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bookbird69's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
angelcwrites's review against another edition
5.0
On par with The Fault in Our Stars and And Then Things Fall Apart among my personal favourites. Utter perfection.
shelby_hannahh's review against another edition
3.0
This was great! I picked this up randomly from my school library because the cover attracted me and because my friend was rushing me. I'm not disappointed!
Mina is one special little girl with a vivid imagination and a joy for living. She's 9 when this takes place but a lot of her thoughts sound like they come from an adult but told in a child-like fashion. Her father died when she was young and she lives with her mom, who also teaches her as Mina was taken out of school.
This is told in a diary format, and uses a hand-written font. It's told very randomly and basically makes you think that Mina thought something and wrote it, which I loved. It showed that kids aren't linear thinkers and shouldn't be expected to be. She's young and that comes across in the writing but it's not a bad thing.
I really loved this, all in all. Didn't know it was a prequel and I had no connection to Mina at all but now I plan on reading Skellig now that I know it exists!
(Also, is it MY-NUH or MEE-NUH? I said MEE-NUH but I'm not sure????)
Mina is one special little girl with a vivid imagination and a joy for living. She's 9 when this takes place but a lot of her thoughts sound like they come from an adult but told in a child-like fashion. Her father died when she was young and she lives with her mom, who also teaches her as Mina was taken out of school.
This is told in a diary format, and uses a hand-written font. It's told very randomly and basically makes you think that Mina thought something and wrote it, which I loved. It showed that kids aren't linear thinkers and shouldn't be expected to be. She's young and that comes across in the writing but it's not a bad thing.
I really loved this, all in all. Didn't know it was a prequel and I had no connection to Mina at all but now I plan on reading Skellig now that I know it exists!
(Also, is it MY-NUH or MEE-NUH? I said MEE-NUH but I'm not sure????)
sabsey's review against another edition
4.0
This book took me completely by surprise...it was a short, sweet story but it had a lot of depth and it was very well written. The writing style was very unusual, but I loved it and it fit perfectly with the character of Mina. I fell in love with her and her imagination, and with her mum and the way the story just fit together perfectly. I would absolutely recommend this to anyone and everyone, especially those who aren't avid readers or haven't read many books.
sharon_geitz's review against another edition
5.0
An awesome book! A fitting prequel to the wonderful Skellig. Mina is a great character, easy for every kid who has ever felt they don't fit in to identify with. I love the way Almond celebrates Mina's creativity, natural intelligence and empathy.
sharon_geitz's review against another edition
4.0
Love David Almond's Skellig, one of my favourites in junior fiction, My name is Mina is a prequel to Skellig and Mina's story before meeting Michael and Skellig. Personally I don't really think of Skellig as a book for younger readers, to me it is a timeless and ageless book, that rewards a reader of any age.
One of life's misfits, Mina is a character I love, I have a huge soft spot for the Minas' of this world, the smart, creative kids who see the world from a richer perspective. The story is written in the form of Mina's journal and I have a fascination with journal writing at the moment. While technically not a perfect book, My name is Mina, and Skellig are books I absolutely love.
One of life's misfits, Mina is a character I love, I have a huge soft spot for the Minas' of this world, the smart, creative kids who see the world from a richer perspective. The story is written in the form of Mina's journal and I have a fascination with journal writing at the moment. While technically not a perfect book, My name is Mina, and Skellig are books I absolutely love.
gemlouise's review against another edition
5.0
If you haven't read Skellig, read it, and then read this - it is awesome! David Almond is a genious!
santorinirivera's review against another edition
4.0
For anyone who doesn’t know, this book is the prequel/sequel to Skellig, which I had to read for Children’s Literature this past semester.
Compared to what I remember from Skellig, Mina seems a little different. I remember not liking her very much because she came across a bit cold and arrogant. Her characterization came across as being almost simple. I don’t recall as much of her philosophical side coming out in Skellig, and I think it was because all of this was going on inside her head so the audience didn’t really get to see it. By reading this journal of sorts, I got a better understanding of who she was, and why she was so put off by school. David Almond did a brilliant job of making her more complex, and showing us a new side to her.
