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3.12 AVERAGE
3.12 AVERAGE
So much to love about this book but in the end it didn't quite work for me. Ella and Claire worked really well as characters. Their friendship felt real and i wanted to know how they developed and what happened. The setting is wonderful - I know that area a bit and love it so it was wonderful to read something set there. It's perfect too for the strange, otherworldly nature of the story.
But, somehow I couldn't really believe in Orpheus or go with the storytelling as it becomes more fantastical. Maybe the balance between realism and fantasy isn't right. I could go with Orpheus as a strange, otherworldly 'angel'. But after Ella died, as Orpheus became the narrator, I felt the book lost its coherence and inner logic.
But, somehow I couldn't really believe in Orpheus or go with the storytelling as it becomes more fantastical. Maybe the balance between realism and fantasy isn't right. I could go with Orpheus as a strange, otherworldly 'angel'. But after Ella died, as Orpheus became the narrator, I felt the book lost its coherence and inner logic.
It’s probably going to crass and generic and lazy of me to say this, but A Song for Ella Grey really is a song. A beautiful lilting bittersweet one that forced me to read it all, gulp the whole thing down in practically one sitting. It just moves along so easily. It’s glossy but it doesn’t gloss over anything. It gets to the hearts of the characters with its brief, lingering, airy prose. This is my first David Almond, and after experiencing his deft touch with language and setting and character and heartbreak and love, I have to read more. That said, there isn’t much of a solid narrative here, just breathy, poetic moments. It has the feel of a myth or fairy tale rather than a more distinctly plotted piece of writing.
First line: I'm the one who's left behind. I'm the one to tell the tale.
From the first line [b:A Song for Ella Grey|22632889|A Song for Ella Grey|David Almond|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1404397504s/22632889.jpg|42133250] starts out mysteriously and hooks you into to find out what the author has to say. I think if it hadn't of been for this first line I would not have read this novel.
The synopsis intrigued me and I was so excited to have received my first arc... but the book itself did not fulfill my hopes and dreams. It's supposed to be Claire recounting the tale of her best friend, Ella's love and death. It was supposed to be beautiful and show how love can even defy death.
Right from the beginning, I found the dialect of the characters hard to understand which ultimately distracted me from the story. If the dialect had been included but to a lesser extent, I might have had an easier time of it. Nevertheless, I suppose it added a certain reality to the setting of the plot.
Secondly, I never really connected with the characters. I found them to be shallow and I was never given a chance to really know them. Plenty of things happened that normally would move me and affect me in some way, but I was never moved in any way by the events of this novel.
I do however love the cover and I found it really interesting how the background of the pages changed when we were in a "darker" place. I think this could have been a better read for me if the characters had more depth and the story line more focused, instead of being so all over the place.
From the first line [b:A Song for Ella Grey|22632889|A Song for Ella Grey|David Almond|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1404397504s/22632889.jpg|42133250] starts out mysteriously and hooks you into to find out what the author has to say. I think if it hadn't of been for this first line I would not have read this novel.
The synopsis intrigued me and I was so excited to have received my first arc... but the book itself did not fulfill my hopes and dreams. It's supposed to be Claire recounting the tale of her best friend, Ella's love and death. It was supposed to be beautiful and show how love can even defy death.
Right from the beginning, I found the dialect of the characters hard to understand which ultimately distracted me from the story. If the dialect had been included but to a lesser extent, I might have had an easier time of it. Nevertheless, I suppose it added a certain reality to the setting of the plot.
Secondly, I never really connected with the characters. I found them to be shallow and I was never given a chance to really know them. Plenty of things happened that normally would move me and affect me in some way, but I was never moved in any way by the events of this novel.
I do however love the cover and I found it really interesting how the background of the pages changed when we were in a "darker" place. I think this could have been a better read for me if the characters had more depth and the story line more focused, instead of being so all over the place.
A modern day YA re-telling of the myth of Orpheus & Eurydice. Stylistically this book is very good and kudos to the publisher for the blacked out / bonkers font pages whilst Orpheus descends into Hell. Almond does a fantastic job recreating that crazy young love feel. There are numerous instances when the characters exclaim "We are so young!" or something to that effect. That crazy star-struck love is indeed the landscape of the young.
What an interesting book. Written in a very lyrical way.
Vague and confusing. I didn't connect to anyone and it was purple prose all over.
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
Right, fun fact: I love David Almond! (I also love green apples, but that's something completely different!).
Almond writes like a dream, and if I could recommend 3 of his books, and I can so I will, they would be:
-Skellig
- My name is Mina
- Heaven Eyes
Luscious books, totally enjoyed, magical & moody!
