Scan barcode
genevieve_eggleston's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Bullying, Racism, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Homophobia, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Outing, Toxic friendship, Lesbophobia, Mental illness, Hate crime, Misogyny, and Cursing
Minor: Death of parent, Physical abuse, Violence, Grief, Alcohol, Classism, Cultural appropriation, and Injury/Injury detail
agoldendear's review against another edition
challenging
funny
hopeful
- 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
4.0
First of all, I haven’t read Anne of Green Gables, so I won’t compare this to that.
The main thing I liked about this book was the characters. I particularly liked that Anne’s parents had complex personalities and were a significant part of the story. Not that the other main characters weren’t also good.
I liked the writing style, which was kind of all-over-the-place to match Anne’s personality. I can imagine that some other readers might get annoyed by it, which is also valid. The dialogue was also good and felt pretty real to me, especially the conversations between Anne and Berry.
The main thing I had an issue with was more my own problem rather than the book itself. This book basically has constant bullying and a lot of homophobia and racism that the main character has to deal with. I tend to look for a little more escapism in my reading, so this book ended up being stressful for me in a way I didn’t really like.
The main thing I liked about this book was the characters. I particularly liked that Anne’s parents had complex personalities and were a significant part of the story. Not that the other main characters weren’t also good.
I liked the writing style, which was kind of all-over-the-place to match Anne’s personality. I can imagine that some other readers might get annoyed by it, which is also valid. The dialogue was also good and felt pretty real to me, especially the conversations between Anne and Berry.
The main thing I had an issue with was more my own problem rather than the book itself. This book basically has constant bullying and a lot of homophobia and racism that the main character has to deal with. I tend to look for a little more escapism in my reading, so this book ended up being stressful for me in a way I didn’t really like.
Graphic: Racism, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, and Hate crime
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail and Vomit
Hate crime includesqueenkath32's review against another edition
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
As someone who adores Anne of Green Gables I was really hoping to like this. It was mostly fine, I felt like the plot was pretty standard, and it wasn’t a bad modernization of the setting. In all, though, it ended up feeling very meh. I liked most of the characters, but somehow everyone ended up feeling flat—especially Tanner and Sarah. Where in the original AoGG I find Anne charming and creative, this felt more like a discount version of her character. I liked Berry the best out of everyone in this, especially because I think Tamaki fleshed out her character in a more creative way than other modernizations have done
Graphic: Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Bullying, Hate crime, Body shaming, and Racism
missrosymaplemoth's review against another edition
3.0
I liked, and didn’t like, a lot of things about this book.
My dislikes:
My dislikes:
- The excessive use of CAPITALIZATION!
- The excessive use of ending sentences with a question mark? Even when it often didn’t make sense?
- The, like, excessive use of “like”
- Assuming the audience doesn’t know any disco music and listing the artist, album title and year every song was released. It got repetitive and was never not annoying.
My likes:
- Anne’s character, personality and narration was mostly really bubbly and joyful.
- The end where
Berry’s last name is revealed to be Blythe was unexpected and really satisfying for me. - Mr. Davidson, Beverly, and Monty the dog.
This is not a retelling of “Anne of Green Gables,” so if you’re coming into this book with that expectation, you will be disappointed, as I was. Around the 50% mark I let go of that expectation and it made for a more enjoyable reading experience. It’s not a bad book, it’s just not what it says it is (an “Anne” retelling). I don’t know how one would successfully go about retelling that story.
I debating even finishing this book because it felt like 250 straight pages of a girl being violently bullied and then the adults around her failing her in the aftermath. I really disliked the resolution as it was crammed into the last 30 pages. It was hard to believe these bully kids could go from being seriously racist, sexist and homophobic to suddenly nice and kind just because
I was surprised this was YA; Anne often read as much younger, and this could have been a middle grade book if the excess swearing was omitted. (I’m not sure what the qualifications for a middle grade book are.) I kept forgetting she was an older teenager.
All in all, I still enjoyed this book. Anne’s character and worldview kept me reading until the end. Anne Shirley is one of my favorite characters of all time, so it makes sense why I’d enjoy it if this Anne was modeled after her.
Graphic: Bullying, Racism, and Homophobia
Moderate: Toxic friendship, Cursing, Hate crime, and Sexism
More...