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starcake's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
mariahistryingtoread's review against another edition
5.0
A Book of a Thousand Days exceeded my expectations in every way. I can barely begin to explain how phenomenal this was.
Let me start by saying I hate the epistolary kind of format. I enjoy letters within my novel, but absolutely hate when the entire book is just a diary and not 'in the moment'. So the fact that I adored this book is nothing short of amazing.
Dashti is a 'mucker' girl ie. a lower class citizen. Because of the mucker culture of healing songs she winds up being trained to be a lady's maid. But when she finally completes her training it just so happens to be when her lady, Lady Saren, is to be locked away in a tower by her father for refusing to marry the awful Lord Khasar. Feeling it is her duty to serve her Lady no matter what she agrees to be locked away with her for her seven year imprisonment.
The book is separated into two parts; before and after the tower. Dashti narrates the entire thing and the strength of her character is the largest reason I was so enamored. She is everything a heroine should be and in the future I'm sure I will be comparing others to her. She was earnest, steadfast, and honest. While she was naive at the beginning she never became annoying with it. Following her growth through their trials and tribulations was never boring. And it was so interesting to see how her opinions evolved over time based on what she had been through. By the end I felt as if I had witnessed a good friend of mine become the best they could ever possibly be.
And related to that the culture within the book is so well written. Some of the best parts were learning about Dashti's culture and as she encountered other ones getting to see her insight into the differences. Hale did a great job establishing not just Dashti's background, but that of the surrounding world as well.
There was romance and it was sweet and pure. It's hard for me to read a book and love the couple the entire time. Often times it will start out strong only for it to peter out halfway or fade enough that I become neutral to it. It wasn't so with this. It remained captivating the entire novel and some of the struggles were just the right amount of frustrating.
Small note that is definitely a personal issue than a reflection of the writing was Lady Saren. Absolutely hated her. She functioned as a great foil to Dashti and I understood why she did what did, but it was no excuse for most of her behavior considering what most of the people had to go through.
Overall, fantastic book. I am now going to read literally every other book Shannon Hale has ever written that's how good this one was. If I could give this book 10 stars I would.
Let me start by saying I hate the epistolary kind of format. I enjoy letters within my novel, but absolutely hate when the entire book is just a diary and not 'in the moment'. So the fact that I adored this book is nothing short of amazing.
Dashti is a 'mucker' girl ie. a lower class citizen. Because of the mucker culture of healing songs she winds up being trained to be a lady's maid. But when she finally completes her training it just so happens to be when her lady, Lady Saren, is to be locked away in a tower by her father for refusing to marry the awful Lord Khasar. Feeling it is her duty to serve her Lady no matter what she agrees to be locked away with her for her seven year imprisonment.
The book is separated into two parts; before and after the tower. Dashti narrates the entire thing and the strength of her character is the largest reason I was so enamored. She is everything a heroine should be and in the future I'm sure I will be comparing others to her. She was earnest, steadfast, and honest. While she was naive at the beginning she never became annoying with it. Following her growth through their trials and tribulations was never boring. And it was so interesting to see how her opinions evolved over time based on what she had been through. By the end I felt as if I had witnessed a good friend of mine become the best they could ever possibly be.
And related to that the culture within the book is so well written. Some of the best parts were learning about Dashti's culture and as she encountered other ones getting to see her insight into the differences. Hale did a great job establishing not just Dashti's background, but that of the surrounding world as well.
There was romance and it was sweet and pure. It's hard for me to read a book and love the couple the entire time. Often times it will start out strong only for it to peter out halfway or fade enough that I become neutral to it. It wasn't so with this. It remained captivating the entire novel and some of the struggles were just the right amount of frustrating.
Small note that is definitely a personal issue than a reflection of the writing was Lady Saren. Absolutely hated her. She functioned as a great foil to Dashti and I understood why she did what did, but it was no excuse for most of her behavior considering what most of the people had to go through.
Overall, fantastic book. I am now going to read literally every other book Shannon Hale has ever written that's how good this one was. If I could give this book 10 stars I would.
schofield24's review against another edition
4.0
To me, this book exemplifies Shannon Hale's strength: masterfully reworking traditional fairy tales. I liked the "flavor" of the story because it is set in Asia and lacks most of the stereotypical prince-and-princess elements in most European fairy tales. I'm always looking for good books containing strong, grounded female characters for my teenage daughter to read, and this definitely fills that need and then some!
cait_readsxox's review against another edition
5.0
What a pleasant surprise! I loved this book, it gave the best fairytale vibes. I also loved the format of how it written like a journal. Dashti is an amazing character and I loved reading from her perspective and following her journey. I love how this book uses song as magic that can heal and comfort that people called “muckers” can do. The song magic is a unique concept and is weaved into the story beautifully.
annashiv's review against another edition
5.0
So, this book is not a retelling of 1001 arabian nights as I went into it believing...my bad. I guess it thought that because the covers on some look vaguely middle easternish and the title has a thousand in it and there is an evil 'king' (khan) who kills his wives. As it turns out it's based on a very little known tale from the brothers grimm. Anyway, that didn't mean it ended up disappointing. I love Hale's writing and stories, and this was no exception. It was very charming and cute. I loved Dashti's optimism and strength and overall good nature. I feel those are easy to get wrong and often are in YA females. Often it can come across as stupid or vapid or any number of things, but Hale is a master. I also loved the mongolian inspiration and felt it was well done. My one complaint would be it felt similar to her princess academy books, mainly because there's magical singing, which I guess I've read too much (as Gail Carson Levine has also done this) and it's always difficult to imagine the songs and singing in books for me and can be a bit weird. Still, I didn't mind it as the story was exceptionally well done. I think it was a stroke of genius to tell it in a journal.
Give it a read. I feel I might have enjoyed the goose girl more, but I'd have to reread it to remember (something I plan on doing someday). and that might be a good place to start, but I would definitely put this above the princess academy trilogy.
Give it a read. I feel I might have enjoyed the goose girl more, but I'd have to reread it to remember (something I plan on doing someday). and that might be a good place to start, but I would definitely put this above the princess academy trilogy.
trudy1963's review against another edition
4.0
This book was recommended by an adult and I found it on my 13-year-old's bookshelf. Although it is definitely written for teens, it is a thoroughly enjoyable book and recommended for all ages.
tashaseegmiller's review against another edition
4.0
This is another beautiful book by Shannon Hale. Her narrators just suck me in and I just don't want to stop reading. I loved the Asian setting, the mystical elements that I didn't see coming and the wit of the main character to maintain what is necessary to survive. I really enjoyed it - will more than likely buy it when I find it on sale. I almost think I liked this better than Princess Academy - it's a toss up.
honnari_hannya's review against another edition
4.0
A little dated, but otherwise a wonderful YA novel in one of the most fully realized fantasy worlds I've read in a long time. Despite much of the book happening within an isolated tower, the setting is incredibly rich, the magical lore wonderfully fleshed out, and the relationships between characters—romantic, platonic, and antagonistic—incredibly well crafted. Hale's prose is terrific, and Dashti a great heroine for those who loves the truly good types of protagonists. There's so much going on in the language of this book that I think I'd have to read again just to get a handle on all the work Hale did to embed the richness of the history and life of her world into Dashti's POV. Though the end tied up a little too neatly for my tastes, this was a wonderful standalone.
celittle21's review against another edition
5.0
Fantastic world building and such a unique set of religion/magic. Even with years locked away, it doesn’t feel slow. The ending so cleverly tied different parts together I hadn’t even considered, and made it so satisfying.