Scan barcode
A review by korunicorn
All Our Shimmering Skies by Trent Dalton
adventurous
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
I enjoyed the prose and the unique ideas/time/place, but I felt this story was sorely in need of better editing. At least 100 pages could have been cut and I felt like certain plot points/themes never really went anywhere or were unclear.
I felt Yukio turned into a mere plot device, there when he was conveniently needed, the beauty and depth of his story/past never properly centered. The actual adventure following the 'treasure map' took a back seat; I had expected it to be the main focus of the novel, the years of Molly escaping through the poetry her mother left her coming in handy as the key to understanding the riddles, potentially connecting to the deeper themes. But the riddles stood alone, easy to solve as you travel (no need to be well-read at all).
I feel there were some beautiful themes in here lost in the lengthy descriptions and random people they ran into that didn't add to the story (do NOT get me started on the cave/dream scene). I wish other things had been stripped back to let our 3 characters be explored more deeply.
I could rant for paragraphs about the missed opportunities/things I would have changed. I likely would have DNFd this book for its really slow pacing at the start had it not been a book club read. HOWEVER, other members of my book club (while agreeing with many of my points) still enjoyed the book very much.
I want to read Boy Swallows Universe and see if that one works out better for me. After all, I think Dalton has a very beautiful, unique writing style and some really interesting ideas. I just wanted better execution.
I felt Yukio turned into a mere plot device, there when he was conveniently needed, the beauty and depth of his story/past never properly centered. The actual adventure following the 'treasure map' took a back seat; I had expected it to be the main focus of the novel, the years of Molly escaping through the poetry her mother left her coming in handy as the key to understanding the riddles, potentially connecting to the deeper themes. But the riddles stood alone, easy to solve as you travel (no need to be well-read at all).
I feel there were some beautiful themes in here lost in the lengthy descriptions and random people they ran into that didn't add to the story (do NOT get me started on the cave/dream scene). I wish other things had been stripped back to let our 3 characters be explored more deeply.
I could rant for paragraphs about the missed opportunities/things I would have changed. I likely would have DNFd this book for its really slow pacing at the start had it not been a book club read. HOWEVER, other members of my book club (while agreeing with many of my points) still enjoyed the book very much.
I want to read Boy Swallows Universe and see if that one works out better for me. After all, I think Dalton has a very beautiful, unique writing style and some really interesting ideas. I just wanted better execution.