A review by shighley
Goblin Secrets by William Alexander

2.0

I put this on my list after it won the National Book Award, but did not really get into it or fully appreciate it. I can honestly say that when I read the final paragraph and turned the page, I said to myself, "What do you mean, it's over?" It seemed like a jumble of varied episodes in and out of a strange town. I never felt that the "powers" or definition of goblins was completely explained. I did like the inclusion of some new vocabulary (yes, I had to look some words up), but I kept finding myself struggling to find my place (have I read this part yet?), as I mainly read at night until I fell asleep. Some touches seemed clever, such as the mayor statue having its head chopped off and replaced with the new one when the position changed, or Graba just taking her roof off to enter her house if it was situated so she couldn't get to a door or window big enough to fit through. Why couldn't Graba find Rownie wherever he was in town? It just didn't strike me as cohesive, and I don't know how much kids would enjoy it.