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susiesbookreviews's review
3.0
Earthlings in the first book in a YA distopian trilogy where the world is being run by animals, specifically a chicken named Alan! The tables have turned, humans are no longer at the top of the tree and animals can communicate with humans and each other. Farm animals in particular have a hatred of humans and they have a plan to enslave them all, something the Human Liberation Front is trying to avoid happening.
Our protagonist is Peridot, a teenage girl who lives on a remote island with only her mum, their friends Joe and Ann and animals for company. There are no other children on the island and Peri longs to go to school and have adventures, much to her over-protective mother’s annoyance. Coming from a long line of healers Peri knows that her loved ones are keeping secrets from her and the older she gets the more frustrated she becomes. When a young boy appears at her window one night it’s the catalyst for everything to change.
At first I wasn’t sure if the book was going to be for me and I’m still not sure I can get onboard with a chicken called Alan running the world! However, the plot develops quickly and I started to get invested in the characters who we see develop throughout the book. There are a lot of narrators (7 I think!) and my favourite was Peridot, I thought she was a brilliant character and her relationship with her mum was really interesting. It’s not always immediately obvious who is narrating a chapter and while it doesn’t take long to work it out my personal preference would be for that to be apparent straight away.
It’s clear throughout the book that the author has very strong opinions on how we treat animals and the planet. Some of the descriptions of how the humans were being treated were very graphic and I assume this is to make you think about how we treat animals in real life. I like that the author isn’t all talk though and a tree will be planted for every book sold, a great incentive to give the story a try!
I’m interested to see where the story goes next although I feel like the overall ending is inevitable. I’d recommend this book if you like YA books, dystopian stories or have an interest in environmental issues.
Our protagonist is Peridot, a teenage girl who lives on a remote island with only her mum, their friends Joe and Ann and animals for company. There are no other children on the island and Peri longs to go to school and have adventures, much to her over-protective mother’s annoyance. Coming from a long line of healers Peri knows that her loved ones are keeping secrets from her and the older she gets the more frustrated she becomes. When a young boy appears at her window one night it’s the catalyst for everything to change.
At first I wasn’t sure if the book was going to be for me and I’m still not sure I can get onboard with a chicken called Alan running the world! However, the plot develops quickly and I started to get invested in the characters who we see develop throughout the book. There are a lot of narrators (7 I think!) and my favourite was Peridot, I thought she was a brilliant character and her relationship with her mum was really interesting. It’s not always immediately obvious who is narrating a chapter and while it doesn’t take long to work it out my personal preference would be for that to be apparent straight away.
It’s clear throughout the book that the author has very strong opinions on how we treat animals and the planet. Some of the descriptions of how the humans were being treated were very graphic and I assume this is to make you think about how we treat animals in real life. I like that the author isn’t all talk though and a tree will be planted for every book sold, a great incentive to give the story a try!
I’m interested to see where the story goes next although I feel like the overall ending is inevitable. I’d recommend this book if you like YA books, dystopian stories or have an interest in environmental issues.
book_x_butterfly's review against another edition
5.0
Have you ever come across a book that was completely unexpected and hit you way harder than you were prepared for? This is exactly what happened to me with Earthlings. I feel so lucky to have been part of the review tour ☺️
In the interest of full disclosure, I will say that if I saw this book on a shelf in a shop, I'd probably skip past it, however, I was contacted about reviewing this book and sent the above description and I was immediately intrigued. I'm guilty of frequently cover-buying and this example has made me stand back a little and read synopses before deciding on a book.
I really don't know where to start with reviewing this book - I am slightly speechless!
I guess the general plot is a pretty good starting point. Earthlings is a coming-of-age novel set in a world turned upside-down by the irresponsible nature of mankind. Peridot is our female protagonist who has been separated from the mainland chaos, living on a small island with only four (human) inhabitants. This brings me to one of my favourite aspects of Earthlings - the relationships between characters. The book really emphasises the idea of found family and beautifully portrays the disparities between truthful, trusting relationships and relationships controlled by fear and mistrust. Ray Star spends a nice chunk of the book really focusing on Peridot and her relationship with others and the world around her.
During the first third (or so) of the novel, we get to watch Peridot growing up. Sometimes I feel that authors who do this kind of coming-of-age change the character too much in the child to teen transition. I mean we all know that teenagers tend to be portrayed as grumpy but I really enjoyed that Peridot truly felt like an older version of the character we first met. She has her mood swings but her core personality was well kept and I found it easy to follow her growth.
