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izzys_internet_bookshelf's review
3.0
3/5
I enjoyed the characters and the plot but I felt like I was reading the book hoping Owl would open the letter sooner. The climax was alright, it definitely was unexpected.
I enjoyed the characters and the plot but I felt like I was reading the book hoping Owl would open the letter sooner. The climax was alright, it definitely was unexpected.
aehaggerty's review
1.0
Such a good premise and it gets thrown away by the biggest asshole of a love interest I've ever seen. Owl deserves better :/ I get that that is the point but he literally has no redeeming qualities
leigh_ann_15_deaf's review
4.0
There's no mention of the author being deaf or of having sensitivity readers. But either Owl’s deafness is based off herself or someone the author knows or she really did her research. Color me impressed.
Owl uses a bed shaker alarm and the family has a landline CapTel, two pieces of technology that are almost always missing from literature featuring deaf characters.
She speaks and speechreads, and uses some ASL (not fluently). She is mildly deaf in left ear and severe/profound in the right. She has no selective hearing when there’s too much noise (multiple conversations and radio, etc.).
Owl has an itinerant teacher of the deaf who comes twice a week. They sometimes sign, sometimes speak. One thing that initially threw me off was that Ms Z asks Owl if she has considered cochlear implants, which would “eliminate the need to sign completely.” I guess it’s possible that some teachers of the deaf are ignorant about CIs, but it does strike me as incredibly strange for her to say, especially considering how well done the rest of the deafness-related content is. She left Owl speechless, which maybe was the point? Come to find out she had said it out of frustration with Owl’s lack of signing skills/improvement and holding her tutor at arm’s length instead of communicating/confiding.
As a child Owl tried hearing aids, which didn’t help her. Perfect description: “unable to stand the squealing feedback, the unnatural fit, the way they managed to amplify without actually clarifying anything, merely creating a louder, equally confusing maelstrom.”
I have to detract points for the Echo effect. She can speechread 100% of a group conversation at a distance. Multiple times throughout book. The author's intent is to show that Owl isn’t incapable of understanding conversations she can’t hear, but the unfortunate effect is that she gives Owl an unrealistic superpower. It would have been much better if the author had shown how difficult and exhausting this work to understand is, how Owl is piecing together clues and memories in order to figure out what’s being said. As it is, it comes with preternatural ease.
Overall, this is definitely one of the better representations of deaf characters I've read, and I enjoyed the story, too.
Owl uses a bed shaker alarm and the family has a landline CapTel, two pieces of technology that are almost always missing from literature featuring deaf characters.
She speaks and speechreads, and uses some ASL (not fluently). She is mildly deaf in left ear and severe/profound in the right. She has no selective hearing when there’s too much noise (multiple conversations and radio, etc.).
Owl has an itinerant teacher of the deaf who comes twice a week. They sometimes sign, sometimes speak. One thing that initially threw me off was that Ms Z asks Owl if she has considered cochlear implants, which would “eliminate the need to sign completely.” I guess it’s possible that some teachers of the deaf are ignorant about CIs, but it does strike me as incredibly strange for her to say, especially considering how well done the rest of the deafness-related content is. She left Owl speechless, which maybe was the point? Come to find out she had said it out of frustration with Owl’s lack of signing skills/improvement and holding her tutor at arm’s length instead of communicating/confiding.
As a child Owl tried hearing aids, which didn’t help her. Perfect description: “unable to stand the squealing feedback, the unnatural fit, the way they managed to amplify without actually clarifying anything, merely creating a louder, equally confusing maelstrom.”
I have to detract points for the Echo effect. She can speechread 100% of a group conversation at a distance. Multiple times throughout book. The author's intent is to show that Owl isn’t incapable of understanding conversations she can’t hear, but the unfortunate effect is that she gives Owl an unrealistic superpower. It would have been much better if the author had shown how difficult and exhausting this work to understand is, how Owl is piecing together clues and memories in order to figure out what’s being said. As it is, it comes with preternatural ease.
Overall, this is definitely one of the better representations of deaf characters I've read, and I enjoyed the story, too.
Deaf reader reviewing books with deaf characters. This book is listed on my ranked list of books with deaf characters: https://slacowan.com/2023/01/14/ranked-deaf-characters-in-fiction.
thelittleotter's review
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.0
Read this in winter which matched the vibes. The imagery and description of anxiousness hooked me in, my brain loved loved the writing of this.
missnatcat's review
3.0
This isn’t my normal genre, so it was a little harder for me to get into. I struggled with the sentence structure (or lack thereof). But I think the coming of age and general character development for Owl was well done.
themaggiemch's review
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
I got a copy of this book through a giveaway, and I was so excited because that cover is GORGEOUS. I mean, it makes sense- the cover artist is named Elena Masci and she's done covers for books like "Belladonna" and "The Last Tale of the Flower Bride"- she's EXTREMELY talented and I especially love the art for this one.
However, aside from the cover, there wasn't a whole lot I actually liked with this book. There was like one scene at the end that was truly exciting, and everything else was really boring. It took me a while to get through because I kept falling asleep.
None of the characters are super likeable or even super interesting. On paper, they sound pretty good but in practice they fall short. Owl's depiction as hearing-impaired was a representation not seen often in books, but I feel as though that could've been further explored.
Another thing that drove me crazy was that the back cover isn't entirely accurate to the plot of the book. Things that seem to be a big deal, based off summary alone, end up not being that important.
I will say that the descriptions of nature were gorgeous and I did end up learning more about the process of how maple syrup is made. So I at least enjoyed that aspect of the novel.
I'm sad this book fell short for me, as I really wanted to love it. However, those looking for a slower-paced and contemplative work with compelling descriptions of the natural world would probably enjoy this a lot more than I did!
However, aside from the cover, there wasn't a whole lot I actually liked with this book. There was like one scene at the end that was truly exciting, and everything else was really boring. It took me a while to get through because I kept falling asleep.
None of the characters are super likeable or even super interesting. On paper, they sound pretty good but in practice they fall short. Owl's depiction as hearing-impaired was a representation not seen often in books, but I feel as though that could've been further explored.
Another thing that drove me crazy was that the back cover isn't entirely accurate to the plot of the book. Things that seem to be a big deal, based off summary alone, end up not being that important.
I will say that the descriptions of nature were gorgeous and I did end up learning more about the process of how maple syrup is made. So I at least enjoyed that aspect of the novel.
I'm sad this book fell short for me, as I really wanted to love it. However, those looking for a slower-paced and contemplative work with compelling descriptions of the natural world would probably enjoy this a lot more than I did!
jmwilson's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
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
4.0
skylar_blue's review
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25