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jldyer's review against another edition
2.0
This book had potential, but the world, the storyline, and even the characters fell flat. I don't know if it was due to the translation, but it just didn't hang together well. I found myself struggling from the beginning to understand what was going on and what kind of world the characters lived in. I even found myself questioning the characters themselves.
I wouldn't recommend this to anyone to read. I was disappointed.
I wouldn't recommend this to anyone to read. I was disappointed.
debnanceatreaderbuzz's review against another edition
4.0
A 1001 Children's Book. That's Winter's End. It's translated from the French. In view of my upcoming trip, I've decided to focus on reading those 1001 CBs that have French authors. And, though this book was set in a mysterious alternative universe following a dictatorial takeover, the book had a decidedly French feel, placing its trust in art to save the world. Very dark for a children's book, but with a hopeful ending. I worried the book would be first in a trilogy, but, no, it was complete in itself.
djblock99's review against another edition
1.0
I checked this book out because it's a dystopia story and the description I read sounded really interesting. It started out well, with orphans at an orwellian boarding school who learn that their parents were murdered by the authoritarian government. It gets really exciting when a few of them escape and have to struggle to survive in the mountains in winter.
However, the writing was uneven. Some sections were riveting while other sections just fell flat. The book was written in French and translated to English, so I wonder if some of the issues with writing can be blamed on the translator. One especially ridiculous passage (that had me laughing out loud) was the aftermath of a fight-to-the-death struggle for survival in the mountains.
There's another odd passage around page 218 where we see events from one character's point of view, then see them again from an unnecessary flashback that repeats some of the very same details without adding anything new.
The very worst thing about this book though, the unforgivable thing, involves the characters who are referred to as dog-men and horse-men. The dog-men are described as if they are dog-human hybrids. They have been trained to hunt down and kill people who resist the government. Since this is a dystopic fantasy, I assumed that they must have been the sad result of some government experiment, and that eventually the story of their creation (in a lab) would be revealed. But no, their existence is never explained.
Even more disturbing are the horse-men. I assumed at first that they must have also been the result of an insidious experiment, but then I got to page 277, and the chapter titled "The Horse-Men." Reading this chapter made me feel icky, and killed any enjoyment I had in reading the book. Here are a few of the statements made about the horse-men, who share some horse-like characteristics, but are still people .
p. 281 "All of them are brave, tough, and strong as oxen. But they are unable to learn to read or write ... people even saw a certain nobility in their rustic manners... horse-men need a master, they like to choose that master for themselves. And simple and uncomplicated as they may be..."
p. 286 "It certainly wasn't difficult to worm information out of these people."
p. 293 "The horse-women were no better at lying than their children."
There's more, especially about a young woman named Gerlinda who is treated like a faithful dog by the other people in the story.
I can't recommend this book to anyone.
However, the writing was uneven. Some sections were riveting while other sections just fell flat. The book was written in French and translated to English, so I wonder if some of the issues with writing can be blamed on the translator. One especially ridiculous passage (that had me laughing out loud) was the aftermath of a fight-to-the-death struggle for survival in the mountains.
There's another odd passage around page 218 where we see events from one character's point of view, then see them again from an unnecessary flashback that repeats some of the very same details without adding anything new.
The very worst thing about this book though, the unforgivable thing, involves the characters who are referred to as dog-men and horse-men. The dog-men are described as if they are dog-human hybrids. They have been trained to hunt down and kill people who resist the government. Since this is a dystopic fantasy, I assumed that they must have been the sad result of some government experiment, and that eventually the story of their creation (in a lab) would be revealed. But no, their existence is never explained.
Even more disturbing are the horse-men. I assumed at first that they must have also been the result of an insidious experiment, but then I got to page 277, and the chapter titled "The Horse-Men." Reading this chapter made me feel icky, and killed any enjoyment I had in reading the book. Here are a few of the statements made about the horse-men, who share some horse-like characteristics, but are still people .
p. 281 "All of them are brave, tough, and strong as oxen. But they are unable to learn to read or write ... people even saw a certain nobility in their rustic manners... horse-men need a master, they like to choose that master for themselves. And simple and uncomplicated as they may be..."
p. 286 "It certainly wasn't difficult to worm information out of these people."
p. 293 "The horse-women were no better at lying than their children."
There's more, especially about a young woman named Gerlinda who is treated like a faithful dog by the other people in the story.
I can't recommend this book to anyone.