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3.85 AVERAGE
3.85 AVERAGE
Such a cute book. Read it or forever miss out on the experience you coulda had. Or maybe you have to read it as a small child to love it. Whatever. It was amazing in 5th grade, and I see no reason for it to stop being so.
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was a childhood favourite book. I recently re-listened to Georgia Byng’s reading on Youtube and was just as impressed by it.
Something I like about it is that Molly makes mistakes and feels remorse about them. We are supported to understand why she (and also Davina, Hazel and others) are the way that they are and feel compassion for them: kids have so little power over their lives, and it makes sense that when they have it (i.e. the power to hypnotise or otherwise overpower others), they might misuse it. A lot of kids books from childhood had very black and white goodies and baddies (e.g. the Worst Witch). I think kids deserve nuance!
My only critique is that I would love to have heard more from Rocky: he is a wonderful friend to Molly and I still wonder what he was thinking.
Something I like about it is that Molly makes mistakes and feels remorse about them. We are supported to understand why she (and also Davina, Hazel and others) are the way that they are and feel compassion for them: kids have so little power over their lives, and it makes sense that when they have it (i.e. the power to hypnotise or otherwise overpower others), they might misuse it. A lot of kids books from childhood had very black and white goodies and baddies (e.g. the Worst Witch). I think kids deserve nuance!
My only critique is that I would love to have heard more from Rocky: he is a wonderful friend to Molly and I still wonder what he was thinking.
My age 10 and up bookgroup chose this for their February read, so I hustled and got myself a copy. I'd seen the series at the library - it's hard to miss those covers - but I'd never heard anything about them. Long but fairly fast-paced, we follow Molly Moon's journey from homely orphan to Broadway star, all thanks to her ability to hypnotize. Things are wacky and Byng isn't afraid of mildly gross humor, and a lot of Molly's choices raise interesting moral questions, which all made for interesting discussion. Entertaining, but treading an interesting line between humor and realism that made it hard for me to personally attach to the story on either level. Still, a good choice for kids looking for nutty adventure stories.
Fun little book. Not hugely innovative given that it is reminiscent of, if not inspired by, Oliver Twist, but still fun to read.
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Nostalgia at its finest! I've spent hours upon hours trying to remember the title of this book.
By some quick Googling, and through sheer luck, I found it again.
I read this book in school when I was very young. I remember how I loved every second of it.
Naturally, I can't recall much, since I read it in 2003, when I was just nine years old. But I've been searching for it lately, simply because it's one of those books from early childhood that just sticks with you.
By some quick Googling, and through sheer luck, I found it again.
I read this book in school when I was very young. I remember how I loved every second of it.
Naturally, I can't recall much, since I read it in 2003, when I was just nine years old. But I've been searching for it lately, simply because it's one of those books from early childhood that just sticks with you.