In and amongst Peridot's journey through to adolescence, the book is filled with quirky references to the world as we know it (from modern film to bacon sandwiches)! In addition, issues such as global warming, animal cruelty and mass farming are addressed in a way that feels properly relevant to the story, rather than in a forceful fashion. Some scenes are a little graphic in terms of what they represent, however, Ray has done a fantastic job of ensuring the message is received without being off-putting. This makes for a thought-provoking read whilst the reader is still submerged in a dystopian-type magical world. I also love that the ethical underpinnings of the book aren't just empty words: Ray is planting a tree for each copy sold and copies are printed on recycled paper!!
I've probably made the book seem very serious and depressing from my review so far but this was so not to case. The general tone of the book is, on the whole, lighthearted and actually quite funny at times. The character's internal dialogues are relatable and humorous, and dialogues between characters are done beautifully, feeling authentic and allowing a true feel for the relationship between the characters.
The ending of the book had be on the edge of my seat with my heart in my throat! I'd grown so connected to the characters that I so desperately want things to work out for them and I am certain that the wait for book two is going to be filled with anticipation!
In the interest of full disclosure, I will say that if I saw this book on a shelf in a shop, I'd probably skip past it, however, I was contacted about reviewing this book and sent the above description and I was immediately intrigued. I'm guilty of frequently cover-buying and this example has made me stand back a little and read synopses before deciding on a book.
I really don't know where to start with reviewing this book - I am slightly speechless!
I guess the general plot is a pretty good starting point. Earthlings is a coming-of-age novel set in a world turned upside-down by the irresponsible nature of mankind. Peridot is our female protagonist who has been separated from the mainland chaos, living on a small island with only four (human) inhabitants. This brings me to one of my favourite aspects of Earthlings - the relationships between characters. The book really emphasises the idea of found family and beautifully portrays the disparities between truthful, trusting relationships and relationships controlled by fear and mistrust. Ray Star spends a nice chunk of the book really focusing on Peridot and her relationship with others and the world around her.
During the first third (or so) of the novel, we get to watch Peridot growing up. Sometimes I feel that authors who do this kind of coming-of-age change the character too much in the child to teen transition. I mean we all know that teenagers tend to be portrayed as grumpy but I really enjoyed that Peridot truly felt like an older version of the character we first met. She has her mood swings but her core personality was well kept and I found it easy to follow her growth.
In and amongst Peridot's journey through to adolescence, the book is filled with quirky references to the world as we know it (from modern film to bacon sandwiches)! In addition, issues such as global warming, animal cruelty and mass farming are addressed in a way that feels properly relevant to the story, rather than in a forceful fashion. Some scenes are a little graphic in terms of what they represent, however, Ray has done a fantastic job of ensuring the message is received without being off-putting. This makes for a thought-provoking read whilst the reader is still submerged in a dystopian-type magical world. I also love that the ethical underpinnings of the book aren't just empty words: Ray is planting a tree for each copy sold and copies are printed on recycled paper!!
I've probably made the book seem very serious and depressing from my review so far but this was so not to case. The general tone of the book is, on the whole, lighthearted and actually quite funny at times. The character's internal dialogues are relatable and humorous, and dialogues between characters are done beautifully, feeling authentic and allowing a true feel for the relationship between the characters.
The ending of the book had be on the edge of my seat with my heart in my throat! I'd grown so connected to the characters that I so desperately want things to work out for them and I am certain that the wait for book two is going to be filled with anticipation!
georginap92's review
4.0
Thank you to the author for a gifted book in exchange for an honest review
Earthlings: The Beginning follows Peridot as she comes to terms with the fact that she has magic and that the world as she knows it is vastly different to the one, she grew up on. The Earthlings is based on a very dystopian England in which chickens and cows are at the top of the food chain and are exacting their revenge on humans for their treatment before “The Changing”
“Every creature that inhabits the Earth is an Earthling”
I found this book to be very fast paced, especially towards the end in which we faced a showdown between The Resistance and those in charge, it was also very engrossing, and it felt like a bit of a shock novel in places. The book is predominately from Peridot’s perspective, until roughly 60% in where other characters begin to have their own chapters and narrative.
There are a large number of characters to keep up with throughout the book, and some of them could have more development, which will hopefully come from the sequel. My favourite characters have to be Phoenix and Fergus, I just love both of their fiercely protective traits, I found that the author did a great job in describing a lot of the animals' personalities. I also found it really sweet how dogs are still considered man's best friend in this dystopian world, some of them are still loyal to a fault. My least favourite character is Val, the way that she treats her daughter is overly protective, and
I feel that she is the reason Peri found herself is so many difficult situations, I hope that Val has a heart to heart with Peri in the next book, and their relationship is developed as a better one.
