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3.72 AVERAGE
3.72 AVERAGE
Originally posted here at Random Musings of a Bibliophile.
The Boundless by Kenneth Oppel is a fun adventurous story that is historical fantasy of a time we don't see often.
Will's father was a train brakeman and worker on the transcontinental railroad in Canada. Will pores over his father's letters seeping up all the adventures he's had, including an encounter with a Sasquatch. When Will is finally reunited with his father the day the railroad is finished, an accident causes a tremendous reversal in their fortunes and Will's father eventually runs the rail company taking the new and innovative train, The Boundless, for its maiden run across Canada. But there are those who feel they were cheated in the building of the railway, and they want their due. These villains are willing to risk anything including the lives of the passengers and any worker who stands in their way to get it. Will ends up witnessing a murder and with one of the two keys that access the car which holds the great treasures The Boundless carries. Hiding out among a traveling circus on the train, Will must make hard decisions about who to trust, how far he's willing to go to protect the treasure, and come to terms with where his future is headed. Does he become the company drone his father wants him to be or does he make his own path?
I enjoyed how Will is not the stereotypical fantasy hero. He is a talented artist and decent human being, but for the most part he is an ordinary boy who always feels like he's watching life happening around him. He sees the stories, he's never a part of them. He longs for more. After the reversal in his family's fortunes, he went from being a starving urchin to an educated and polished young man. He longs to go to art school, but his father wants him to begin as a clerk with the railway. Will reluctantly knows that he will cave to his father's wishes. Once the action really gets underway, it isn't so much Will's intrinsic bravery as his survival instinct that keeps him going. He also has a keen sense of right versus wrong though, and he desperately wants to do what is right and be stand-up sort of man. As a foil to Will, we have Maren, a tightrope walker with the circus. Maren is a determined girls with plans and sees nothing wrong with bending certain rules and laws to make those plans happen. She does defy gravity on a regular basis after all. Her courage, gumption, and survival skills inspire Will while his loyalty, conviction, and trust move her. They make a great team. Mr. Dorian, the circus master, is the most fascinating character in the book to me. Also not above bending rules, he isn't even likeable most of the time, yet he hides Will, provides for his workers well, and commands their loyalty. He is not without honor even when he goes about attempting things not quite honorable. I really liked the duality of his character, which is in all ways a lighter variation of another great literary character bearing the same name.
The book is an alternate history in which Sasquatch and creepy swamp witches exist and attack humans. There is also the sort of technology that can make a miles long train stay together as it travels across a continent. The combination of this alternate history and the historical setting make for an adventurous and fun read. It was hard for me to put down and I couldn't wait to see how it all ended. Also, it appears to be a standalone and we don't get enough of those anymore.
The Boundless by Kenneth Oppel is a fun adventurous story that is historical fantasy of a time we don't see often.
Will's father was a train brakeman and worker on the transcontinental railroad in Canada. Will pores over his father's letters seeping up all the adventures he's had, including an encounter with a Sasquatch. When Will is finally reunited with his father the day the railroad is finished, an accident causes a tremendous reversal in their fortunes and Will's father eventually runs the rail company taking the new and innovative train, The Boundless, for its maiden run across Canada. But there are those who feel they were cheated in the building of the railway, and they want their due. These villains are willing to risk anything including the lives of the passengers and any worker who stands in their way to get it. Will ends up witnessing a murder and with one of the two keys that access the car which holds the great treasures The Boundless carries. Hiding out among a traveling circus on the train, Will must make hard decisions about who to trust, how far he's willing to go to protect the treasure, and come to terms with where his future is headed. Does he become the company drone his father wants him to be or does he make his own path?
I enjoyed how Will is not the stereotypical fantasy hero. He is a talented artist and decent human being, but for the most part he is an ordinary boy who always feels like he's watching life happening around him. He sees the stories, he's never a part of them. He longs for more. After the reversal in his family's fortunes, he went from being a starving urchin to an educated and polished young man. He longs to go to art school, but his father wants him to begin as a clerk with the railway. Will reluctantly knows that he will cave to his father's wishes. Once the action really gets underway, it isn't so much Will's intrinsic bravery as his survival instinct that keeps him going. He also has a keen sense of right versus wrong though, and he desperately wants to do what is right and be stand-up sort of man. As a foil to Will, we have Maren, a tightrope walker with the circus. Maren is a determined girls with plans and sees nothing wrong with bending certain rules and laws to make those plans happen. She does defy gravity on a regular basis after all. Her courage, gumption, and survival skills inspire Will while his loyalty, conviction, and trust move her. They make a great team. Mr. Dorian, the circus master, is the most fascinating character in the book to me. Also not above bending rules, he isn't even likeable most of the time, yet he hides Will, provides for his workers well, and commands their loyalty. He is not without honor even when he goes about attempting things not quite honorable. I really liked the duality of his character, which is in all ways a lighter variation of another great literary character bearing the same name.
The book is an alternate history in which Sasquatch and creepy swamp witches exist and attack humans. There is also the sort of technology that can make a miles long train stay together as it travels across a continent. The combination of this alternate history and the historical setting make for an adventurous and fun read. It was hard for me to put down and I couldn't wait to see how it all ended. Also, it appears to be a standalone and we don't get enough of those anymore.
