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3.55 AVERAGE
3.55 AVERAGE
it was....okay. just okay. i thought the prose was beautiful, but even that was put off by how annoying of a character Elizah “I’m Not Like Other Girls” was. i think Spollen’s attempt to write with the voice of a teen girl was definitely a miss. the mood of the story was interesting enough, but the interactions with Nathaniel left much to be desired. i wouldn’t call this story “unique,” just very....”eehhh?” “different?” the slenderness of this book was initially attractive to me but i felt it would have been better if it was longer, if the story and characters were more fleshed out, of the spookiness was....spookier? in any case, Spollen does have a voice for the creeps and I hope she writes again to expand her creepiness. over all, an okay reread from a book i read in high school, but just like my first read through, this book is nothing spectacular or worth keeping.
I'm about halfway through Light Beneath Ferns, which follows the story of Elizah, who has just moved with her mother to a new town in the hopes of starting a new life. All the adults around Elizah seem convinced that she must be traumatized in some way due to the dissappearance of her father, after he was charged with theft due to his gambling problem. But Elizah is convinced that she's just fine. She doesn't want to form bonds with her classmates, and is surly with her mother (but in an unbelievably sweet way) and the guidance councilor she's sent to for weekly chats. But when she meets Nathaniel under a bridge while they're both canoeing, she finds someone she can open up to.
Many parts of this story are beautiful and vivid, and Elizah herself is an intriguing protagonist, but other areas are less compelling. The prose stumbles and feels stilted in places. The colloquialisms don't ring true, and in places, the narrator seems too old for a young 15. Although it's a slight book, the pacing in some areas was very slow, and sometimes a thrilling plot point, like Nathaniel taking Elizah to his home, were so difficult to follow that the reader is left wondering what the big deal is.
I'm not sure it succeeds as a ghost story -- many of the people Elizah must interact with are definitely creepy... but those are the living. The dead seem mostly sweet and sad... nothing to be afraid of.
Excellent descriptive prose segments -- like when we are treated to beautiful descriptions of bird bones and the jewelry Eliza makes of them, and her drawings of the jawbone -- are sadly too few and far between.
Many parts of this story are beautiful and vivid, and Elizah herself is an intriguing protagonist, but other areas are less compelling. The prose stumbles and feels stilted in places. The colloquialisms don't ring true, and in places, the narrator seems too old for a young 15. Although it's a slight book, the pacing in some areas was very slow, and sometimes a thrilling plot point, like Nathaniel taking Elizah to his home, were so difficult to follow that the reader is left wondering what the big deal is.
I'm not sure it succeeds as a ghost story -- many of the people Elizah must interact with are definitely creepy... but those are the living. The dead seem mostly sweet and sad... nothing to be afraid of.
Excellent descriptive prose segments -- like when we are treated to beautiful descriptions of bird bones and the jewelry Eliza makes of them, and her drawings of the jawbone -- are sadly too few and far between.
LIGHT BENEATH FERNS is a beautifully written book that will chill you to your bones. If you appreciate poetic language and want to be spooked, this book is the one for you.
The strongest part of this book is its language. Anne Spollen strings words and descriptive language together in chains that I would never have thought possible—until I read it from her. The dreamy language transports you into half-mystical Wenspaugh and sets you right in the middle of Elizah’s tiny high school, the graveyard, and the mysterious woods.
Elizah is not the protagonist for everyone. She’s cynical to the point of being a little depressing, sarcastic to the point of being rude, and seems to change very little throughout the course of the novel. While I love and admire snarky, well-written dialogue, the number of times that Elizah clashed verbally with other characters quickly grew tiring for me.
Elizah is essentially a strong and well-developed protagonist, and may not have developed throughout the novel, but I was still surprised at the inconsistency of her character when it came to her interactions with Nathaniel. Many times I felt that the story was trying to force Nathaniel and Elizah upon one another, eschewing typical relationship development and trying to make it out that they had a connection before they even met. As a result, the romance was disappointing to me, their interactions based upon sensation but little substance.
LIGHT BENEATH FERNS is a story that revolves, surprisingly, not around the strong, albeit unchanging, characters, but rather the creepy element. It’s an interesting mix of snarky dialogue, poetic language, and the paranormal. That unconventional combination of genre and stylistic techniques may be its selling point for some people. It could also be its downfall: many times I found myself struggling to fit the book’s many parts together into one cohesive whole. Check it out, and see what it is for you.
