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zoiejanelle's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
anyway, the newberry award was well-deserved. this book is extremely complex and layered, but perfectly appropriate in plot and style for its intended audience.
i loved the multi-POV, the different perspectives and details that the reader experienced through the larger cast of characters. i loved the overarching themes—which seemed heavy for a MG book, but were handled with care—such as broken families, generational trauma, motherhood, loss, grief, death, identity, adoption, indoctrination, forgiveness, and love.
i somehow came away from this book with a more secure understanding of death and loss, as well as an appreciation for the complexities of parenthood and the trauma that comes with it for both the parent and the child. i did not expect this book to fall so firmly into the “mommy issues” category for me, but damn, it did.
the only flaw was that this was not an “unputdownable” book for me as the reviews suggest. it was definitely a page turner, but only after i got about 60% of the way through it. the beginning was interesting and caught my attention, but i was able to put it down and pick it back up without distress.
this was a perfect example of the MG genre, and i plan to give this book as a gift to all my young reader buddies.
Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Death, Grief, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Child death, Kidnapping, Fire/Fire injury, and Abandonment
vibingjaren's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Animal death, Emotional abuse, Torture, and Kidnapping
Minor: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, and Abandonment
itsjayden's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Gaslighting
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, and Grief
gemstonejasper's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I think this would also be an excellent grandmother/mother/daughter buddy read idea because of the focus it puts on those relationships. I think it would be especially so in families that have one or more adopted members.
I would tell people to consider the content warnings before reading this. It's a middle grade story, so it isn't heavy on gore and violence. But it talks a lot about grief, losing a parent, losing a child, mental illness, kidnapping, confinement, gaslighting, etc. I think these are important themes and topics for kids to learn about (especially in that middle grade range) because if they haven't already, they will experience grief in some form. Just be careful and take care of yourself before anything else.
Graphic: Ableism, Bullying, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Mental illness, Forced institutionalization, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, and Gaslighting
marissasa's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
bookishfoxes's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
This book was an easy and quick read - if I had my pre-2022 reading abilities, I would've devoured this book in 2 or less days. The chapters were a perfect mix of medium or short, the occasional longer chapter didn't feel too long. It was easy to follow the switches between POVs, even if there was still some mystery around some characters.
The plot was interesting. When I read the summary, I knew I wanted to read this book. It did not disappoint.
However, at some point not getting answers to the dozen questions I had got a bit annoying. The whole time you're aware you don't know the full story, and I know that's on purpose because the characters suffer from magical amnesia, but it gets frustrating. Even by the end it still feels like there are questions unanswered.
Speaking of the end, it felt kind of rushed to me. The whole book is slow to medium paced, and then the last few pages are suddenly very fast. It didn't really give the ending the story deserved. It was over too fast.
I would still recommend this book. While it didn't become an all time favorite like I had expected, I still had fun reading it. I'll still cherish this book, think back to it with a smile.
My rating: 3.75☆
Graphic: Kidnapping
Moderate: Death, Mental illness, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Gaslighting
Minor: Animal death and Child death
carolinacortez's review against another edition
- 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? No
4.0
La belleza de este libro es enorme (hay una razón por la que no le di las 5 estrellas, hablaré de eso después), hace siglos que no leía un middle grade y wow a veces se necesitan, son un abrazo para el corazón, volver a la simpleza de una enseñanza que podríamos pensar que como adultos ya tenemos pero muchas veces lo olvidamos.
" Ya he vivido bastante más de un periodo razonable en esta tierra. Y tengo mucha curiosidad por conocer lo que sigue."
Ame a todos y cada uno de los personajes, pero sobre todo amo con toda mi alma a Fyrian, el pequeño dragón que es simplemente enorme, amo su inocencia y lo feliz que es en cualquier situación, nunca falló en hacerme feliz
"Bebiste mucho de la luna y ahora la luna llena está dentro de ti."
Le di cuatro estrellas en lugar de cinco por qué, a mí gusto, la primera parte del libro es muy lenta, se siente como si no estuviera pasando nada (aunque si está pasando) pero se siente lento, si no hubiera sido por eso para mí era un libro perfecto.
En fin 1000% recomendado
Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Blood, and Gaslighting
melancholymegs's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Confinement and Grief
Moderate: Mental illness, Terminal illness, and Blood
Minor: Death, Vomit, Death of parent, and Gaslighting
kshertz's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Minor: Misogyny, Violence, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
bookwormcat's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Moderate: Mental illness, Forced institutionalization, Grief, and Abandonment
Minor: Death, Emotional abuse, Blood, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail