Reviews tagging 'Grief'

And the Ocean Was Our Sky by Patrick Ness

2 reviews

librarymouse's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

And the Ocean Was Our Sky is a really interesting twist on Moby Dick.
The idea that there is a single source of evil that gathers more power the more harm, anguish, and death it creates is something that's explored in a lot of fantasy settings from Lord of the Rings to table top role play games, but I've never seen it done this way. Bathsheba's insistence on being the dissenter against the common beliefs of her community is an interesting inversion of YA tropes where the dissenter is proven right in the end. Demetrius and Bathsheba's interactions caused a fundamental fissure in her core beliefs about the natures of men and whales. It pushes her to questions whether fighting for the sake of tradition is fighting the monsters or turning themselves into monsters. I think the way this book deals with questioning sense of self and the idea of loyalty to tradition and rank will make it a modern classic.

I didn't love this book in the way I normally do to give a five star rating, but it was beautifully and lovingly crafted and the questions it poses are going to stick with me for quite a while.

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winnifred's review against another edition

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emotional reflective fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0


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