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bibliobrandie's review
2.0
I liked the setting (1930s, Maine) and I liked the main character, Ellie, but I didn't love the story. It just seemed to go on and on. And maybe too many details of festering wounds and maggots.
hilaryannbrown's review
3.0
2 rounding up to 3 because I think most of why I didn't enjoy it had to do with the audiobook reader's voice
book_concierge's review
3.0
Digital audiobook narrated by Holly Linneman
3.5***
Set during the Great Depression, Wolk’s novel shows the effects on one family when they lose their home in town and are forced to start over in a cabin on Echo Mountain. Life is tough on the mountain, but the family is managing; and then twelve-year-old Ellie’s father has an accident and while he’s confined to bed, the girls and women have to shoulder the burden. Ellie’s mother and older sister take on all the household chores, but it is up to Ellie, who grew to love the woods alongside her father, to fish and hunt game for their food. In this way she comes to really know the mountain, and meets the “hag” (Cate) who lives in a cabin and whom some claim is a witch. But Ellie believes Cate knows the secrets of healing and she’s determined to help her father anyway she can.
This is a lovely adventure story, focused on family, prejudice and discovery. Ellie is a great character – brave, tender, intelligent, resilient, eager to learn, open to new possibilities, and determined. I loved how she conquered her fears and argued in favor of Cate, and how determined she was to help her father heal from the accident. I also loved how nurturing she was … not just with Cate and her father, but also in the way she cared for her little brother, and for her puppy, Quiet.
Holly Linneman does a fine job of narrating the audiobook. I’d give her 5 stars for her performance. She was completely believable as six-year-old Samuel, as Ellie and as Cate.
3.5***
Set during the Great Depression, Wolk’s novel shows the effects on one family when they lose their home in town and are forced to start over in a cabin on Echo Mountain. Life is tough on the mountain, but the family is managing; and then twelve-year-old Ellie’s father has an accident and while he’s confined to bed, the girls and women have to shoulder the burden. Ellie’s mother and older sister take on all the household chores, but it is up to Ellie, who grew to love the woods alongside her father, to fish and hunt game for their food. In this way she comes to really know the mountain, and meets the “hag” (Cate) who lives in a cabin and whom some claim is a witch. But Ellie believes Cate knows the secrets of healing and she’s determined to help her father anyway she can.
This is a lovely adventure story, focused on family, prejudice and discovery. Ellie is a great character – brave, tender, intelligent, resilient, eager to learn, open to new possibilities, and determined. I loved how she conquered her fears and argued in favor of Cate, and how determined she was to help her father heal from the accident. I also loved how nurturing she was … not just with Cate and her father, but also in the way she cared for her little brother, and for her puppy, Quiet.
Holly Linneman does a fine job of narrating the audiobook. I’d give her 5 stars for her performance. She was completely believable as six-year-old Samuel, as Ellie and as Cate.
katydidreads's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
allyexa's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
I love a book centered around a capable girl adjusting to a new surrounding, and this book did not disappoint.
The mountain really came alive, with its steep slopes and trout fishing spots and oaks full of honeybees. The main character Ellie is brave and innovative throughout the story, even though she’s unfairly shunned by her family at first. She hunts, she cures, she works hard and thinks hard and follows her heart. Along the way are mysterious new people she encounters in the woods, fathers to heal, mothers to defy, animals to tend to, potions to brew. The pages fly by.
But suddenly the ending came up, and everything felt very thrown together in a way that made me realize the whole book was a bit slap-dash. A lot of “and then this happened!”, a lot of little miracles, a lot of explaining after the fact. I don’t know. Young adult books can be like this sometimes, the plot needs to move forward and doesn’t necessarily need to feel believable, but it took me out of the story at the end.
I might give another one of Wolk’s books a try, because it was a fun world she built, and she seems to write strong young heroines.
4/8/24
The mountain really came alive, with its steep slopes and trout fishing spots and oaks full of honeybees. The main character Ellie is brave and innovative throughout the story, even though she’s unfairly shunned by her family at first. She hunts, she cures, she works hard and thinks hard and follows her heart. Along the way are mysterious new people she encounters in the woods, fathers to heal, mothers to defy, animals to tend to, potions to brew. The pages fly by.
But suddenly the ending came up, and everything felt very thrown together in a way that made me realize the whole book was a bit slap-dash. A lot of “and then this happened!”, a lot of little miracles, a lot of explaining after the fact. I don’t know. Young adult books can be like this sometimes, the plot needs to move forward and doesn’t necessarily need to feel believable, but it took me out of the story at the end.
I might give another one of Wolk’s books a try, because it was a fun world she built, and she seems to write strong young heroines.
4/8/24
lollylovesbooks's review against another edition
This has been on pause for a while now.
bookish_mrs_w's review against another edition
5.0
Gosh!!! That was beautiful. I can’t put my finger on the thing I loved the most. There was something about the main character and the writing that just draws you in a keeps you so engrossed. There were so many lines that stole my breath and brought tears to my eyes. This one is going to stay with me for a very long time.
shelbynik's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25