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toc's review
4.0
This is truly a charming and enchanting story. Ostensibly the tale of the marriage between Smoky Barnable and Daily Alice it enters the strange pretty quickly. Or does it? After all, nothing very odd goes on. Smoky gets lost in the woods and meets a different family than he set out to. Daily Alice has a favorite spot on the river where she speaks her deepest thoughts and worries to a fish she's named Grandfather Trout. The crazy(?) old Aunt likes to read fortunes a deck of cards. They all live in a house designed by their grandfather, a house that that has seven fronts and no backs.
What's strange about any of that? It could happen to anybody.
But it doesn't. It happens to Smoky Barnable and Daily Alice and all their family, past and present.
And that makes all the difference…
What's strange about any of that? It could happen to anybody.
But it doesn't. It happens to Smoky Barnable and Daily Alice and all their family, past and present.
And that makes all the difference…
thrym's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism and Kidnapping
cellardoor10's review against another edition
3.0
There is no reason on earth this book should be this long. There's barely enough interesting stuff to fill half of this length. Whyyyy. Also, the manic pixie dream girl trope is at a literal extreme over multiple generations here. It's not the worst thing you can do with your female characters, but neither is it the best.
saccuz's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
4.75
thinkspink's review against another edition
5.0
I can't think of any word other than 'beautiful' to describe the story of Smoky and Daily Alice, and the generations of their family. The sort of book that you finish and immediately want an alternate version where the story never reaches a conclusion, just so that you can go on reading. Well written, just fantastical enough, while being grounded in modern life, and something I am very glad to have read. If you cannot live in many houses, then you should read about them.
tanya89's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.0
carokfulf's review against another edition
5.0
What can be said about a novel that does not speak from the page, but creates a separate country in the mind? Just as “there is no place distinct from those who live in it,” Little, Big binds us to its “World Elsewhere” all by the power of Crowley’s magical Somehow. The novel merits rereading with a highlighter and a notebook, to be sure. Crowley’s work is at once a family saga, a beguiling fantasy, and a simple Tale. Reading it is like looking into a prism, enchanted equally by the glancing slivers of light and the shadows at its corners.
richellemitchell's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0