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3.82 AVERAGE
3.82 AVERAGE
Une petite enquête super sympa avec deux petites filles un peu agaçantes mais c'est ça qu'on adore!
Je commence à (re)découvrir l'univers des middle grade et c'est un petit bouquin qui se lit sans chichis et qui nous donne envie de se servir une bonne cup of tea!
Je commence à (re)découvrir l'univers des middle grade et c'est un petit bouquin qui se lit sans chichis et qui nous donne envie de se servir une bonne cup of tea!
Ah, a mystery! A teacher is found murdered at this 1930s girls' school, and it's up to the resident Holmes and Watson (Daisy Well and Hazel Wong, respectively) to prove foul play.
Things that are delightful about this book:
- non-white protagonist....hooray!
- a genuine mystery for all of my students who seem dead set on only reading mysteries!
- the single attractive male teacher is only referred to as The One, which never stops being funny
- casual references to female students (and teachers) canoodling in closets
- Daisy gets away with a lot for being an attractive blonde, and Hazel calls her out on it.
Small quibbles:
- Man, it is hard to keep track of all the characters, especially the teachers.
- I caught a fair amount of social criticism woven into the book, but I'm not confident younger readers would find the same. I found myself despising Daisy by the end because she is so unapologetically privileged and manipulative, and I'm not sure that was Stevens's intent. I'll be curious to see what students think when they read this text.
Things that are delightful about this book:
- non-white protagonist....hooray!
- a genuine mystery for all of my students who seem dead set on only reading mysteries!
- the single attractive male teacher is only referred to as The One, which never stops being funny
- casual references to female students (and teachers) canoodling in closets
- Daisy gets away with a lot for being an attractive blonde, and Hazel calls her out on it.
Small quibbles:
- Man, it is hard to keep track of all the characters, especially the teachers.
- I caught a fair amount of social criticism woven into the book, but I'm not confident younger readers would find the same. I found myself despising Daisy by the end because she is so unapologetically privileged and manipulative, and I'm not sure that was Stevens's intent. I'll be curious to see what students think when they read this text.
Where to start.
This book could have been a five star read for me, but there were a few things that were problematic for me, and I just didn’t like the way that the author handled them. I’ll detail those below, and I don’t think it’s spoilery or anything. I recommend reading my comments before you let your child or student read this story. I will say that I really enjoyed the mystery and the second half was much better than the first. I will at least read the next book because I already have it, and because I’d like to see if the author is better about the issues I address below. Everything considered, I give the book 3 stars because the story had a lot going for it, and because I’m hoping that the author is going to make up for some of her errors in the following books.
Here are my issues:
The first is the way in which Hazel’s race was discussed. Hazel is from Hong Kong, and she is also the narrator. It’s great to have an Asian MC and narrator, but the author is not Asian, so I’m not entirely thrilled about her trying to write from an Asian first person perspective. But that’s not the biggest frustration for me. I was more so frustrated with the very frequent comments and references to Hazel’s race that felt unnecessary (at least at that level of frequency). They are supposed to be “historically accurate”, but I feel like if you’re going to have that within Middle Grade literature, you need to counter it with positive messages and address the racism for what it is.
Additionally, Hazel makes comments about her weight and compares her larger body to other bodies, making it clear that she thinks thinner bodies are superior. She also, as narrator, brings up the body shape of many, if not most, of the other characters she introduces. I feel like this reflects a high concern with body shape and size that also isn’t addressed or corrected. I think that authors have a responsibility to be aware of their audience and recognize the values they are intentionally or unintentionally promoting through their stories. For Hazel to think that her body is worse than a skinny body, and for it to go unaddressed, it reinforces that idea to young readers who are already getting that message from our media and culture.
Both of these things could be intended as reflecting Hazel’s own perspective on herself and her situation, constantly comparing herself to others and feeling less than her British schoolmates. However, I wish these things would have been addressed in some way to reflect better values for the reader. I care about historical accuracy, but not when it puts a reader at risk of being encouraged to feel like their body or their race (or another’s race or body) is less than. It’s just not okay.
I also thought that Daisy treated Hazel horribly… and while this is addressed much more than the other issues, Daisy still has a lot of work to do in order to actually be a good friend to Hazel. She uses Hazel, is constantly critiquing her and diminishing her, is constantly condescending to her, and takes her for granted all the time. While Daisy does apologize at least once in this novel, most of her poor treatment of Hazel just gets brushed aside as Hazel is constantly wowed by Daisy and therefore willing to except the poor treatment. Again, I’m really hoping to see some major changes in future stories. We don’t want young readers to think that this is what a good friendship looks like.
Thanks for reading my rant.