It took a little while to get used to Mina’s voice. She’s really young, and it was tough to believe that she was actually having these thoughts and writing this way. Once I got used to it, I fell head first into her story. I was so excited to learn more about Mina. While reading Skellig, she appeared to be very creative mostly because of the fact that she was being homeschooled. I loved seeing how she ended up being homeschooled, and what her whole situation was because I was able to empathize more with her character. Being able to experience what was going on in her head with her really let me look under the surface and see who she really was.
I loved the way she looked at the world, and all the extraordinary activities she came up with. They were all really inspiring and exactly what I needed right now in my life. Because of this, I had a deep personal connection with this book. It almost took my breath away a few times. My goal is to eventually do all of the extraordinary activities listed throughout this book. They are a little silly and could be considered childish, but they are founded on some interesting concepts that make you think about things in a different way. They also just seem like fun.
I would be very interested to see how children who have read Skellig react to this. I think this book can be very inspiring for children by showing them that they can look at things in different ways and have profound experiences because of it.
Compared to what I remember from Skellig, Mina seems a little different. I remember not liking her very much because she came across a bit cold and arrogant. Her characterization came across as being almost simple. I don’t recall as much of her philosophical side coming out in Skellig, and I think it was because all of this was going on inside her head so the audience didn’t really get to see it. By reading this journal of sorts, I got a better understanding of who she was, and why she was so put off by school. David Almond did a brilliant job of making her more complex, and showing us a new side to her.
It took a little while to get used to Mina’s voice. She’s really young, and it was tough to believe that she was actually having these thoughts and writing this way. Once I got used to it, I fell head first into her story. I was so excited to learn more about Mina. While reading Skellig, she appeared to be very creative mostly because of the fact that she was being homeschooled. I loved seeing how she ended up being homeschooled, and what her whole situation was because I was able to empathize more with her character. Being able to experience what was going on in her head with her really let me look under the surface and see who she really was.
I loved the way she looked at the world, and all the extraordinary activities she came up with. They were all really inspiring and exactly what I needed right now in my life. Because of this, I had a deep personal connection with this book. It almost took my breath away a few times. My goal is to eventually do all of the extraordinary activities listed throughout this book. They are a little silly and could be considered childish, but they are founded on some interesting concepts that make you think about things in a different way. They also just seem like fun.
I would be very interested to see how children who have read Skellig react to this. I think this book can be very inspiring for children by showing them that they can look at things in different ways and have profound experiences because of it.
jovvijo's review against another edition
5.0
Mina is fantastic!!
She is wonderfully wordy and plentifully playful!
Anyone so enthusiastic over the meals she eats alone is welcome in my books!
(Literally in this case!)
I came into the book after reading Skellig so I did have some ideas on what Mina might be like and this book was like a warm pat on the back that said, "You guessed right, and here's your reward."
I think we'd have been smashingly good friends!
Why are all the best folk in books and not real life? *tears, and a bit of snot, flow freely*
But if you're keen on a sort of journal-like, deep in the mind of someone, scatty, batty, all about, inside out sort of book, well, here you go then!
(I'd say 'Enjoy!' but I already know you will!)
^_^
She is wonderfully wordy and plentifully playful!
Anyone so enthusiastic over the meals she eats alone is welcome in my books!
(Literally in this case!)
I came into the book after reading Skellig so I did have some ideas on what Mina might be like and this book was like a warm pat on the back that said, "You guessed right, and here's your reward."
I think we'd have been smashingly good friends!
Why are all the best folk in books and not real life? *tears, and a bit of snot, flow freely*
But if you're keen on a sort of journal-like, deep in the mind of someone, scatty, batty, all about, inside out sort of book, well, here you go then!
(I'd say 'Enjoy!' but I already know you will!)
^_^