her 16th birthday, that sentence doesn’t bring much comfort to a worried mother. The emotional torment that Hagatha, Clover’s mom, goes through is cruel. Hagatha Baggard is a 42-year-old fifth-grade teacher who is well known in town for inspiring young minds. She and Clover shared a powerful bond and a unique mother-daughter relationship. Their common love for vintage restoration led them to open a store in their barn called “Haggy B’s Barn.”

Living a simple and ordinary life, none of them ever predicted the danger that would follow. An event completely transformed their lives, and the Baggard’s home would never be the same. Clover left school one day and walked home with her best friend. But she never entered the house again; she vanished. This loss took a toll on Hagatha’s mental state. The tragedy haunted her for years, affecting her life so severely that children gave her the nickname “Haggy Baggy the Bag Lady” because of her homeless appearance. She falls into psychological misery. Her dirty clothes, unkempt appearance, and the basket she carries filled with trash didn’t bother her as long as she was doing her daily walks in finding clues about Clover’s disappearance. Would she be able to find her beloved daughter? Would her mental state ever improve?

The Story of Haggy Baggy: A Woman’s Journey to Cope with The Loss of Her Missing Daughter, by Libbe Leah, is a gripping novel that will take you on a journey of despair — a journey that no parent should ever have to take. As “this story is fiction, but based on reality,” the book delivers the message: “Never think for a moment that it can’t happen to you.” Using a third-person point of view and minimum dialogue, the author succeeds in relating the unbearable pain that parents experience when their child goes missing. The police can’t find Clover, and they have no leads.

Leah’s writing style emphasizes precise descriptions of Hagatha’s neighborhood, home, and barn. Details of their garden — with “pink peonies, pink hydrangeas, wine-colored perennials, and Hagatha’s large pink clover patch that burst into bloom in early spring and summer” — left a vivid image in my mind’s eye.

The book’s originality is evidenced by the characters’ authenticity. It sheds light on the importance of community safety for children as well as exposing the dangers faced by adolescents on social networks. The realistic description of the emotional distress of Hagatha and Marcel, Clover’s father, will easily stir empathy among parents. Also, teenagers could benefit from Clover’s story.

Clover is presented as 15-years-old, but two years after the story unfolds, we learn that she is celebrating her 16th birthday. Furthermore, the circumstances of her disappearance are quite obscure. What happened to Clover? How did she disappear? What happened to her phone, which was found in the bushes? Perhaps a sequel might clarify these questions, especially since readers are left with such a cliffhanger.