This book could have been a five star read for me, but there were a few things that were problematic for me, and I just didn’t like the way that the author handled them. I’ll detail those below, and I don’t think it’s spoilery or anything. I recommend reading my comments before you let your child or student read this story. I will say that I really enjoyed the mystery and the second half was much better than the first. I will at least read the next book because I already have it, and because I’d like to see if the author is better about the issues I address below. Everything considered, I give the book 3 stars because the story had a lot going for it, and because I’m hoping that the author is going to make up for some of her errors in the following books.
Here are my issues:
The first is the way in which Hazel’s race was discussed. Hazel is from Hong Kong, and she is also the narrator. It’s great to have an Asian MC and narrator, but the author is not Asian, so I’m not entirely thrilled about her trying to write from an Asian first person perspective. But that’s not the biggest frustration for me. I was more so frustrated with the very frequent comments and references to Hazel’s race that felt unnecessary (at least at that level of frequency). They are supposed to be “historically accurate”, but I feel like if you’re going to have that within Middle Grade literature, you need to counter it with positive messages and address the racism for what it is.
Additionally, Hazel makes comments about her weight and compares her larger body to other bodies, making it clear that she thinks thinner bodies are superior. She also, as narrator, brings up the body shape of many, if not most, of the other characters she introduces. I feel like this reflects a high concern with body shape and size that also isn’t addressed or corrected. I think that authors have a responsibility to be aware of their audience and recognize the values they are intentionally or unintentionally promoting through their stories. For Hazel to think that her body is worse than a skinny body, and for it to go unaddressed, it reinforces that idea to young readers who are already getting that message from our media and culture.
Both of these things could be intended as reflecting Hazel’s own perspective on herself and her situation, constantly comparing herself to others and feeling less than her British schoolmates. However, I wish these things would have been addressed in some way to reflect better values for the reader. I care about historical accuracy, but not when it puts a reader at risk of being encouraged to feel like their body or their race (or another’s race or body) is less than. It’s just not okay.
I also thought that Daisy treated Hazel horribly… and while this is addressed much more than the other issues, Daisy still has a lot of work to do in order to actually be a good friend to Hazel. She uses Hazel, is constantly critiquing her and diminishing her, is constantly condescending to her, and takes her for granted all the time. While Daisy does apologize at least once in this novel, most of her poor treatment of Hazel just gets brushed aside as Hazel is constantly wowed by Daisy and therefore willing to except the poor treatment. Again, I’m really hoping to see some major changes in future stories. We don’t want young readers to think that this is what a good friendship looks like.
Thanks for reading my rant.
representation: Chinese MC, dyslexic side character.
[trigger warnings are listed at the bottom of this review and may contain spoilers]
★★★.5
This was fun but I definitely had to suspend my disbelief a lot! As if they wouldn't be absolutely shitting buckets if people kept getting murdered around them. Instead they were OMG LET'S INVESTIGATE THIS IS SOOO FUN. lol wtf. It was a fun historical mystery that kept me guessing, none the less!
trigger warnings: murder (obviously lol), brief mention of suicide, brief mention of drowning, racism, lots of stereotyping, fat shaming, vomiting.
[trigger warnings are listed at the bottom of this review and may contain spoilers]
★★★.5
This was fun but I definitely had to suspend my disbelief a lot! As if they wouldn't be absolutely shitting buckets if people kept getting murdered around them. Instead they were OMG LET'S INVESTIGATE THIS IS SOOO FUN. lol wtf. It was a fun historical mystery that kept me guessing, none the less!
trigger warnings: murder (obviously lol), brief mention of suicide, brief mention of drowning, racism, lots of stereotyping, fat shaming, vomiting.
A cute enough detective tale; I’d say upper elementary and 6th/7th graders would enjoy it. It was a little slow for me, but the ending was enjoyable. Several red herrings that kept you guessing.
i think this was the only book i actually enjoyed last year but at the same time i only read like a few idk if should read the next books
Never was there a book more charming and fun than Murder Most Unladylike by Robin Stevens, this first in the Wells and Wong Mystery series. It's funny, I was sort of teetering on the fence about whether or not I wanted to actually read this book as it is aimed at a slightly younger than YA audience. And then I kept hearing positive things about it on Twitter and suddenly I thought, 'oh, why not?' I am so very happy that I acted on that whim.
Because Murder Most Unladylike is such a lovely little book. I loved everything about it. From the upbeat cover, the fact that there is a MAP and a character guide at the start. I love the fact that this book is set in a boarding school in the 1930s. I especially loved the voice of our main character, Hazel Wong and her friendship with Daisy Wells.
