cdbellomy's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
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? Yes
4.0
okiecozyreader's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
This reminded me of the Beatryce Prophecy in the way it is written. Kind of a fable, with an ogress who cares for people and the orphans and an evil Mayor, who has taken an ordinary town and turned it into a place where people don’t care about it. In the beginning of the story, the library burns, and people cared, but little by little, all the good things cease, the Mayor gains more power and the people suffer.
The writing is beautiful and so is the story, but it’s such a slow read. It has taken me almost a month as an adult to slog through it. Students who are avid readers might enjoy it, or with a class who frequently reads together and can handle a slow book, but most classes and readers I have in my school would quit early in the book.
This is 13 hours in audio and all the other Sequoyah nominees this year are 4-7 hours by comparison.
Ch 9
“And they appreciated the Ogress’s attempts to speak to them in their language.”
“What does it mean to be a good neighbor?”
Ch 14
“Perhaps the only thing that matters is what you make of kindness. What matters is how you see these questions appear in your own life, how you think about them, and then how you choose to behave. Do you think it matters that people are kind?”
Ch 20
“What was it like to be seen?, she wondered.
Ch 24
“Feelings are funny things. They feel like facts. Sometimes, it is nice to think that they might be facts. If I could transform my feelings into gold coins, I would stack them on my desk and call myself the richest man in the world.”
Ch 29
“Goodness and Wickedness have no meaning if they are not defined by choices or actions.”
Ch 39
“—oh, what treasure is to be had by those who do not share! After all, the more you have, the more you have!”
The writing is beautiful and so is the story, but it’s such a slow read. It has taken me almost a month as an adult to slog through it. Students who are avid readers might enjoy it, or with a class who frequently reads together and can handle a slow book, but most classes and readers I have in my school would quit early in the book.
This is 13 hours in audio and all the other Sequoyah nominees this year are 4-7 hours by comparison.
Ch 9
“And they appreciated the Ogress’s attempts to speak to them in their language.”
“What does it mean to be a good neighbor?”
Ch 14
“Perhaps the only thing that matters is what you make of kindness. What matters is how you see these questions appear in your own life, how you think about them, and then how you choose to behave. Do you think it matters that people are kind?”
Ch 20
“What was it like to be seen?, she wondered.
Ch 24
“Feelings are funny things. They feel like facts. Sometimes, it is nice to think that they might be facts. If I could transform my feelings into gold coins, I would stack them on my desk and call myself the richest man in the world.”
Ch 29
“Goodness and Wickedness have no meaning if they are not defined by choices or actions.”
Ch 39
“—oh, what treasure is to be had by those who do not share! After all, the more you have, the more you have!”
lissajean7's review against another edition
3.0
I enjoyed listening to this one. The narrator is excellent. The story was really heavy for a really long time, so I needed breaks from it. Maybe I would've liked it better if I'd read it instead of listening because I would've gotten through it faster and it wouldn't have felt like I was stuck in the heavy part for so long?
bearfamilyreads's review against another edition
inspiring
slow-paced
4.75
A narcissistic town leader, who bathes in gold while saying there's nothing to go around. Slowly, the conditions of the town deteriorate as he takes, takes, takes. Talking much, but saying little of relevant importance; Quick to point fingers as he hollers:
"Make our town lovely again!"
"See what happens when we let ogres in?"
Frustrated and scared, the townspeople are easily manipulated by their mayor's claims. They begin to distrust one another, to hoard resources, to point fingers at those who are visibly different from them. The library is burned down, the townspeople spread hate and desperately turn to violence. Compassion is a distant memory. Mob mentality ensues, as the mayor repeatedly spews fancy lies, feasting on the chaos. It's up to the youth, the poor, and the marginalized to see through the misinformation and to spread love and compassion among their neighbors; To quench the hurt, extinguish the hate, and save their town.
You may think, as I did, that this novel is an allegory based on events of the turn of this decade. I came across an interview with Kelly Barnhill where she eloquently responded to that question with:
"We have seen this sort of behavior before, and unfortunately we will see it again. There will always be liars; there have always been tyrants; there will always be greedy, rapacious men seeking to sink their teeth into the world... Long ago, people told stories about dragons sitting on their piles of hoarded riches, and maybe it wasn’t too much of a stretch to see similarities between those shining, selfish beasts and those living off the labor of others, and sucking their communities dry. Dragons, alas, will always be with us. This is why fairy tales still matter: they teach us how those dragons can be beaten."
But that's enough about evil. Enough about what is broken. Much more importantly, this book is about *good*. It's about repairing the damage. It's about being a neighbor.
If you've read anything by Kelly Barnhill, you'll know that her writing is exquisite. Slow and savory, as I recently described The Girl Who Drank the Moon. In The Ogress and the Orphans, I felt a bit less of the whimsy and atmospherical vibes than I did with The Girl, however, the themes of The Ogress were so very meaningful and relevant. I came to love it nearly as much! This is very high praise, as The Girl Who Drank the Moon is an all-time favorite.
lilly_reads98's review against another edition
It’s so slow and boring, I just can’t get into slow books anymore. I used to be able to but now I just don’t want to. I also read a few one star reviews to help me figure out if I should continue, and they say the whole book is slow and boring and repetitive, so I wouldn’t enjoy that.
addystrange01's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
marlisenicole's review against another edition
hopeful
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
3.5
baileycowen's review against another edition
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-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? It's complicated
4.0
saladbar's review against another edition
4.0
An allegory of our time. I doubt we’ll have the same ending.
daniellemeryssa's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this book! It filled me with so much joy and happiness when I finished it. I believe that this is now my top book of all time. It really shows the importance of being kind and what being a neighbor truly is. I loved how this book demonstrates that you shouldn't judge a book by its cover. You shouldn't stereotype someone because of the way they look, or where they come from. I just loved it. I knew during the middle of this book that it would get 5 stars from me!