dlberglund's review
3.0
Cute book with an intrusive omnipresent narrator who gives you his two-cents' worth about just about everything. It's a book for people who love children's lit--with lots of references to other children's lit. It's also for fans (or kids) who like the kid-swooped-out-of-miserable-surroundings (a la Harry Potter) type of book.
tacochelle's review
3.0
I remember reading this book as a kid, and I loved it then, but I wanted to remember why I loved it so much. And I can't say I like it as much as I did then. The plot was good, the characters, even the Drudgers, were interesting and felt real. But what really bothered me was the author's constant interjections, often not relating to the plot. It got really annoying, I don't want to hear about his writing teacher, I want to hear about Fern and her skills as an Anybody. This came up so often that I can't say I liked the book that much.
matchhead's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
used to love this book so much when I was a kid, reading it again reminded me of being young and letting my imagination carry me away
shaehk's review
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-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
nhoff's review
5.0
Delightful. Both my 8 year old daughter and I loved it. I'll be interested to see if we are equally delighted with the subsequent books in the series.
emmehooks's review
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
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? No
4.0
This was a childhood favorite of mine that I revisited with skepticism - it is still as fun, sweet, and heartwarming as I remember it to be with a fun twist of fantasy.
The quirky author comments are the only reason I didn’t give it 5 stars
The quirky author comments are the only reason I didn’t give it 5 stars
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Kidnapping and Medical content
imjohannagrace's review
5.0
This was one of the first books I ever really got into. It's the best, basically.
augustedwards's review
5.0
Read this for the first time 15 years ago (!). It was my favorite book, I read and reread and reread and it never lost its magic. Coming back to it now, it still holds up. As much as I can't believe it, I do believe it! Sometimes I think The Outsiders was responsible for my love of books, but really it's this one. Again, so magical. I don't feel that way about anything else.
Anyway, when I was 9, I asked my librarian for the other books in this series/by this author. She laughed at me and wouldn't even look anything up for me (because of the pseudonym? Idk). 15 years later, found out about the next two books in the series. Glad to enter this world again (:
Anyway, when I was 9, I asked my librarian for the other books in this series/by this author. She laughed at me and wouldn't even look anything up for me (because of the pseudonym? Idk). 15 years later, found out about the next two books in the series. Glad to enter this world again (: