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4.11 AVERAGE
4.11 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This book is magic! I really enjoyed it. We had to choose a Newberry book to read for one of my classes, and the title and cover definitely drew me to this book. It's middle grade so it is an easy read, but the writing is so beautiful and captivating. The storytelling really sucks you in too, and I didn't want to put the book down.
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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:
No
Beautiful metaphorical story about how sorrow destroys but hope heals. How love is infinite. How even in struggle life can bring joy.
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Yes
“‘It’s all right,’ she said. Her throat hurt. Her chest hurt. Love hurt. So why was she happy? ‘The world is good. Go see it.’”
adventurous
emotional
tense
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
sad
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:
Complicated
“A story can tell the truth...but a story can also lie. Stories can bend and twist and obfuscate. Controlling stories is power indeed.”
Strange and sorrowful and beautiful all at once. It’s the kind of story that feels breathtakingly alive.
Strange and sorrowful and beautiful all at once. It’s the kind of story that feels breathtakingly alive.
I was already excited to read this book based on the reviews, but nothing could have prepared me for how much I loved being immersed in this world of hidden magic, a life-giving bog, generations of sorrow, star-fed children, enormous dragons, and ancient creatures.
It explores themes like grief, love, fear, power, memory, truth, and compassion with such grace. What sets this book apart for me though is that it doesn’t conclude with a traditional fairy-tale ending. It leans into the messy, yet beautiful, reality of how healing is sometimes sad, and sometimes slow.
This one’s going straight to my favorites shelf. Enchanting, unforgettable, heart-wrenching, and so incredibly layered.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Confinement, Forced institutionalization, Kidnapping, Grief, Abandonment
Moderate: Death, Violence, Gaslighting
Minor: Blood