Reviews

The Frame-Up by Wendy McLeod MacKnight

islayfraser's review against another edition

adventurous informative lighthearted fast-paced

• Loveable characters? Yes

4.5

I found so much art world lore I learned from Maggie Stiefvater's The Dreamer Trilogy and saw similarities to the living paintings in Harry Potter! I was captivated the whole time.

dragonterrier's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful mysterious medium-paced

5.0

kimchihae's review against another edition

3.0

IT WAS alright...obviously I'm not in the target demographic, but I typically read a lot of middle grade fiction and have called it my favourite genre countless times. The concept was intriguing, Night at the Museum crossed with Wreck-It-Ralph meets art history in Canada. The characters had their arcs and you learned about them and saw them develop, but some moments were just...frustrating. Things were going down a very predictable path, way too many hints were dropped in the fact that characters just had "a bad feeling" about someone or another. All the characters seemed to fit together too neatly and the conclusion, while sweet, also felt too easy...these paintings have been around for HUNDREDS of years and I get that someone like eternally young Mona Dunn would jump at the chance to be more than her painting, but at the same time everyone else seemed to be living their perfectly fine lives in that incredibly rich and vibrant world behind the frame, it felt like things changed so drastically by the end, and everyone was throwing away everything that they thought to be true. I dunno. It was a fun read...and perhaps throwing away an old system that doesn't work is what people - or paintings - need sometimes.

trixie_reads's review against another edition

4.0

I don't think I'll ever look at the paintings in an art gallery in quite the same way ever again. This was a fun read.

dlightfull's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Great Story. Fun reading .heartwarming.

agettler24's review against another edition

4.0

Loved the way art was brought to the real world.

skundrik87's review against another edition

3.0

I appreciate the inclusion of colored prints of the paintings mentioned in the book. Not sure I loved it though.

ajs526's review against another edition

4.0

I truly enjoyed The Frame-Up. It was a fun book set in a world that reminded me a bit of Night of the Museum in that the people in the paintings are alive. The Frame-Up is well-plotted and full of wonderful characters who endear themselves to the reader. The mystery keeps the pages turning and the reader wondering what will happen next.

readingrobin's review

4.0

Oh my god, this book was so adorable. I'm still reeling from that perfect ending.

I guess the only word I can think of when thinking of this book is pure. There isn't any misplaced comedy or really anything I had a problem with.

Spoiler

Although there was a time skip that I was a little confused by, as there wasn't really any indication of one other than context clues.

I don't know if this was the publisher's or author's decision, but I'm glad they included pictures of the art pieces within the book, while also giving some history of the actual art gallery.

This is a book that would please kids who are interested in art and any other who dream of a world where paintings come to life. It's something we've all thought of at some point, but I haven't yet read a book where that was the entire plot.

It's really just a great standalone. Definitely get a recommendation from me.

bethmitcham's review

4.0

Portraits can come to life and zip around in each other's frames! That's the fantasy inspiration for this. It's also about coming of age when you never actually age, the importance of telling the truth to your friends (portraits or people), and a boy resolving his relationship with his mostly absent father. I