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kat_smith24'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
5.0
Moderate: Child abuse, Fatphobia, and Xenophobia
Minor: Body shaming, Confinement, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Abandonment
thetinysnail's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Body shaming, Fatphobia, and Abandonment
Minor: Ableism, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Death of parent
ladybug12793'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
3.5
A warm-hearted and whimsical book with a great message but everything felt too surface level. Good for children or middle grade. I wanted to love this book, but found it difficult to get all the way through. I liked it, but I didn’t love it like I expected I was going to.
Like others have said, I think this would make for a great children’s show or movie. I think it would translate better that way. I do not recommend the audio. I still plan on reading the sequel and hope I enjoy it more.
Graphic: Racism, Xenophobia, and Abandonment
Moderate: Child abuse
evann140'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? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Hate crime, Panic attacks/disorders, Xenophobia, and Classism
Moderate: Body horror, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
alegrya'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
Graphic: Homophobia and Xenophobia
Moderate: Physical abuse
cmkrasman'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
4.5
Moderate: Body shaming, Child abuse, Confinement, Xenophobia, and Abandonment
Minor: Fatphobia, Physical abuse, and Death of parent
emmmaustin'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
5.0
Graphic: Body shaming, Xenophobia, and Religious bigotry
Minor: Death of parent
isabelvegga'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
4.25
Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Body shaming
Minor: Emotional abuse and Physical abuse
astrangewind'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
4.75
Being queer & autistic, I have often felt othered throughout my life by virtue of who I am. The story of Arthur Parnassus & his wards teaches us that it's not who we're born to, or what we are, that defines us; it's how we treat others. & poor, misguided Linus Baker teaches us that it's never too late to change your mind, to learn to accept, to love, to let color into your life despite said color turning your world upside down.
Truly, Linus learns what really matters and where he belongs, casting aside his grey, corporate existence & finding his stride. He learns to love those who are different, & to use his connections (& newfound confidence) to keep them safe.
Klune's love stories, too, are flawlessly executed. As a queer person, it's important for me to see representation, but not just any representation - representation that's kind, & whole, & free of tragedy. The central love story (
This same principle shows up with the children, too. Talia - a female gnome, who is also a child - has a beard, as she should. I'm also a big fan of media where the dragons (or wyverns) are friends instead of enemies. Everything that the children are is normalized.
While I did love this book, it started to drag its feet by the end. It seems like the last quarter of it was just characters monologuing at each other, and then the other side just magically changing their minds after being lectured. (I do love a happy ending, but I love a realistic happy ending more.) It just moved so slowly, & was extremely heavy-handed in terms of the message. This was perhaps intentional, but the book was doing fine getting across the message without the monologuing. Reminds me of trying to hit an essay word count in high school. Really, though, this is a minor thing in comparison with the rest of the book, which I deeply, deeply, enjoyed.
Minor: Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Genocide, Hate crime, Torture, Xenophobia, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
milesdrn'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? It's complicated
4.75
Minor: Child abuse, Confinement, Hate crime, Xenophobia, and Abandonment