Earthlings seems like quite a shock novel in places, as it does become quite dark, I am a bit unsure
on the target audience with this book, as even though Peridot is originally 13, it is a lot for such a young character to take it, additionally there are numerous scenarios that humans are described to be in, that come across as very inhumane, yet once you realise these are the same situations animals find themselves, it creates a shocking lightbulb moment in which you question a lot of things within the current world, such as humans being segregated into those who are workers, those who are food
and those who are used for entertainment purposes such as racing and fighting.
The world building in this book is great, and the descriptions really make the world feel alive, I feel
there is an undercurrent of teachings in this book, especially with the author using the dystopian world to draw light to the treatment of animals, as well as to the treatment of anyone different, as the quote “turning a blind eye to it allows it to continue” really resonated with me. I found that the
ending was such an annoying cliff hanger ending that I honestly need the next book as soon as possible, I need to know if certain characters are okay!
3.5
Earthlings: The Beginning follows Peridot as she comes to terms with the fact that she has magic and that the world as she knows it is vastly different to the one, she grew up on. The Earthlings is based on a very dystopian England in which chickens and cows are at the top of the food chain and are exacting their revenge on humans for their treatment before “The Changing”
“Every creature that inhabits the Earth is an Earthling”
I found this book to be very fast paced, especially towards the end in which we faced a showdown between The Resistance and those in charge, it was also very engrossing, and it felt like a bit of a shock novel in places. The book is predominately from Peridot’s perspective, until roughly 60% in where other characters begin to have their own chapters and narrative.
There are a large number of characters to keep up with throughout the book, and some of them could have more development, which will hopefully come from the sequel. My favourite characters have to be Phoenix and Fergus, I just love both of their fiercely protective traits, I found that the author did a great job in describing a lot of the animals' personalities. I also found it really sweet how dogs are still considered man's best friend in this dystopian world, some of them are still loyal to a fault. My least favourite character is Val, the way that she treats her daughter is overly protective, and
I feel that she is the reason Peri found herself is so many difficult situations, I hope that Val has a heart to heart with Peri in the next book, and their relationship is developed as a better one.
Earthlings seems like quite a shock novel in places, as it does become quite dark, I am a bit unsure
on the target audience with this book, as even though Peridot is originally 13, it is a lot for such a young character to take it, additionally there are numerous scenarios that humans are described to be in, that come across as very inhumane, yet once you realise these are the same situations animals find themselves, it creates a shocking lightbulb moment in which you question a lot of things within the current world, such as humans being segregated into those who are workers, those who are food
and those who are used for entertainment purposes such as racing and fighting.
The world building in this book is great, and the descriptions really make the world feel alive, I feel
there is an undercurrent of teachings in this book, especially with the author using the dystopian world to draw light to the treatment of animals, as well as to the treatment of anyone different, as the quote “turning a blind eye to it allows it to continue” really resonated with me. I found that the
ending was such an annoying cliff hanger ending that I honestly need the next book as soon as possible, I need to know if certain characters are okay!
3.5
thickthighs_no_lies's review
4.0
Thank You to Sofia at Midas for gifting me a copy in exchange for an honest review.
Although this book is a YA Fantasy, it definitely also falls into the dystopian catagory also.
Peridot, the main protagonist, has lived a very sheltered/isolated life in an island with her mother. She knows the world, her world to be like the world we know it to be now. But beyond her island the world is dramatically changed. It is the reverse of what we know now.
Humans are no longer at the top of the food chain. Animals are, and they talk! Add to that an elemental magic that Peri cannot control and it makes for a very interesting read.
Peri has the ability to save the world but she must face those who want to keep the world as it is, with humans enslaved.
The book definitely made me think a lot about how humans treat animals and whether this book might make people think about the treatment of animals.
I can wait to see what the next book has in store for us.
Although this book is a YA Fantasy, it definitely also falls into the dystopian catagory also.
Peridot, the main protagonist, has lived a very sheltered/isolated life in an island with her mother. She knows the world, her world to be like the world we know it to be now. But beyond her island the world is dramatically changed. It is the reverse of what we know now.
Humans are no longer at the top of the food chain. Animals are, and they talk! Add to that an elemental magic that Peri cannot control and it makes for a very interesting read.
Peri has the ability to save the world but she must face those who want to keep the world as it is, with humans enslaved.
The book definitely made me think a lot about how humans treat animals and whether this book might make people think about the treatment of animals.
I can wait to see what the next book has in store for us.
vik_reads_books's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
4.25
I really enjoyed this book Ray had created an amazing, scary magical world! Peridot had always lived in an island with her mum Joe and Ann and lots of Animals. They keep hidden the fact that on the mainland humans are slaved to animals as well as the magick she holds! I really like Peridot and really felt her frustration at her mum keeping everything from her. There where also lots of other loveable characters and after the cliff hanger ending I can't wait to see what happens in book 2!
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