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brionymarshallauthor's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
I first saw this book shortly after getting my hamster and I knew I just had to read it. So imagine my delight when it became available on Prime Reading about a month later! It went straight to the top of my TBR.
I went into reading this book knowing I was not the intended audience, but hoping for a light hearted, easy read. (As light hearted as a children’s book about grief can be I guess?)
However I wasn’t prepared for the multiple instances of animal abuse mentioned and I’ll be honest, it was nearly enough to stop me reading the book altogether in those moments. I just didn’t think it was really necessary, especially for a book that has been designed to draw animal lovers in. You can show a mean bully in so many other ways and make me not like him. I also don’t like the thought of kids reading this. But maybe I’m just being old fashioned…
The redeeming factor for me though was that the author is very good at tapping into a reader’s emotions in other ways and it was those elements that kept me going. The excitement, the anxiety, the anticipation! I can’t forgive the previously mentioned, but remove those from the story and it’s a fast paced, thrilling adventure!
I went into reading this book knowing I was not the intended audience, but hoping for a light hearted, easy read. (As light hearted as a children’s book about grief can be I guess?)
However I wasn’t prepared for the multiple instances of animal abuse mentioned and I’ll be honest, it was nearly enough to stop me reading the book altogether in those moments. I just didn’t think it was really necessary, especially for a book that has been designed to draw animal lovers in. You can show a mean bully in so many other ways and make me not like him. I also don’t like the thought of kids reading this. But maybe I’m just being old fashioned…
The redeeming factor for me though was that the author is very good at tapping into a reader’s emotions in other ways and it was those elements that kept me going. The excitement, the anxiety, the anticipation! I can’t forgive the previously mentioned, but remove those from the story and it’s a fast paced, thrilling adventure!
Content Warnings
Minor: Animal cruelty
bookishperseus's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Gore, Violence, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child death, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
moreau's review
adventurous
lighthearted
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
this book made me realise i hate children's lit and always have, as a kid i pretty much went from picture story books to historical biographies and now i remember why. this was the single most stressful thing ive read since percy jackson. do kids need constant drama?? like. nothing in this every goes properly right. it genuinely made it hard to finish. so many times i physically cringed, never been so stressed reading. this was supposed to be my relaxing bedtime audiobook, nuh uh, not relaxing. i thought assad zaman's sweet voice would soothe me to sleep, it did, but the book itself kept me awake for ages. its bloody good though. i cried at the end, got super attached to all the characters. really good book if you won't freak out as much as me HAHA
i wish i knew an Al irl hes adorable. really hope py's dr who bedsheets in the 80s didnt feature the doctor then. i love the 5th and 6th doctors because theyre cheesy but cant respect anyone who genuinely thinks theyre cool shit. but yeah, this book is amazing and i really loved it but it also made me want to die. does have a way nicer ending than The Time Machine though, which was also stressful. maybe time travel just blows my mind yet im a nerd about it. dont time travel kids.
i wish i knew an Al irl hes adorable. really hope py's dr who bedsheets in the 80s didnt feature the doctor then. i love the 5th and 6th doctors because theyre cheesy but cant respect anyone who genuinely thinks theyre cool shit. but yeah, this book is amazing and i really loved it but it also made me want to die. does have a way nicer ending than The Time Machine though, which was also stressful. maybe time travel just blows my mind yet im a nerd about it. dont time travel kids.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent
Moderate: Animal cruelty and Bullying
Minor: Cursing
sheena_sherburn's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
2.25
This was suggested at a reading group for my young brothers (age 9-11). The book had a good foundation story but it felt like it had been fleshed out way too much. To the point that my brothers were getting lost and felt that the words the 12 year old character Albert was using was very unrealistic for his age.
They thought that if Albert was made to go back and forth from his old house a little less, before time travelling, it would have been a bit more enjoyable and they would’ve been able to get hooked on the storyline a bit sooner.
As an adult I thought the idea of the story was a good one but I agree that it’s definitely a bit too wordy for younger readers that struggle. I would have personally made Albert a little bit older in the books, just so the language he uses and the actions in the story made a little bit more sense (maybe 14 instead?).
I would say this book needs to be aimed more at 13+ readers so they have a full understanding of the language involved.
They thought that if Albert was made to go back and forth from his old house a little less, before time travelling, it would have been a bit more enjoyable and they would’ve been able to get hooked on the storyline a bit sooner.
As an adult I thought the idea of the story was a good one but I agree that it’s definitely a bit too wordy for younger readers that struggle. I would have personally made Albert a little bit older in the books, just so the language he uses and the actions in the story made a little bit more sense (maybe 14 instead?).
I would say this book needs to be aimed more at 13+ readers so they have a full understanding of the language involved.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty and Death of parent
silver_valkyrie_reads's review against another edition
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
This was entertaining, a great kid's version of some of the classic time travel tropes, but with it's own twists. Plus a bit about mind palaces and memory tricks!
I was prepared to LOVE this book at the beginning, since I love a competent, prepared protagonist, and those traits are especially rare for middle grade books. I'm not sure where the LOVE dropped to like. Maybe the odd threads of Hinduism put me off? Or just the book didn't quite go where I was expecting it to, and I wanted more of the time travel parts? Whatever it was, I ended up a little disappointed that it didn't follow through on all the awesome I was hoping for, but still glad I read it.
I was prepared to LOVE this book at the beginning, since I love a competent, prepared protagonist, and those traits are especially rare for middle grade books. I'm not sure where the LOVE dropped to like. Maybe the odd threads of Hinduism put me off? Or just the book didn't quite go where I was expecting it to, and I wanted more of the time travel parts? Whatever it was, I ended up a little disappointed that it didn't follow through on all the awesome I was hoping for, but still glad I read it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty and Grief
Minor: Child death and Death of parent
There is a reference to listening for 'noises' from the adults' bedroom, implication of the adult nature of the noises, but not directly stated.
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