You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.2 AVERAGE
4.2 AVERAGE
fast-paced
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The initial Logan section was okay but not overly exciting. Once it switched perspectives, things really got more interesting! Fun read. I really enjoyed it.
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This book is typical Wendy Mass, a novel told from multiple kids' perspectives. The Candymakers seems like it's oriented towards a younger audience than Mass's Every Soul, A Star? or A Mango-Shaped Space, and it's somewhat sappy, and not realistic, but it's definitely an entertaining read. Although some parts of it do get a little repetitive since the story is told from the perspective of four characters, with a new character usually beginning his/her narration after a cliffhanger(!), I like the way in which Mass always manages to narrate in a way that actually is reminiscent of a kid's thought process. I also find her writing heartening (and there always seems to be a generally happy ending) because the reader gets the sense that people are generally good, and that the way that we perceive our actions and the way that others perceive them may not necessarily align, which causes conflict. Although not the most literary or hard-hitting book, this is definitely still a great, entertaining juvenile read that shows that, like the candy factory, "Life is Sweet!"
My third-grader loves candy, cooking, inventing things, factories, and spy stories. This book has all of those...and we loved it. Not as wildly imaginative as its obvious predecessor, "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," but well written and a lot of fun. Highly entertaining for kids (and the adults who might be reading to or with them), with twists and turns that easily keep you turning the 450+ pages. Nice messages about friendship and acceptance, too.
I read this book when I was in grade 4 or 5, and I totally forgot about it, it was may favourite book for a while, you have to read it!
3.75***
This is whimsical tale following four children and their fight to win the annual Candymaking Contest, in which they create their own candy by hand and help from workers who work at their local candy factory. In this story Logan, Daisy, Phillip, and Miles all have secrets to hide and reasons to win.
I picked this one up for Middle Grade March this year. I enjoyed this book a lot, but did find a few issues I had throughout my reading. I thought the plot was a little slow at times, considering much of the same story was told through the four different perspectives. While this is a cool concept, I found the writing to be a bit repetitive at times and my interest slipped more than I wanted it to. I enjoyed the attempt at each child having their own perspective (as we don't see this much in middle-grade) but think it could have been done better. The writing was quite whimsical, which I loved.
As for the characters, I definitely liked Logan better than the other three. I thought they all had a lot to offer to the story and enjoyed their backgrounds, but sympathized the most with the Candymaker's son. I loved that Mass included abnormalities for him, and she addressed them very nicely. It is so important for kids to understand how to treat people, and this book talked a lot about this issue. I thought that Daisy's *situation* should have had better explanation, as her background seemed really quite random to me. If we had just been given some kind of reason as to WHY it existed, I think my thoughts on this would be different. Phillip and Miles were okay characters, but I wished I cared about them more than I did. Phillip's character arc was really nice, and I enjoyed seeing him develop and change throughout the story.
The friendship the four protagonists developed was so sweet and warm, and the ending was for sure the highlight of this read and really made it worth it. I LOVED the candy factory setting and reading about all the different rooms and their creations. I also thought it was really neat that the author took so much care and time to describe the candymaking ingredients and processes. While this is obviously a work of fiction, the research Wendy Mass took was very evident.
This is whimsical tale following four children and their fight to win the annual Candymaking Contest, in which they create their own candy by hand and help from workers who work at their local candy factory. In this story Logan, Daisy, Phillip, and Miles all have secrets to hide and reasons to win.
I picked this one up for Middle Grade March this year. I enjoyed this book a lot, but did find a few issues I had throughout my reading. I thought the plot was a little slow at times, considering much of the same story was told through the four different perspectives. While this is a cool concept, I found the writing to be a bit repetitive at times and my interest slipped more than I wanted it to. I enjoyed the attempt at each child having their own perspective (as we don't see this much in middle-grade) but think it could have been done better. The writing was quite whimsical, which I loved.
As for the characters, I definitely liked Logan better than the other three. I thought they all had a lot to offer to the story and enjoyed their backgrounds, but sympathized the most with the Candymaker's son. I loved that Mass included abnormalities for him, and she addressed them very nicely. It is so important for kids to understand how to treat people, and this book talked a lot about this issue. I thought that Daisy's *situation* should have had better explanation, as her background seemed really quite random to me. If we had just been given some kind of reason as to WHY it existed, I think my thoughts on this would be different. Phillip and Miles were okay characters, but I wished I cared about them more than I did. Phillip's character arc was really nice, and I enjoyed seeing him develop and change throughout the story.
The friendship the four protagonists developed was so sweet and warm, and the ending was for sure the highlight of this read and really made it worth it. I LOVED the candy factory setting and reading about all the different rooms and their creations. I also thought it was really neat that the author took so much care and time to describe the candymaking ingredients and processes. While this is obviously a work of fiction, the research Wendy Mass took was very evident.