I was really eager to read The Orphan Collector by Ellen Marie Wiseman after reading the First Look excerpt, as it is such a timely topic during this pandemic. The story centers around the experience of a young immigrant girl, Pia, during the 1918 flu epidemic. The story weaves historic facts throughout, which was wonderful to get the perspective of how, unfortunately, times and people haven't changed as much as we would hope (discrimination towards immigrants and blaming them for the illness, resistance to masks/not believing experts/relying on useless or potentially harmful "remedies", gathering in groups such as large parades/celebrations). I was enthralled by reading Pia's harrowing journey, but at times, the story felt bogged down by too much detail/description that was slightly repetitious. I also loved the story between her and Finn, but felt it could have been emotionally slightly more developed, with a hint at the end of what their futures lie ahead. I also felt the side story of her "gift"/intuition detracted from the story told and really wasn't necessary--it might have been better to focus more on connections/emotions all can relate to.