The strongest part of this book is its language. Anne Spollen strings words and descriptive language together in chains that I would never have thought possible—until I read it from her. The dreamy language transports you into half-mystical Wenspaugh and sets you right in the middle of Elizah’s tiny high school, the graveyard, and the mysterious woods.
Elizah is not the protagonist for everyone. She’s cynical to the point of being a little depressing, sarcastic to the point of being rude, and seems to change very little throughout the course of the novel. While I love and admire snarky, well-written dialogue, the number of times that Elizah clashed verbally with other characters quickly grew tiring for me.
Elizah is essentially a strong and well-developed protagonist, and may not have developed throughout the novel, but I was still surprised at the inconsistency of her character when it came to her interactions with Nathaniel. Many times I felt that the story was trying to force Nathaniel and Elizah upon one another, eschewing typical relationship development and trying to make it out that they had a connection before they even met. As a result, the romance was disappointing to me, their interactions based upon sensation but little substance.
LIGHT BENEATH FERNS is a story that revolves, surprisingly, not around the strong, albeit unchanging, characters, but rather the creepy element. It’s an interesting mix of snarky dialogue, poetic language, and the paranormal. That unconventional combination of genre and stylistic techniques may be its selling point for some people. It could also be its downfall: many times I found myself struggling to fit the book’s many parts together into one cohesive whole. Check it out, and see what it is for you.
Light Beneath Ferns was not at all what I expected. The summary didn't give anything about the book away so I was super surprised by the content. That being said, I'm not going to give away what it's about either. It made the book better for me. =]
Elizah Rayne is not happy about the move to Wenspaugh. She is especially not happy about the changes her mom is making. Elizah liked their quiet life when they were alone and now her mom is forcing her to make friends and go to parties. All Elizah wants to do is be alone and not be forced to talk. The only time she ever feels like talking is when she is with Nathaniel. When she is with Nathaniel, it's almost like she is a whole different person. The only problem is, Nathaniel is such a mysterious person and his secrets may change everything.
I'm a little torn with Light Beneath Ferns. I loved the story but not so much the characters. Elizah was only okay. I could sympathize with her because of my many moves but she was such a loner. I didn't feel like I ever got to know her so it took away from the book a bit. Also, her mother, Mrs.Daytner, Dirk, Kyle, all those people really got on my nerves. They never just let her do what she wanted. They wanted to pick her brain apart and analyze everything she did just because she was quiet and liked to be alone. It was outrageous.
I also had a problem with how Elizah acted with Nathaniel. He was a great guy, don't get my wrong, but from the very start she was super trusting of him and that's just stupidity in today's world. It was unbelievable that she just followed him wherever he led with barely any resistance. There were a few times when I thought she might be smart and turn back but she never did.
Overall, Light Beneath Ferns was unique and interesting but it had its flaws. It was a quick read and a good one. It was kind of creepy at some parts but not too bad. In my opinion, it's definitely worth checking out!
Elizah Rayne is not happy about the move to Wenspaugh. She is especially not happy about the changes her mom is making. Elizah liked their quiet life when they were alone and now her mom is forcing her to make friends and go to parties. All Elizah wants to do is be alone and not be forced to talk. The only time she ever feels like talking is when she is with Nathaniel. When she is with Nathaniel, it's almost like she is a whole different person. The only problem is, Nathaniel is such a mysterious person and his secrets may change everything.
I'm a little torn with Light Beneath Ferns. I loved the story but not so much the characters. Elizah was only okay. I could sympathize with her because of my many moves but she was such a loner. I didn't feel like I ever got to know her so it took away from the book a bit. Also, her mother, Mrs.Daytner, Dirk, Kyle, all those people really got on my nerves. They never just let her do what she wanted. They wanted to pick her brain apart and analyze everything she did just because she was quiet and liked to be alone. It was outrageous.
I also had a problem with how Elizah acted with Nathaniel. He was a great guy, don't get my wrong, but from the very start she was super trusting of him and that's just stupidity in today's world. It was unbelievable that she just followed him wherever he led with barely any resistance. There were a few times when I thought she might be smart and turn back but she never did.
