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3.99 AVERAGE
3.99 AVERAGE
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
funny
inspiring
mysterious
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
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
This is a really hard one to rate because I love it and it's super compelling and there is nothing else quite like it, but it doesn't hold up as well. Both the narrator and various characters use the word "cripple" over and over and over again, and that's before we even get to the disturbingly childlike presentation of Madam Hoo. Not knowing a language does not make a person think like a child.
There is a dilemma about the roles of women running through the core of the book. Grace Wexler is bored and restless because she's never had enough to so (like another character), she turns to social climbing and is mocked for it. Angela is being rushed into marriage; Flora Baumbach seems to have been deserted by her husband after their late-in-life baby was born with Down syndrome; Sydelle Pulaski is tired of being overlooked as a middle-aged career woman. I'm not sure any of these dilemmas ever would have resonated with the preteens that the book is aimed at but they seem increasingly out-of-date now when most married middle-class women hold jobs.
There is a dilemma about the roles of women running through the core of the book. Grace Wexler is bored and restless because she's never had enough to so (like another character), she turns to social climbing and is mocked for it. Angela is being rushed into marriage; Flora Baumbach seems to have been deserted by her husband after their late-in-life baby was born with Down syndrome; Sydelle Pulaski is tired of being overlooked as a middle-aged career woman. I'm not sure any of these dilemmas ever would have resonated with the preteens that the book is aimed at but they seem increasingly out-of-date now when most married middle-class women hold jobs.
adventurous
challenging
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It's officially confirmed. I will always love this book. Read it for the first time when I was ten and now, at 31, it still holds up. Great book!
- I think I was expecting something different from this book, thought it would be like a combination of And Then There Were None and Ready Player One, but instead I got garbage
- The clues were LAAAAAAAME and unreasonably vague, plus soooo many red herrings that the whole thing was annoying
- I won't lie though I was lame in the beginning part and actually spooked myself when they were meeting in the Westing House
- Why did major plot reveals in this story never get explained???? WHAT were the bomber's motives????? Excuse me??
- I understand that this was a children's book. But it was still exceptionally bad thank u goodbye
- The clues were LAAAAAAAME and unreasonably vague, plus soooo many red herrings that the whole thing was annoying
- I won't lie though I was lame in the beginning part and actually spooked myself when they were meeting in the Westing House
- Why did major plot reveals in this story never get explained???? WHAT were the bomber's motives????? Excuse me??
- I understand that this was a children's book. But it was still exceptionally bad thank u goodbye
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
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
Ellen Raskin is one-of-a-kind. I revisited this book after years of reminiscing on it from my initial read in middle school. It is even more delightful than I remembered; careful enough to still be mysterious for the adult reader (but not too complex for a young reader), hilarious, tender, I devoured it in one day and could hardly choose a better book to start the year.
Raskin’s playful prose is at times interrupted by moments of sharp clarity and tenderness for people and the things they want and search for in this world. Her voice is refreshing and so much fun to read.
Raskin’s playful prose is at times interrupted by moments of sharp clarity and tenderness for people and the things they want and search for in this world. Her voice is refreshing and so much fun to read.