At the start of the book, we are introduced to both Hazel and Daisy and how they met and formed their Detective Agency, that up until now was only gathering clues and solving petty mysteries. And then one day Hazel stumbles across the dead body of Miss Wells, the science mistress and Hazel and Daisy go into overdrive gathering evidence and suspects and in the meanwhile nobody else seems to realise that Miss Wells is even dead.
Honestly, this book. I completely fell in love with Deepdean School For Girls and with Hazel and Daisy. I wanted to go back in time and attend this school, with these girls and to skip about and go on bunbreaks. BUNBREAKS. And I also really loved the way in which Hazel and Daisy go about solving this case. They put together a timeline of events, a suspect list, gather evidence and alibis and all in this clever and roundabout way by talking to the other students and teachers. It was all very interesting to learn of the different news and gossip about everyone involved in Hazel and Daisy's lives. It also felt really believable that these two girls could achieve what they did in the ways that they did it.
I loved Hazel's character the most. I love that she's from Hong Kong and we see a little bit of the way she is treated differently by the other girls. I also loved that she's a little plump and some of her comments and observations involving biscuits and buns made me howl with laughter and just love her that much more. Her friendship with Daisy is a complicated one and it was really interesting to see the formation of their friendship from Hazel's perspective and how that friendship is tested during this murder investigation.
I absolutely loved this book and highly recommend that you read it. I'm so excited to read more in this series! Bring on the next Wells and Wong Mystery!
Because Murder Most Unladylike is such a lovely little book. I loved everything about it. From the upbeat cover, the fact that there is a MAP and a character guide at the start. I love the fact that this book is set in a boarding school in the 1930s. I especially loved the voice of our main character, Hazel Wong and her friendship with Daisy Wells.
At the start of the book, we are introduced to both Hazel and Daisy and how they met and formed their Detective Agency, that up until now was only gathering clues and solving petty mysteries. And then one day Hazel stumbles across the dead body of Miss Wells, the science mistress and Hazel and Daisy go into overdrive gathering evidence and suspects and in the meanwhile nobody else seems to realise that Miss Wells is even dead.
Honestly, this book. I completely fell in love with Deepdean School For Girls and with Hazel and Daisy. I wanted to go back in time and attend this school, with these girls and to skip about and go on bunbreaks. BUNBREAKS. And I also really loved the way in which Hazel and Daisy go about solving this case. They put together a timeline of events, a suspect list, gather evidence and alibis and all in this clever and roundabout way by talking to the other students and teachers. It was all very interesting to learn of the different news and gossip about everyone involved in Hazel and Daisy's lives. It also felt really believable that these two girls could achieve what they did in the ways that they did it.
I loved Hazel's character the most. I love that she's from Hong Kong and we see a little bit of the way she is treated differently by the other girls. I also loved that she's a little plump and some of her comments and observations involving biscuits and buns made me howl with laughter and just love her that much more. Her friendship with Daisy is a complicated one and it was really interesting to see the formation of their friendship from Hazel's perspective and how that friendship is tested during this murder investigation.
I absolutely loved this book and highly recommend that you read it. I'm so excited to read more in this series! Bring on the next Wells and Wong Mystery!
Good fun. I probably would not have read any of this series except that Robin Stevens was one of the keynote speakers at the 2019 Diana Wynne Jones conference. Helpful hint for those who do not like Daisy: you're not meant to. According to the author, she's essentially Gwendolyn, which will tell DWJ fans a lot. I'm not sure that I'll bother with any more unless I really need some light reading - it was perfect for the plane trip home from the UK.
What do you get when you cross Angela Brazil with Agatha Christie? Murder Most Unladylike, the first of the (hopefully many) Wells and Wong mysteries.
As a lover of both period girls' school stories and Agatha Christie's novels, I suppose I was bound to love Murder Most Unladylike. Stevens treats the 1930s school story with great respect, but is able to add elements that Brazil, Brent-Dyer and Blyton could only hint at - lesbianism, bullying and teachers with murky secrets in their past and actual (gasp!) vices.
The mystery itself was beautifully plotted, with enough red herrings that it kept me guessing almost to the end, and plenty of suspense in the final chapters. Judging by other reviews, Stevens' second Wells and Wong mystery is even better than the first, and it has gone straight to the top of my "to read" list.
As a lover of both period girls' school stories and Agatha Christie's novels, I suppose I was bound to love Murder Most Unladylike. Stevens treats the 1930s school story with great respect, but is able to add elements that Brazil, Brent-Dyer and Blyton could only hint at - lesbianism, bullying and teachers with murky secrets in their past and actual (gasp!) vices.
The mystery itself was beautifully plotted, with enough red herrings that it kept me guessing almost to the end, and plenty of suspense in the final chapters. Judging by other reviews, Stevens' second Wells and Wong mystery is even better than the first, and it has gone straight to the top of my "to read" list.