192 reviews for:

The Unadoptables

Hana Tooke

3.92 AVERAGE

adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious relaxing fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: No
adventurous tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

mveatch6's review

3.0

This book goes in about a million different directions that I didn't anticipate, and the biggest one is that Milou is the only main character. The other 4 kids should have each gotten some chapters, or maybe their own books, because I didn't feel like I had a good sense of who the rest of them were. Also, I didn't love Milou, because she was super self-centered. Think of the other orphans, you rude child!

Anyhow, it was very exciting and fun, even as I was being super frustrated by Milou. An actual child might not have been as irritated by her as I was.
helendipietro's profile picture

helendipietro's review against another edition

DID NOT FINISH: 3%

Return to soon! 

brenddv's review

5.0

Here, have it!*

*my heart, shattered and taped back together, wet with tears and tea

sunflowerchild147's review

4.25
adventurous hopeful inspiring 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: No

drfuriosa's review

5.0

I'm a woman lucky enough to have two kinds of family: a great family to be born into, and a wonderful family of choice to be surrounded by. As a professor who informally parents a LOT of students, I emphasize the "family you choose," and it's the latter kind of family that Hana Tooke embraces in this charming book.

In Amsterdam 1886, there are LAWS about abandoning orphans, but nobody told the people who abandoned Lotta, Egg, Fenna, Sem, and Milou. Left at Elinora Gassbeek's reluctant doorstep over a short period of time, they grow up together and become the oldest orphans in their residence. They are deemed "unadoptable" by their narrow-minded society and patrons, but they quickly realize their talents, heart, and possibility. Some are differently abled and use those talents in unique ways. Some are discriminated against because of skin color and challenge stereotypes. And others don't conform to what it means to be a "nice" child. When a suspicious man seeks to adopt them all, they go on a quest to find Milou's parents, and embark on an adventure that will change their lives forever.

Middle-grade readers who enjoy a quest narrative with a little bite will absolutely adore this tale. I myself really enjoyed the way the children banded together to form their own family and face the world as a unit. Fans of Roald Dahl, the Mary Poppins books, or A Series of Unfortunate Events will devour this book. Tooke is a talented author, and I can't wait to see what she writes next.
adventurous emotional funny mysterious sad fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: No

vikinona02's review

adventurous emotional hopeful lighthearted slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Loveable characters: Yes

Oh my, már el akartam olvasni egy ideje! A magyar címe alapján azt hitte, kalandosabb lesz: hogy a gyerekek elszöknek és mindenféle kalandba bonyolódnak. Nem egészen így történt, de ettől függetlenül élveztem és tetszett.
Úgy éreztem, számomra valahol ott indult be igazán a történet, amikor úgy döntöttek, hogy elkészítik a Bábapát. Milout időbe telt megszeretnem. Tetszett a rejtvény, a szélmalom és a színház, hogy Hollandiában játszódik, és még holland szavakat is tanultam belőle. 
A vége felé az után, hogy Ludvigot kimenekítették Rotman hajójából, huuu, hullámvasútra ültem és annyi minden érzelem csapott az arcomba, miközben azt hittem, mindjárt vége és minden szuper lesz. A színházi előadásukat nagyon élveztem, szinte ott akartam lenni én is, de aztán: hát majd megőrültem, amikor nem csak Rotman, de még Gassbeek is megjelent! Aztán ami kiderült Lieselről és az epilógus, ahh! Thibault hazajött... a lányához. 
Meglepődtem, milyen sötéten és szomorúan mutatja be az árvaházat, de élveztem, hogy milyen okosak és ügyesek... meg persze felnőttesek. Igazából talán kicsit hiányoltam a gyerek-konfliktusokat.
Egyébként kicsit az A series of unfortunate eventsre emlékeztetett, ami jólesett. 
Örülök, hogy elolvastam. És imádom a borítóját.