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taraschn's review against another edition
dark
informative
reflective
sad
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? Yes
4.5
what_katie_read_in_ca's review against another edition
5.0
3rd Book Club book. A tearjerker and I loved it!
blueberry31's review against another edition
1.0
Too many things disappointed me about this book, though to be fair the story wasn't all bad.
The chapters alternate between present time and past. In the present we mainly follow Molly, a troubled teen who has been going from one foster family to another. In the past we follow Niamh, whose family hopped on a boat from Ireland to the United States in hope of a better life. Now here's the thing: the story set in the past is not so bad, but the story set in the present... FACEPALM.
All the stereotypes were killing me: Molly the troubled teenager is a goth with a nose ring (the author's way of insisting that "Hey guys she really IS TROUBLED. Hey look she even has black hair with a strand of white! SHE WEARS A NOSE RING". The foster mom is (of course) an evil witch. We literally don't know anything about her except that she's a big meanie. The boyfriend is completely irrelevant, useless and cheesy. The mother of the boyfriend is a total cliché. The dialogue is cringe-worthy. The scenes that were set in Molly's classroom had me going "UGH COME ON REALLY". All the bullshit was there: the teacher with a heart of gold who sees potential in the troubled teen girl, and challenges her to speak up about her opinion on a book in front of the whole class, to let her light shine through. REALLY? One amazing extract: "recently Molly had realized she actually liked studying"... THOUGHT NO TEENAGER EVER.
The story set in the past was really good at first, and then it got "typical sad life stuff" on me. Try this: take a pen and paper out, make a list of all the shittiest things that could happen to an orphan. There. That's the plot (give or take a few things). Not to say that a book shouldn't tell a sad story, it's just that in this case... everything is so predictable and sounds so fake.
By the end I was literally rolling my eyes as far back as they could go. Nothing in this plot is believable. Every situation happens based on luck or coincidence. The characters are annoying. It's a shame because the topic could have been super interesting: I had no clue Orphan Trains were a thing back then, so I learned something. But past this discovery the book becomes a huge disappointment: cheesy and superficial. Facepalm.
The chapters alternate between present time and past. In the present we mainly follow Molly, a troubled teen who has been going from one foster family to another. In the past we follow Niamh, whose family hopped on a boat from Ireland to the United States in hope of a better life. Now here's the thing: the story set in the past is not so bad, but the story set in the present... FACEPALM.
All the stereotypes were killing me: Molly the troubled teenager is a goth with a nose ring (the author's way of insisting that "Hey guys she really IS TROUBLED. Hey look she even has black hair with a strand of white! SHE WEARS A NOSE RING". The foster mom is (of course) an evil witch. We literally don't know anything about her except that she's a big meanie. The boyfriend is completely irrelevant, useless and cheesy. The mother of the boyfriend is a total cliché. The dialogue is cringe-worthy. The scenes that were set in Molly's classroom had me going "UGH COME ON REALLY". All the bullshit was there: the teacher with a heart of gold who sees potential in the troubled teen girl, and challenges her to speak up about her opinion on a book in front of the whole class, to let her light shine through. REALLY? One amazing extract: "recently Molly had realized she actually liked studying"... THOUGHT NO TEENAGER EVER.
The story set in the past was really good at first, and then it got "typical sad life stuff" on me. Try this: take a pen and paper out, make a list of all the shittiest things that could happen to an orphan. There. That's the plot (give or take a few things). Not to say that a book shouldn't tell a sad story, it's just that in this case... everything is so predictable and sounds so fake.
By the end I was literally rolling my eyes as far back as they could go. Nothing in this plot is believable. Every situation happens based on luck or coincidence. The characters are annoying. It's a shame because the topic could have been super interesting: I had no clue Orphan Trains were a thing back then, so I learned something. But past this discovery the book becomes a huge disappointment: cheesy and superficial. Facepalm.
lexibhull's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
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
5.0
emmabeckman's review against another edition
4.0
This book was exactly what I was in the mood for, a dual timeline historical novel. The topic is definitely one that I hadn’t heard a lot about before (in regard to the orphan trains) and I thought it was done really well. Overall I thought he novel was really really good, but I didn’t give it 5 stars because I never really got into a rhythm reading it. That could have been more my fault than the book’s but I never felt really inspired to pick up this book over other activities. But oh well, I finished it and it was really good!
burningupasun's review against another edition
5.0
Well this was an emotional book that I devoured remarkably fast. If I hadn't read the end bit sitting in my lunch room at work, I would have done so while crying my eyes out, honestly. This book definitely feels more YA to me than adult fiction but that isn't at all a bad thing. It is short and a bit simple, but a lovely story. The present intertwined with the past, two people of vastly different generations who are nonetheless similar and manage to help each other grow and develop and change. Absolutely wonderful.
ashleyslibrary's review
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
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? No
4.0
courtenayb's review
emotional
informative
inspiring
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? It's complicated
4.0
shailydc's review against another edition
3.0
I wanted to love Orphan Train but at best, I barely liked it (if not found it to be just ok).
A book that focused solely on Niamh/Vivian's story would have been far more compelling than than the dual Vivian/Molly style. The language was inconsistent and it was glaringly obvious; it felt like Kline wrote the book and then went back and used a thesaurus to add in some "bigger" words.
Overall: great story concept, rather poor execution.
A book that focused solely on Niamh/Vivian's story would have been far more compelling than than the dual Vivian/Molly style. The language was inconsistent and it was glaringly obvious; it felt like Kline wrote the book and then went back and used a thesaurus to add in some "bigger" words.
Overall: great story concept, rather poor execution.