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breadorcheese's review against another edition
4.0
A nice story about overcoming anxiety told in three different ways depending on your age/reading level. Although not the author's best work this is still worth checking out and reading all three versions of the story.
jhamm's review against another edition
3.0
My favorite Mark Z. Danielewski book I’ve read so far outside of the HOL canon. It’s a cute little book with some great illustrations, themes, and symbolism. I’m glad I read it!
adamskiboy528491's review against another edition
3.0
With tuppence for paper and strings,
You can have your own set of wings
With your feet on the ground
You’re a bird in a flight
With your fist holding tight
To the string of your kite - “Let’s Go Fly A Kite.”
The Little Blue Kite by Mark Z. Danielewski is a short and sweet tale from the postmodernist writer that I love. Each book of his is a work of art, poignant, and makes you think deep as you've never thought deep before. On the surface, this seems like a children's book. But at the heart of TLBK is so much more. This book is excellent for all ages. In true MZD fashion, there are three ways to read this book, one being very short, one medium, and one the entire length of the book. Every single page is imaginative and colourful, and the book has a great message to send.
There's a lot of symbolism and allegory to the kite itself. We think of fears as childish things, but adults are faced with worries we fight every day - taking a risk by starting a new job, opening your heart even though it could be broken, proposing a 27-volume work of art and trusting your readers will follow you on this complex journey. I was overwhelmed by the metaphor of the story and the inner beauty that spoke to me in such a profound way. I felt overwhelmed by the beautiful truth the story gives the reader, and as a 20-something-year-old adult starting to make my way in the world, I was overcome with The Little Blue Kite's message and truth.
You can have your own set of wings
With your feet on the ground
You’re a bird in a flight
With your fist holding tight
To the string of your kite - “Let’s Go Fly A Kite.”
The Little Blue Kite by Mark Z. Danielewski is a short and sweet tale from the postmodernist writer that I love. Each book of his is a work of art, poignant, and makes you think deep as you've never thought deep before. On the surface, this seems like a children's book. But at the heart of TLBK is so much more. This book is excellent for all ages. In true MZD fashion, there are three ways to read this book, one being very short, one medium, and one the entire length of the book. Every single page is imaginative and colourful, and the book has a great message to send.
There's a lot of symbolism and allegory to the kite itself. We think of fears as childish things, but adults are faced with worries we fight every day - taking a risk by starting a new job, opening your heart even though it could be broken, proposing a 27-volume work of art and trusting your readers will follow you on this complex journey. I was overwhelmed by the metaphor of the story and the inner beauty that spoke to me in such a profound way. I felt overwhelmed by the beautiful truth the story gives the reader, and as a 20-something-year-old adult starting to make my way in the world, I was overcome with The Little Blue Kite's message and truth.
kurtodrome's review against another edition
5.0
Deciding whether a book is worth 4 or 5 stars is always the hardest struggle (together with - only - the dilemma of 2 vs 3). But in the absence of a half-star option, it forces you the reader to have a long think about the book once you've reached the final page. Unless you're the sorts of person whose lives only exist of handing out 1 or 5 stars to anything. I mean, just the other day I saw a pizza place get a two-star review with the intriguing comment: "I don't like pizza." Which made me wonder if the pizza there was actually so good it could convince a pizza hater to smack on a second star.
To me, a five-star review doesn't mean a book is perfect (nothing is). But it means that once I started reading I could get sucked into this world that the author has tried to create. Without further ado, let's go straight to the selling point of The Little Blue Kite, a book for children as well as parents. In most cases, that means adding a couple of filthy jokes the young ones don't understand, but Danielewski did something completely different. Enter the layered book.
The Little Blue Kite contains three stories using the same text. Level 1 is achieved by reading all the words in the book. If you read only the words in bold, you've finished level 2. But some of those bold words aren't just in white, but in the colours of a rainbow. Read only the rainbow words and there's level 3. Obviously, it's level 3 we all start with. This also allows us to see the wonderful artwork by Regina Gonzales.
Kids will love the three-level journey because it's the book version of a treasure hunt. Adults will like that too, but a kid's mind will find it easier just to read the desired words. Adults have been trained to think about context so much it's a lot harder to focus on just those words. But Danielewski doesn't mind. I was talking to a friend about the book and he warned me not to give away spoilers. Which brings us to what is a spoiler. Because the book has been created in such a way that when you're only reading the rainbow words (level 3), you'll see a couple of references to levels 1 and 2. I won't discuss the level 2 one because I think that's a spoiler. But I think it's impossible to read levels 2 and 3 without noticing the word 'Murk'. The Murk only appears in the full version (level 1) and you have no idea what it's about (nor will I tell you), but Danielewski sandwiched a sentence containing the Murk between two sentences in bold, so it's hard not to know of the existence of the word. Is this intentional? It must be: the artwork is made in such a way your eyes are bound to see this. And this creates the effect that after reading the rainbow words you'll want to read level 2, just to find out more about Kai and the kite. And then you're curious to find out more, especially about that Murk, so you want to go back and start reading all words.