Surprisingly entertaining, great mix of adventure and mystery
Not as great as Oppel's other series (Airborn and Frankenstein). Most of the book seemed to be written by someone else, until the end and I found myself thinking, "That's Mr. Oppel!" Still the story was enjoyable and I like that the main character Will is painfully shy at times yet sticks up for himself and is a hero in the end. I felt like my teenage self could relate to him.
Thank you Edelweiss for providing this egalley.
JHS/HS
Thank you Edelweiss for providing this egalley.
JHS/HS
Quick review original published 5 April 2015 at Falling Letters.
Key words to describe this book: Diversity and Canadian history and classism and folklore and sexism and racism and adventure! Whoo, that's a lot for one book to address, but all these topics factor into the story. I guess the best word here is intersectionality? It's great to see that in a novel for younger readers. Even though this book tackles many subjects, it's primarily a fun story. You could dig deeper into those topics if you wish, or you could just enjoy it as an adventure book. It has a great premise and kicks off to a strong start.
-----I like how the darker side of the CPR's history is acknowledged. For example, comments are made early in the book about how it was a terrible working situation for Chinese people.
-----Will and I have the same hometown, a city where many Métis people live. I was excited to find Mr. Dorian is Métis (111). I've never read a fiction book that wasn't specifically about Indigenous people where there's a Métis character.
-----I was a bit thrown when they dressed Will in yellow face like that wasn't at all a problem (141). With racism being a forefront subject in this novel, I thought that such disguises would have been handled more sensitively
I'm not sure about Maren's role. I think she could have used more fleshing out. It's great that she spurns Will's coddling and shows she can make her own decisions and take risks, but I felt that was her only purpose ("Look, girls can act on their own!"). She's also the only female character of any significance.
I thought the story was well-paced (though it did slow up a bit in the middle as they moved their performances from class to class). I was surprised when I noticed I was already 50 pages in.
Oooohhhhh, the description of breakfast makes me want to cry. I want to eat it all!!!! (121)
Overall, an entertaining and easy read, enhanced by the historical Canadian setting infused with a touch of folk fantasy.
Key words to describe this book: Diversity and Canadian history and classism and folklore and sexism and racism and adventure! Whoo, that's a lot for one book to address, but all these topics factor into the story. I guess the best word here is intersectionality? It's great to see that in a novel for younger readers. Even though this book tackles many subjects, it's primarily a fun story. You could dig deeper into those topics if you wish, or you could just enjoy it as an adventure book. It has a great premise and kicks off to a strong start.
-----I like how the darker side of the CPR's history is acknowledged. For example, comments are made early in the book about how it was a terrible working situation for Chinese people.
-----Will and I have the same hometown, a city where many Métis people live. I was excited to find Mr. Dorian is Métis (111). I've never read a fiction book that wasn't specifically about Indigenous people where there's a Métis character.
-----I was a bit thrown when they dressed Will in yellow face like that wasn't at all a problem (141). With racism being a forefront subject in this novel, I thought that such disguises would have been handled more sensitively
I'm not sure about Maren's role. I think she could have used more fleshing out. It's great that she spurns Will's coddling and shows she can make her own decisions and take risks, but I felt that was her only purpose ("Look, girls can act on their own!"). She's also the only female character of any significance.
I thought the story was well-paced (though it did slow up a bit in the middle as they moved their performances from class to class). I was surprised when I noticed I was already 50 pages in.
Oooohhhhh, the description of breakfast makes me want to cry. I want to eat it all!!!! (121)
Overall, an entertaining and easy read, enhanced by the historical Canadian setting infused with a touch of folk fantasy.
Canadian history meets the maiden voyage of the Titanic rendered as a train on the CPR -- now with sasquatches! That is the quickest and most straight-forward way of describing Kenneth Oppel's newest middle grade read.
This stand-alone book follows Will Everett as he goes on a cross-Canada trip on the CPR's newest train: the Boundless. Travelling with them on this engineering marvel are two unusual guests: the Zircus Dante and the funeral car of the CPR's president, Cornelius Van Horne. Will, growing up poor with his father away most of his childhood building the railway, is now wealthy thanks to his father's new-found success in he CPR. However, what he really wants is something that money can't buy -- an adventure, like the ones his father had building the railway. As fate would have it, Will will get his adventure with the help of the circus and the dead rail baron.
This was a fun, solid, fast-paced read that is sure to engage reluctant readers as well as Kenneth Oppel's fans
This stand-alone book follows Will Everett as he goes on a cross-Canada trip on the CPR's newest train: the Boundless. Travelling with them on this engineering marvel are two unusual guests: the Zircus Dante and the funeral car of the CPR's president, Cornelius Van Horne. Will, growing up poor with his father away most of his childhood building the railway, is now wealthy thanks to his father's new-found success in he CPR. However, what he really wants is something that money can't buy -- an adventure, like the ones his father had building the railway. As fate would have it, Will will get his adventure with the help of the circus and the dead rail baron.
This was a fun, solid, fast-paced read that is sure to engage reluctant readers as well as Kenneth Oppel's fans
3.5 Good middle grades read with suspense, folklore, adventure and even a little history. This book is well written and was at a solid 4 for me until the end of the book--the culmination dragged on. Every time I thought I had arrived at the resolution, another unnecessary plot twist was thrown in. Sometimes less is more! With that said, kids might dig that aspect ;)
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-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:
No
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated