Reviews

Alebrijes - Flight to a New Haven: an unforgettable journey of hope, courage and survival by Donna Barba Higuera

rhadden's review against another edition

5.0

This follow-up (not really a sequel) to the award winning Last Cuentista completely hooked me. Leandro is a member of an oppressed class of workers living in what is likely to be the last civilization on Earth. Caught stealing, he is banished to exile but is rescued by a process that turns him into a flying hummingbird drone. Completely addictive post-apocalyptic adventure ensues. This book is ridiculously creative and exciting and I highly recommend it to sci-fi readers of any age.

jolee's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective tense 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? No

4.5

mscircle's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

Not my usual read but I really enjoyed it! Would love to see a graphic novel or movie adaptation. 

aleighc's review against another edition

adventurous challenging tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

marxamod's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark hopeful reflective medium-paced

5.0

Pacing is a bit odd but fascinating world building and unique characters

utopiastateofmind's review against another edition

3.75

Alebrijes is a science fiction world that completely captivated me. I haven't been that interested in how the world works in a while. This book very much feels like it has parts in it and without spoilers, I really enjoyed the first part of the world. I had more of a difficult time envisioning the second which took me out of the reading experience a  bit. However, the world and the bonds created in Alebrijes are something special. Like in The Last Cuentista, Alebrijes explores the importance of stories in their power to inspire and also as a weapon. It's hard to believe just one person can make a difference, but Alebrijes is a great middle grade book to illustrate just that.

mariannethelibrarianne's review against another edition

4.0

This book reminded me of Lois Lowry's The Giver, except the main character, Leandro, returns to save everyone else in the town. I didn't always understand the all the Spanish, but a non-speaker can get through without losing the story. I appreciated learning folklore I didn't know about before.

caseythereader's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Violence, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

n_g_reader's review against another edition

4.0

I don't *love* that this book is shelved in YA, because it feels more young teenage/late middle school but whatever. I adored this book, about as much as "The Last Cuentista" especially since it was a continuation of the universe. Higuera has done it again and created a beautiful story that is rich and immersive and can make children dream so much more about what this new world looks like and why. It was so great to make connections with the first book and this one - highly recommend

Spoiler

contains death of children, death of adults/parents, violence

myturn_pages's review against another edition

3.0

I adored the concept for this book - its excellence rides on the 'Alebrijes'. The time the story spends in La Cuna is the best portion of the book. With the thematic explorations, imagery, and wryms - I found a lot of parallels to Dune. The book also made me appreciate the fruit in my kitchen an extra bit more.

Alebrijes provides great content for discussions. The strong themes would make excellent for book reports or book clubs for this genre.

Favorite Quotes:
"Leaves longer than the rabbit's ears dangle from their long stem."
"When I dreamed of flying away from the Pox, as I stared at the stars, I thought it would feel like floating. It does not. I am soaring, and I am not sure I'll ever want to walk again."
"From now on, I will make sure Gabi can look to the sky as much as she looks to the earth."

Unfortunately, the book didn't really start for me until 40% in. That felt way too long for the real inciting event to occur. There was a lot of scenes in the first half that provided backstory only. These scenes hardly added to the plot or character building, and not even significantly on world building. This is the main draw back for me. The overall story arc lacked a bit of punch.

Themes include: identity, consciousness, body and mind in relation to the role of self, found family, leadership and corruption, suppression, poverty, slavery, captivity cultural rituals, fear, environmentalism.

Discussion question suggestions:
- Can the 'self' be preserved outside of the body
- What qualities differentiate Leonardo and the Imperator's leadership styles?
- Who's decisions did you find it most difficult to relate to?

3.5 stars!
This is the first time I've read a story by Donna Barba Higuera.
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC! (less)