Reviews tagging 'Classism'

Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire

1 review

laurenfro22's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

  •  “This world is unforgiving and cruel to those it judges as even the slightest bit outside the norm.” 
  •  “For us, places we went were home. We didn't care if they were good or evil or neutral or what. We cared about the fact that for the first time, we didn't have to pretend to be something we weren't. We just got to be. That made all the difference in the world.” 

Every Heart a Doorway is the second or third 'portal' story I've read this year. Rooted in the Carrollian rabbit hole, portal stories dip the characters through a rift in time or space to escape the now and explore an entirely (or not so entirely) new world, coming out the other side maybe a little wiser or more absurd. But what happens when those 'other' worlds are more home than 'this' world? Eleanor West runs a home for these children and when Nancy arrives after her trip to another world, she's met with an array of curious characters, and a deadly mystery.

McGuire's text is short, but packs a punch. The immediacy of Nancy's desire to return to the world she'd visited permeates the story, underlining her actions and reactions. Nancy is ace, openly, and a number of other characters are proudly out as part of the LGBTQA+ community. This acceptance as fact rather than plot point changes the interactions between the characters, and makes them seem much more realistic. It also just makes the plot more interesting - adds a layer of intrigue to the mystery because a plot device that so much literature depends upon is no longer there.

"We notice the silence of men. We depend upon the silence of women." - McGuire hits on a number of points like the ways that sexism and patriarchy and misogyny feed into every day life. It talks about how belonging and fitting in are not always equivalent, and how it's important to know the difference and when it's important to look elsewhere for belonging. For many queer folks, this story may echo a journey of finding family after coming out. I see echoes of the queer experience in the ways these characters are expected to go through some lifechanging circumstances unchanged, while those left behind cannot or will not take the time to understand. Parts of the story were equally heart wrenching and warming because I can recognize so many similar sentiments. Had I read a physical copy rather than listened to the audiobook, it would have been 85% highlighted I'm sure.

I'll admit I was bewildered upon first entry into the story. It really hits the ground running and it took a minute to figure out what was happening. McGuire's characterization is solid, even for side characters; they have form and value and solidity that many other writers miss. To do that in such a short span is incredibly impressive. I enjoyed the explanations of the different worlds and the theorizations some of the characters had about the people that go through them. Cade's identity was a curious but well done integration and definitely made the understanding of the worlds' structure a little more clear.

Underneath the drama and mystery and in-fighting, Every Heart a Doorway felt like a story about identity and ownership of self. The characters have experienced richness and wonder and belonging, and back in the 'real' world must figure out what to do. The lessons about owning our identities and leaning into the aspects that make us unique are universal. For such a little book, it sure has a lot of heart. 
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