In "House of Leaves", Danielewski created a chapter about a labyrinth which was filled with footnotes and endnotes all over the place, giving the reader the feeling of getting lost in the book (as if it was a labyrinth itself). That's quite ambitious, but it calls for nothing but praise if it works. And just like "House of Leaves", "The Little Blue Kite" achieves that: you start with the rainbow words and don't want to stop until you've read all the words. With Danielewski whispering between the levels: "There's more to this than appears at first glance..."
I didn't like every sentence in the book, with the sentences with "for nothing to be nothing" etc. coming to mind immediately. Given the artwork in the book, I think a more poetic setting would have helped that sentence to become easier to read (and probably it would've helped me think about the meaning more rather than needing three goes to actually understand it and just wanting to get on with the book at that moment). But that's a personal issue: I know that some stumble on sentences that are clear to others and vice versa. In the end, I think the artwork and the three-layer structure are more important than having to read a sentence again (and again).
Hence the five stars.
To me, a five-star review doesn't mean a book is perfect (nothing is). But it means that once I started reading I could get sucked into this world that the author has tried to create. Without further ado, let's go straight to the selling point of The Little Blue Kite, a book for children as well as parents. In most cases, that means adding a couple of filthy jokes the young ones don't understand, but Danielewski did something completely different. Enter the layered book.
The Little Blue Kite contains three stories using the same text. Level 1 is achieved by reading all the words in the book. If you read only the words in bold, you've finished level 2. But some of those bold words aren't just in white, but in the colours of a rainbow. Read only the rainbow words and there's level 3. Obviously, it's level 3 we all start with. This also allows us to see the wonderful artwork by Regina Gonzales.
Kids will love the three-level journey because it's the book version of a treasure hunt. Adults will like that too, but a kid's mind will find it easier just to read the desired words. Adults have been trained to think about context so much it's a lot harder to focus on just those words. But Danielewski doesn't mind. I was talking to a friend about the book and he warned me not to give away spoilers. Which brings us to what is a spoiler. Because the book has been created in such a way that when you're only reading the rainbow words (level 3), you'll see a couple of references to levels 1 and 2. I won't discuss the level 2 one because I think that's a spoiler. But I think it's impossible to read levels 2 and 3 without noticing the word 'Murk'. The Murk only appears in the full version (level 1) and you have no idea what it's about (nor will I tell you), but Danielewski sandwiched a sentence containing the Murk between two sentences in bold, so it's hard not to know of the existence of the word. Is this intentional? It must be: the artwork is made in such a way your eyes are bound to see this. And this creates the effect that after reading the rainbow words you'll want to read level 2, just to find out more about Kai and the kite. And then you're curious to find out more, especially about that Murk, so you want to go back and start reading all words.
In "House of Leaves", Danielewski created a chapter about a labyrinth which was filled with footnotes and endnotes all over the place, giving the reader the feeling of getting lost in the book (as if it was a labyrinth itself). That's quite ambitious, but it calls for nothing but praise if it works. And just like "House of Leaves", "The Little Blue Kite" achieves that: you start with the rainbow words and don't want to stop until you've read all the words. With Danielewski whispering between the levels: "There's more to this than appears at first glance..."
I didn't like every sentence in the book, with the sentences with "for nothing to be nothing" etc. coming to mind immediately. Given the artwork in the book, I think a more poetic setting would have helped that sentence to become easier to read (and probably it would've helped me think about the meaning more rather than needing three goes to actually understand it and just wanting to get on with the book at that moment). But that's a personal issue: I know that some stumble on sentences that are clear to others and vice versa. In the end, I think the artwork and the three-layer structure are more important than having to read a sentence again (and again).
Hence the five stars.
patkohn's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
narcon_jd's review against another edition
5.0
I wish I had this book as a kid, it would have helped. It helps having it as an adult as well.
cryo_guy's review against another edition
1.0
Bad art. Disappointed in Danielewski.
Read The Very Hungry Caterpillar instead.
Read The Very Hungry Caterpillar instead.
zermaslan's review against another edition
3.0
Hay tres maneras de leer este libro, y por alguna razón cada una de ellas añade y empeora la historia. Trata de ser un cuento para diferentes públicos con el "truco" de palabras de distintos colores, pero a diferencia de la magistral [b:House of Leaves|24800|House of Leaves|Mark Z. Danielewski|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1403889034l/24800._SX50_.jpg|856555] se quedan todas las ideas a medio cuajar.
Ojalá este libro fuera más concreto :(
Ojalá este libro fuera más concreto :(
livtupi's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
INSANE, as per usual! Crying like crazy! "But you already knew that, didn't you?"