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zepeng's review against another edition
1.0
-DNF-
This story is made up of four parts that is somewhat interconnected. The first story, which is a poem, is quite good. I never read a story where it uses poem to tell a story.
Yet, the other three is boring as hell. I manage to read a few pages before I skip the second part. The third is the same. And the forth? I didn't even bother to read it.
This story is made up of four parts that is somewhat interconnected. The first story, which is a poem, is quite good. I never read a story where it uses poem to tell a story.
Yet, the other three is boring as hell. I manage to read a few pages before I skip the second part. The third is the same. And the forth? I didn't even bother to read it.
smart_girls_love_trashy_books's review against another edition
4.0
-POTENTIAL SPOILERS-
This is a book that I'm very confused as what to rate it. I'm even confused what to label it as. While it didn't necessarily blow my mind like it did pretty much everyone else who read this, I still enjoyed the overall idea and how everything came together at the end.
The stories I found myself getting really invested in was the first one, which takes place in prehistory. Not enough books are written about prehistoric times, and while I can see why, I still want to see some kind of branching out. And it was interesting in this book. The other one I got invested in was the third one, which followed a doctor in the late 1920's who worked at a mental asylum and his interactions with one of the patients, a poet whom the doctor believes isn't really crazy. I liked this one because of the creepy atmosphere, and how rare the time period setting is.
As for the other two...they were just okay. I'm not a huge fan of witch trials in general, nor Puritan England, so I felt the second story was decent, but also kinda boring. The fourth one I liked slightly more because of the futuristic aspect, but it went a lot into mathematical formulas and theories I don't know very much about, thus it bored me. I did however like the twist that he was the one who was secretly murdering the others on the ship, and of course how everything came together at the end.
Several people compared this to Cloud Atlas, so I went into this with high expectations, and needless to say I wasn't disappointed. Now I'm on the lookout to see how common spirals really are in our everyday lives....
This is a book that I'm very confused as what to rate it. I'm even confused what to label it as. While it didn't necessarily blow my mind like it did pretty much everyone else who read this, I still enjoyed the overall idea and how everything came together at the end.
The stories I found myself getting really invested in was the first one, which takes place in prehistory. Not enough books are written about prehistoric times, and while I can see why, I still want to see some kind of branching out. And it was interesting in this book. The other one I got invested in was the third one, which followed a doctor in the late 1920's who worked at a mental asylum and his interactions with one of the patients, a poet whom the doctor believes isn't really crazy. I liked this one because of the creepy atmosphere, and how rare the time period setting is.
As for the other two...they were just okay. I'm not a huge fan of witch trials in general, nor Puritan England, so I felt the second story was decent, but also kinda boring. The fourth one I liked slightly more because of the futuristic aspect, but it went a lot into mathematical formulas and theories I don't know very much about, thus it bored me. I did however like the twist that he was the one who was secretly murdering the others on the ship, and of course how everything came together at the end.
Several people compared this to Cloud Atlas, so I went into this with high expectations, and needless to say I wasn't disappointed. Now I'm on the lookout to see how common spirals really are in our everyday lives....
jafinc's review against another edition
4.0
More reviews on: www.jafink.com/blog
Rating: š²š²š²š²/5
You ever finish reading a book and just not know how to express your feelings about it? Well, thatās me with Ghosts of Heaven by Marcus Sedgwick. It was my third book of the year and a book Iāve had on my shelf for over three years now.
My inability to express my feelings isnāt a reflection of a bad book, quite the opposite. Ghosts of Heaven is a very unique, slightly strange, and highly thought-provoking book told in 4 āquartersā set in four different time periods (pre-historic to distant future) with only humans and the idea/concept/theme of spirals connecting them.
Sedgwick himself says in the introduction that the quarters can be read in any order, creating different meanings or interpretations for the reader, which in turn adds another level of weirdness and uniqueness to the reading experience.
Itās not a book Iād recommend to everyone, but it is a book Iād recommend.I donāt make sense do I? Itās okay, Iām seeing spirals everywhere. Donāt believe me? Look at your fingerprints.
Rating: š²š²š²š²/5
You ever finish reading a book and just not know how to express your feelings about it? Well, thatās me with Ghosts of Heaven by Marcus Sedgwick. It was my third book of the year and a book Iāve had on my shelf for over three years now.
My inability to express my feelings isnāt a reflection of a bad book, quite the opposite. Ghosts of Heaven is a very unique, slightly strange, and highly thought-provoking book told in 4 āquartersā set in four different time periods (pre-historic to distant future) with only humans and the idea/concept/theme of spirals connecting them.
Sedgwick himself says in the introduction that the quarters can be read in any order, creating different meanings or interpretations for the reader, which in turn adds another level of weirdness and uniqueness to the reading experience.
Itās not a book Iād recommend to everyone, but it is a book Iād recommend.I donāt make sense do I? Itās okay, Iām seeing spirals everywhere. Donāt believe me? Look at your fingerprints.
stripy_gloves's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death
roseleaf24's review against another edition
3.0
Printz Honor Book 2016
I'm enjoying reading the other reviews on this book, because it's really a complicated book, and it's fun to see the variety of ratings coming from reviews that are similar in their "ummm....what?" reactions. I didn't love it, but I enjoyed it, and I found it fascinating. The short story nature meant that I as a reader was never safe. The tension only resolved enough to end the story and go on to the next one. The settings of the last two stories are settings that can easily terrify me, no matter what the story taking place is, so I had a hard time reading the last half of the book at night and it took me longer to get through than it otherwise would have.
If you liked Midwinterblood, I think you will find many of the same things to like here. I was more attached to that book, though, because even though each story was less in depth, the continuity of characters engaged me more than the connection of the spiral.
