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3.46 AVERAGE
3.46 AVERAGE
This one made me tear up. Imagine the poetic dreaminess of Laini Taylor set within a mashup of Russian and Ukrainian folklore (particularly swan and bear tales) upon a framework of a true-history tragic p0grom of a small Eastern European village's Jews. Sprinkled over with a liberal addition of Hebrew, Yiddish, and Ukrainian.
That would be Rossner's Sisters of the Winter Wood.
Laya and Liba are Jewish sisters living on the outskirts of a small goy/Jew village. Their mother is a convert-- and so has always been gossipped about and never accepted. But one day a band of roving fruit sellers comes to town just as their father is called away to the village of his birth by a dying Rebbe.
These events will conspire to force Laya and Liba to confront both their magical heritage and their Jewish ones. It will teach them about the nature of love-- how loving sometimes means setting those you love free of your expectations.
The coolest thing about this book is the lovely way the book switches between Laya and Liba. Liba has narrative first person POV. She is passionate and practical. Laya is dreamy and poetic-- and this is reflected in the author's choice to present her POV as a poetry prose. I thought I would get tired of it or be annoyed, but Laya's narrative just flows right over you in a wash of emotion and yearning.
There are some repetitive parts in this book: particularly Liba and her romantic foil arguing about why she's doing inexplicable things and seemingly taking her sister into danger, but those minor annoyances were always washed away by the beating heart of love and pride found within this narrative.
This is a gorgeous book.
That would be Rossner's Sisters of the Winter Wood.
Laya and Liba are Jewish sisters living on the outskirts of a small goy/Jew village. Their mother is a convert-- and so has always been gossipped about and never accepted. But one day a band of roving fruit sellers comes to town just as their father is called away to the village of his birth by a dying Rebbe.
These events will conspire to force Laya and Liba to confront both their magical heritage and their Jewish ones. It will teach them about the nature of love-- how loving sometimes means setting those you love free of your expectations.
The coolest thing about this book is the lovely way the book switches between Laya and Liba. Liba has narrative first person POV. She is passionate and practical. Laya is dreamy and poetic-- and this is reflected in the author's choice to present her POV as a poetry prose. I thought I would get tired of it or be annoyed, but Laya's narrative just flows right over you in a wash of emotion and yearning.
There are some repetitive parts in this book: particularly Liba and her romantic foil arguing about why she's doing inexplicable things and seemingly taking her sister into danger, but those minor annoyances were always washed away by the beating heart of love and pride found within this narrative.
This is a gorgeous book.
I like how the story had some historical ties and was eye opening to how people lived during the times. The story was frustrating at times for me with how naive the girls were, but I had to remember they were only teenagers and led a sheltered life. It did not help that their parents did not talk with them and explain what may happen to them before they left. The moral of the story comes back to accepting of oneself and communicating effectively to reduce confusion and misconception. Also, your first love could very well be a goblin in disguise.
Took quicker ti finsih than good omens. Good book loved the different mythos but the ending was meh. Why would you follow another man so quickly after one fscrewed you over. Many parts didnt make sense and too many Hebrew words without any references which made it hard to read. Still an enjoyable read. I thought Libas and Dovids romance was cute. Unlike the normal YA romance tropes. ANother annoyance was Layas POV. Why did you click the enter button so many times
I would say this is closer to 3.5/5 stars. But for me the book really picked up about halfway through and I loved Liba and Laya's relationship. There's definitely some things I didn't love but overall it was a solid debut.
adventurous
medium-paced
I wish I could have heard the afterword before listening to the story. Sure, it kinda is spoiler-y, but it gave me context that would have made the journey more enjoyable. Without it, it kinda of seemed… well, a little meh. I’ll add a half a star because the afterword showed a lot of heart and research went into this.
Here's the thing about using folklore as source material - it's old, and a product of its time.
This is why many authors use folklore more as a framework for a story, and modernise the plot and characters within.
I feel that the author did not do very well at modernising this tale. It felt very heteronormative and archaic in its messages.
The "choice" and "freedom" the protagonists ultimately receive is "which man do you want? the one that was betrothed to you from birth, or the one that makes ya knees weak?".
This is why many authors use folklore more as a framework for a story, and modernise the plot and characters within.
I feel that the author did not do very well at modernising this tale. It felt very heteronormative and archaic in its messages.
The "choice" and "freedom" the protagonists ultimately receive is "which man do you want? the one that was betrothed to you from birth, or the one that makes ya knees weak?".
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I didn't love this book, but I didn't hate it, either. It felt like it was two separate stories that didn't really merge well together. And SO repetitive. Like, I get it, Dovid didn't want Liba to go into the woods by herself, but did we need 5 pages of them going back and forth about it, each essentially saying the same thing over and over? No, we did not. I don't know, I guess this book just wasn't for me. The cover is gorgeous, though.
dark
emotional
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
The story was interesting enough, but I feel like I would have benefitted from reading it instead of listening to the audiobook.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes