Scan barcode
harvestwitch's review against another edition
4.0
As someone who has lived in Eastern Europe, I found this book really interesting. It’s very quirky and fun. A very unique retelling. I will say that it does have some awkward subjects included, but nothing too graphic.
socialamoebaemily's review against another edition
adventurous
slow-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
3.0
Overall I liked this one more than most others I've read recently. Stick with Russia and adults and he should be good overall. Generally recommend.
amyeewing's review against another edition
5.0
My mom and I never seem to be able to read this book enough. It's one of those ones that I just read over and over and over again.
pizzamyheart's review against another edition
3.0
Leaving at a solid 3. The story itself is creative and imaginative. While the idea of time travel is a bit overdone, I enjoyed how it was used in this book. I liked the idea of them adapting to each others world. Despite this, I was really dissatisfied by the ending. I felt like the first half of the book had good reasoning and logic behind the actions. Then the second half this goes completely out the window. I was bored and unimpressed by the ending. I hated how it became more cliche, and the "clever" twists. Overall it was just too much. While I enjoyed part of the ride, this is not a book I'd consider recommending.
rubinsandwich's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
apollosapprentice's review against another edition
I’ve read the first book of the Ender series by this author, and it was decent, but rather dense, and I’m not a big fan with slow moving books. However, my aunt recommended this, so I started it, and I kept on getting disgusted by the constant sexist comments and the overall tone. Like I just went to a random page in this to find one of the countless lines that made me pause and think, “uh excuse me?” and I saw this one paragraph saying, “You think Sophia cooks too much food? Wrong, my young friend. She cooks exactly the amount of food needed by a man who works himself to the point of exhaustion every day. The problem is not to get her to cook less. The problem is to work hard enough that her meals are exactly right for you!” Like I don’t even think I need to explain why the literal main plot of the main character being charmed by a pretty sleeping woman in the woods so he needs to rescue her is sad cuz this was made in the ‘90s, not even that long ago.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual harassment, and Toxic relationship
andibarendt's review against another edition
3.0
Literally the only OSC boom worth reading, fuck Enders game
bailo2's review against another edition
4.0
I love this book! I might be biased though because I love Russia. I couldn’t put it down though. This is my favorite Orson Scott Card book, and it’s pretty hard to beat his Ender’s Game. The story follows a Russian studies graduate student who’s immigrated to America as he encounters a princess from his motherland’s folklore. The popular Baba Yaga features as the villain and explains her origins. It isn’t Card’s best work writing wise, but the technical mistakes aren’t a distraction. He also imbues a sense of humor in here that I haven’t picked up on in his other work. I’ve encountered some criticism for this piece amongst his LDS/Mormon fans (I’m also LDS), but none of the content strikes me as inappropriate or out of place so I can’t sympathize. It’s just good, solid fun and entertainment.
papidoc's review against another edition
4.0
While I don't particularly enjoy Card's fantasy fiction novels, this was an exception. It is a retelling of the classic Sleeping Beauty fairy tale, combining magic and myth, religion and history, to put flesh to the bones of the original tale. I quite enjoyed it. Better yet, my kids enjoyed it also, and it subsequently formed the basis for some fun conversations.
jellyphantadventures's review against another edition
3.0
It wasn't until 3/4 of the way through that I remotely liked the main characters. Once I finally got into the book it was over and the ending just didn't cut it for me. It wrapped up much too neatly for my liking. Glad I checked this one out from the library.