I'm enjoying reading the other reviews on this book, because it's really a complicated book, and it's fun to see the variety of ratings coming from reviews that are similar in their "ummm....what?" reactions. I didn't love it, but I enjoyed it, and I found it fascinating. The short story nature meant that I as a reader was never safe. The tension only resolved enough to end the story and go on to the next one. The settings of the last two stories are settings that can easily terrify me, no matter what the story taking place is, so I had a hard time reading the last half of the book at night and it took me longer to get through than it otherwise would have.
If you liked Midwinterblood, I think you will find many of the same things to like here. I was more attached to that book, though, because even though each story was less in depth, the continuity of characters engaged me more than the connection of the spiral.
maxxesbooktopia's review against another edition
4.0
āIt is their soul, crying for peace. It appears in their eyes, like a ghost resurfacing, crying for help. And then, when I stop reading, the mad waters rush in, and wash it away once more.ā- The Ghost Of Heaven (Quarter 3), Marcus Sedgwick.
Writing
The writing style was crisp, epigrammatic and very well-seasoned. Marcus described the things around the characters in the book perfectly. Even though the first story in the book is not my favourite, the others definitely made up to it!
The plot for this book was very well thought out. All four stories in the book are linked in a very interesting way. For example, Past-Past-Present-Future. You guys probably donāt understand what Iām trying to say but itās better to go into the book without knowing anything.
The pacing for this book was fast. It will keep you up all night because when you put the book down, your brain will wonder, āWhat is going to happen to the character?ā
Characters
*I am not going to talk about the villians in the book becauseā¦ Theyāre unexpected.*
Anna: Sheās the main character in second story. Sheās kind and she will do anything for her brother. Her story almost made me cry because she doesnāt deserve to be treated the way people treated her to be.
Doctor James: OH MY GOSH! I loved this character in the book! Heās the main character in the third story and heās super cool and kind. He treated his patients like gold and thatās what I liked about him.
Bowman: Heās the main character in the fourth story and um.. Unlike the other two characters I have talked about previously, heās not so kind and heās actually a [Spoiler].
In conclusion, Marcus created wonderful and unique characters.
Overall
I give this book a 89.5%. Itās a beautifully written book and I think that everyone should get their hands on it!
Writing
The writing style was crisp, epigrammatic and very well-seasoned. Marcus described the things around the characters in the book perfectly. Even though the first story in the book is not my favourite, the others definitely made up to it!
The plot for this book was very well thought out. All four stories in the book are linked in a very interesting way. For example, Past-Past-Present-Future. You guys probably donāt understand what Iām trying to say but itās better to go into the book without knowing anything.
The pacing for this book was fast. It will keep you up all night because when you put the book down, your brain will wonder, āWhat is going to happen to the character?ā
Characters
*I am not going to talk about the villians in the book becauseā¦ Theyāre unexpected.*
Anna: Sheās the main character in second story. Sheās kind and she will do anything for her brother. Her story almost made me cry because she doesnāt deserve to be treated the way people treated her to be.
Doctor James: OH MY GOSH! I loved this character in the book! Heās the main character in the third story and heās super cool and kind. He treated his patients like gold and thatās what I liked about him.
Bowman: Heās the main character in the fourth story and um.. Unlike the other two characters I have talked about previously, heās not so kind and heās actually a [Spoiler].
In conclusion, Marcus created wonderful and unique characters.
Overall
I give this book a 89.5%. Itās a beautifully written book and I think that everyone should get their hands on it!
doritobabe's review
4.0
I don't know if this book was influenced by "interstellar" or of the movie was influenced by this book, or if the theme of alone-ness in the universe and repetition is one that is constantly out there. Never before have I encountered two things so similar, however.
Sedgwick seems to continually write about the same thing. At least, from what I have seen in the two randomly selected books of his that I have recently read (Midwinter Blood, Ghosts of Heaven). Both dealing with repetition in its most abstract forms; soul-bonds, fate, and the ways of viewing history or the past.
I am thinking mainly of the last story in this book (Sedgwick has a knack for writing short stories that fit into a larger novel) that brings everything back to the "whole". He says you can read it in any order, although I feel this is flawed, that maybe you cannot get the same effect if you do read it out of order, but now I will never know.
Another thing I would like to add: Sedgwick is often classified as a teen author but I really wonder if this is true. His books are so anachronistic from majority of the teen books out there. I wonder if he is classified as such because they are subtly complex with double-line spacing, and being unclassifiable as whether or not it is legitimate fiction or just philosophy-folklore... I can't even finish this thought it is so confusing... masquerading as a teen novel.
Sedgwick seems to continually write about the same thing. At least, from what I have seen in the two randomly selected books of his that I have recently read (Midwinter Blood, Ghosts of Heaven). Both dealing with repetition in its most abstract forms; soul-bonds, fate, and the ways of viewing history or the past.
I am thinking mainly of the last story in this book (Sedgwick has a knack for writing short stories that fit into a larger novel) that brings everything back to the "whole". He says you can read it in any order, although I feel this is flawed, that maybe you cannot get the same effect if you do read it out of order, but now I will never know.
Another thing I would like to add: Sedgwick is often classified as a teen author but I really wonder if this is true. His books are so anachronistic from majority of the teen books out there. I wonder if he is classified as such because they are subtly complex with double-line spacing, and being unclassifiable as whether or not it is legitimate fiction or just philosophy-folklore... I can't even finish this thought it is so confusing... masquerading as a teen novel.
hayleybeale's review against another edition
4.0
Printz winner Marcus Sedgwick's latest is a collection of four loosely connected stories, set in time periods from prehistory to the space traveling future, and written in different styles. They all feature spirals in significant, but different ways. I loved two of the stories (5 stars!) but felt the other two were a little ho hum (3 stars!). Read my full review here.