Mr A's writing often goes down swervy, curvy roads, mixing magic with mystery and leaving it up to the reader to read into it whatever they feel was meant to be.
Problem with this little fella is the entire book is coated in the poetic! It's like a cake the bloke went mad on, sloshing layer after layer of thick & sick icing on until you feel it's too much of muchness & you're drowning in sugary sweetness!
It also gets repetitive and after a while you long strongly for something solid and firm that isn't all maybe baby whatever.
Would I recommend this book?
You thought I was going to say 'No' didn't you?!
HA-HA!
I actually do recommend it, but only AFTER you've read one, or all, of the books I recommended above, that way you get to see how Dave flows & goes through his stories, ever evolving.
Think of it as first having a good dinner and then diving into the rich pudding that will put you off your sweets for ages!
Almond writes like a dream, and if I could recommend 3 of his books, and I can so I will, they would be:
-Skellig
- My name is Mina
- Heaven Eyes
Luscious books, totally enjoyed, magical & moody!
Mr A's writing often goes down swervy, curvy roads, mixing magic with mystery and leaving it up to the reader to read into it whatever they feel was meant to be.
Problem with this little fella is the entire book is coated in the poetic! It's like a cake the bloke went mad on, sloshing layer after layer of thick & sick icing on until you feel it's too much of muchness & you're drowning in sugary sweetness!
It also gets repetitive and after a while you long strongly for something solid and firm that isn't all maybe baby whatever.
Would I recommend this book?
You thought I was going to say 'No' didn't you?!
HA-HA!
I actually do recommend it, but only AFTER you've read one, or all, of the books I recommended above, that way you get to see how Dave flows & goes through his stories, ever evolving.
Think of it as first having a good dinner and then diving into the rich pudding that will put you off your sweets for ages!
Sorry I waited so long before writing this. My life is a bit hectic at the moment.
I found this book really quite strange - but then everything I've read by David Almond has been a bit different. It really teeters on the line between the real world and fantasy, and I honestly couldn't be sure whether some of the story was metaphorical or actually literal. It was a really interesting read.
Claire is the narrator of this book, telling us the events of the past. The story isn't told entirely chronologically but more like a person would speak, with tangents and relevant contextual events thrown in.
Ella Grey is Claire's best friend and possibly the protagonist of this book. Claire tells the story of how she met a strange boy called Orpheus on a beach one day, and how he turned up outside their school for Ella. The couple had a marriage ceremony soon after, but the day ends in tragedy.
Claire's affections for Ella seem to blur the line between friendship and romance, which was definitely an interesting aspect. Her opinions of Orpheus seem a little mixed, and she is clearly looking out for her friend's welfare.
Orpheus's 'journey' at the end of the novel was especially strange; as was the way it was told through Claire. The entire book - especially when describing Orpheus and Ella - was extremely lyrical. The language was all very romantic and poetic, which I guess was to emphasise the musical quality that surrounds Orpheus's character. It also really added to the sense of fantasy and mystery, giving the whole tale a strong ethereal quality.
This book was fantastically written, and definitely unique. I must say it was a little too romantic and poetic for my personal tastes, so I'm giving it 3 stars out of 5. I can definitely appreciate the beauty of Almond's writing, though.
I found this book really quite strange - but then everything I've read by David Almond has been a bit different. It really teeters on the line between the real world and fantasy, and I honestly couldn't be sure whether some of the story was metaphorical or actually literal. It was a really interesting read.
Claire is the narrator of this book, telling us the events of the past. The story isn't told entirely chronologically but more like a person would speak, with tangents and relevant contextual events thrown in.
Ella Grey is Claire's best friend and possibly the protagonist of this book. Claire tells the story of how she met a strange boy called Orpheus on a beach one day, and how he turned up outside their school for Ella. The couple had a marriage ceremony soon after, but the day ends in tragedy.
Claire's affections for Ella seem to blur the line between friendship and romance, which was definitely an interesting aspect. Her opinions of Orpheus seem a little mixed, and she is clearly looking out for her friend's welfare.
Orpheus's 'journey' at the end of the novel was especially strange; as was the way it was told through Claire. The entire book - especially when describing Orpheus and Ella - was extremely lyrical. The language was all very romantic and poetic, which I guess was to emphasise the musical quality that surrounds Orpheus's character. It also really added to the sense of fantasy and mystery, giving the whole tale a strong ethereal quality.
This book was fantastically written, and definitely unique. I must say it was a little too romantic and poetic for my personal tastes, so I'm giving it 3 stars out of 5. I can definitely appreciate the beauty of Almond's writing, though.