A review by erraticmusings
The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente

4.0

This book starts off incredibly strong. From the first words, Valente reels you in and sets the stage for the distinctive narration that is to come. The stylized chapter headings and narrative tone give off 19th century vibes around a story that at first feels reminiscent of Alice's journey into wonderland, but the September's tale quickly turns raw and arduous in a way that was both unexpected and very much welcome (and very much 21st-century :) ). Valente manages to convey the realness of time passing on a journey, the aching in one's muscles and bones, the hunger when food is nowhere to be found -- something rare amongst writers of this type of highly stylized fantasy. The magicalness of it all is also so compelling; I caught myself wondering about oddities and creatures described in Fairyland as I went about my day. Once the rules and logic of the world are established, she sticks to them and unfolds additional details seamlessly as our characters encounter them -- Nothing feels tacked on, and there is no deus ex machina moment. The plot itself feels very sensible and and meaningful. I did feel towards the end of the story that the sparkly sense of wonder in the narrative voice had worn off a bit, but it was a reasonable change given the fast-paced action leading up to the conclusion. Overall, I enjoyed this a lot; it was a change in pace and so distinctive among everything I've read recently.