filemanager's review against another edition
4.0
Savannah and I loved the way it ended. Jon re-iterates that he hates Bat and is glad the series is over.
greenlivingaudioworm's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
informative
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
nwallism's review against another edition
3.0
9/10 on the series as a whole. enjoyed all the characters, the family dynamics, the plot. did not like the ending. as someone who works with animals and loves animals a lot like Bat - I did not think it was a good ending for Bat to keep Thor. I think it would’ve shown a lot more growth and realism had Bat had to accept releasing his beloved pet into the wild.
Furthermore, Bat never is told that he is autistic. So many times throughout this series I had been waiting for his mom and dad to get together to talk to him about it - I fully believe that it is so important to tell a child that he is autistic once they start to realise there’s something different about them. Bat has gone through these thoughts, he has thought about how he’s different from others and struggles with certain things that seem to come easy to everyone else, but his autism is never once brought up to him. This may not seem like a big deal but I’m tired of people acting like being autistic is a bad thing that should be hidden away and not talked about
Furthermore, Bat never is told that he is autistic. So many times throughout this series I had been waiting for his mom and dad to get together to talk to him about it - I fully believe that it is so important to tell a child that he is autistic once they start to realise there’s something different about them. Bat has gone through these thoughts, he has thought about how he’s different from others and struggles with certain things that seem to come easy to everyone else, but his autism is never once brought up to him. This may not seem like a big deal but I’m tired of people acting like being autistic is a bad thing that should be hidden away and not talked about
zorasorel's review
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-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
5.0
fyziksgirl's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
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
4.75
A great end to the series. Probably my least favorite of the 3, the ending is more of an everyone works out than a dealing with when things don't work out perfectly, but I still love the characters and their relationships and growth are amazing. Highly recommend the series.
nixreadsbooks's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-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
4.0
tiffani_reads's review against another edition
5.0
I’m so sad that Bat’s story is complete but I throughly enjoyed this series. I feel like these books are very important for kids not just with autism but other learning disabilities to see that they can accomplish great things.
In this book Bat is experiencing a lot of emotions around having to return his skunk to the wild as he is getting big enough. This is something that is very hard for him because it is a new experience. Throughout the book Bat learns to deal with these emotions in his own way with his own coping mechanisms.
This story has a happy ending and I cannot express how much I loved how this series ended. I will definitely be reading more from this author in the future.
In this book Bat is experiencing a lot of emotions around having to return his skunk to the wild as he is getting big enough. This is something that is very hard for him because it is a new experience. Throughout the book Bat learns to deal with these emotions in his own way with his own coping mechanisms.
This story has a happy ending and I cannot express how much I loved how this series ended. I will definitely be reading more from this author in the future.
sandra_foriers's review against another edition
3.0
The A Boy Called Bat series follows young Bixie Alexander Tam, nicknamed Bat. His mother is a veterinary and comes home one day with an orphaned skunk kit. Bat gets to take care of the skunk, whom he calls Thor, until Thor is old enough to be put back into the wild.
In this third installment in the series, we see how Bat struggles with the idea of having to let his beloved skunk kit go.
I really liked this premise right from the start. Bat, who is somewhere on the autism spectrum, has to cope with a lot of changes in his life. The end of the school year is near and that means Bat has to say goodbye to his teacher mr Grayson and Babycakes, the class bunny. His father introduces him to his new girlfriend. What's worse, Bat's best friend Israel is leaving for the summer, which means he might not be back to support Bat when he needs to let Thor go.
What I love most about this series is how the author succeeds in creating an incredibly diverse cast of characters without forcing this diversity on her readers. Aside from Bat's autism, the author also hints at the fact that Bat has a non-caucasian ethnicity. Bat's parents are divorced and his friend group, especially his best friend Israel are heavily implied to be non-white. I love how this whole mix of colourful people blends so nicely without ever feeling like Elana K. Arnold was just checking off some representation boxes.
Every situation is also described so incredibly realistically. I really felt for poor little Bat who was struggling to cope with all these changes.
However, this is undercut by the ending. After three books of building up tension to the emotional goodbye between Bat and Thor, the author completely undercuts this by letting Bat keep Thor.
I find this problematic on so many levels. First of, as I mentioned before, this ending completely undercuts the emotional build-up the author had so carefully constructed throughout the books. Now it just feels a bit lazy.
Secondly, I also believe that this sends out a very problematic message. Skunks are wild animals, and therefore belong in the wild. By letting Bat keep Thor, the author basically tells us it's okay to keep wild animals as pets, just as long as we take good care of them. THIS IS NOT OK! As an adult, I know this, but the target audience for this book is younger middle graders. We should be really careful with sending out this type of message.
But what I'm most disappointed about, is the fact that we missed out on an incredibly interesting and valuable lesson on letting go because the author was afraid to kill her darlings. Or rather, to set them free in the wild again.
In this third installment in the series, we see how Bat struggles with the idea of having to let his beloved skunk kit go.
I really liked this premise right from the start. Bat, who is somewhere on the autism spectrum, has to cope with a lot of changes in his life. The end of the school year is near and that means Bat has to say goodbye to his teacher mr Grayson and Babycakes, the class bunny. His father introduces him to his new girlfriend. What's worse, Bat's best friend Israel is leaving for the summer, which means he might not be back to support Bat when he needs to let Thor go.
What I love most about this series is how the author succeeds in creating an incredibly diverse cast of characters without forcing this diversity on her readers. Aside from Bat's autism, the author also hints at the fact that Bat has a non-caucasian ethnicity. Bat's parents are divorced and his friend group, especially his best friend Israel are heavily implied to be non-white. I love how this whole mix of colourful people blends so nicely without ever feeling like Elana K. Arnold was just checking off some representation boxes.
Every situation is also described so incredibly realistically. I really felt for poor little Bat who was struggling to cope with all these changes.
However, this is undercut by the ending. After three books of building up tension to the emotional goodbye between Bat and Thor, the author completely undercuts this by letting Bat keep Thor.
I find this problematic on so many levels. First of, as I mentioned before, this ending completely undercuts the emotional build-up the author had so carefully constructed throughout the books. Now it just feels a bit lazy.
Secondly, I also believe that this sends out a very problematic message. Skunks are wild animals, and therefore belong in the wild. By letting Bat keep Thor, the author basically tells us it's okay to keep wild animals as pets, just as long as we take good care of them. THIS IS NOT OK! As an adult, I know this, but the target audience for this book is younger middle graders. We should be really careful with sending out this type of message.
But what I'm most disappointed about, is the fact that we missed out on an incredibly interesting and valuable lesson on letting go because the author was afraid to kill her darlings. Or rather, to set them free in the wild again.