Overall, Light Beneath Ferns was unique and interesting but it had its flaws. It was a quick read and a good one. It was kind of creepy at some parts but not too bad. In my opinion, it's definitely worth checking out!
I've read this odd little book twice now. My only issue with it is that the romance aspect seemed kind of wooden, but maybe that's just because the author was trying so hard to make it mysterious and surreal, something she mostly succeeded with. Other than that, I just love this book. Elizah makes a fascinating narrator, and to me she was both believable and relatable. I like how the whole thing was just... different. I like how Spollen interwove the real-life issues with a ghost story, too, and although the ghost part wasn't actually scary, I do think it was delightfully spooky. This is one of those books that I just keep thinking about after I've finished it. It's haunting. I would definitely recommend it, but only if you're ready to go into it with an open mind. It's really not your typical YA paranormal romance.
One of the worst books I have ever read. I have never, ever, fallen asleep reading a book until now. Every time I picked it up I got drowsy.
This is a ghost story. An awesome, awesome ghost story. I can't really say what it is that I loved about this book so much. Maybe because it was a ghost story unlike anything I've ever read. It wasn't scary but at the same time it was kind of creepy. They're not ghosts that haunt and torment but remind and maybe love. It was just so unique that I honestly want to read it again just to soak it in even more.
Elizah is a loner by nature, which some people just can't grasp the concept of. People think that because someone actually chooses to not want to interact with people that there's something inherently wrong with them. The guidance counselor that Elizah goes to feels this is the case and not only she but Elizah's mother forces social interaction on her in a gross attempt to make her "normal." I can kind of relate to Elizah simply because I'm a loner myself. Not quite to the extent she is but I am looked at oddly by some people because I choose not to go out and socialize. Not to say I don't have friends; I'm just horrendously picky of the company I keep and bar hopping every weekend is not only a waste of my money, it's just not my scene. I have better things to do. Like talk to the voices in my head.
My favorite aspect of the story was the imagery of Nathaniel's village. Just the way it was described your mind couldn't really picture it without it being coated in a cold mist, as if looking through an early morning lens. You could see what it looked like but at the same time it was never really clear. You knew it looked like that colonial reproduction village just down stream but it fades in and out of the shadows as the sun casts them through the trees. Or doesn't. It was just so gripping and ethereal, tangible and intangible at the same time. I wanted to go there and see it for myself and just hoped I'd be able to get back. It leaves you (or you leave it) with a sense that just maybe if you took the wrong turn, you might not make it back. It's not scary but it is unsettling.
The adults in this book irk the crap out of me. I kind of half understand the mother's situation because she was married to a degenerate gambler for so long that was so afraid of people coming after him for money that he forced his family into solitude. I get that. But at the end of the day she was really self-involved and didn't so much care about how Elizah felt but more how people would view her because of Elizah's "abnormal" actions. She really wasn't a likable character and I'm not sure if she was supposed to be. She's damaged, yes, but I was in Elizah's head with her in every conversation she had with her mother going, "yeah, it's all about you, isn't it?" I felt it. I don't think you even needed to be an objective third party to know that.
The rest of the adults were kind of stock characters, cookie-cutter cut-outs that were way too into normal. But maybe that was the point. Maybe this overwhelming sense of suburbanite normalcy that ran throughout the book was a means to overcompensate for what they previously lived through. Sure, Dirk was too into playing the father-figure role and took it on way too quickly, but maybe that was the point. He's normal. Elizah's mother wanted normal and fast. I guess it fits.
I loved how Elizah's father was often compared to the actions of a ghost, flitting in and out of someone's life, neither there or not. A presence more than anything tangible. It described him perfectly; except for how much of a creep he really was. Big creep.
Nathaniel is the best part. It's pretty obvious from the beginning just what he is, and it's pretty easy to make the connections once the character start talking about local legends and Indian lore but I don't think it was meant to be subtle. But what was was Elizah's and Nathaniel's inherent connection to each other. That was subtle and I really liked how in the background it was kept. The notion of past lives was barely even scratched but it was there enough to make you question what was going on in that entire situation. It left a whole different, and separate, story lingering at the end that you wished was filled in but you're left to use just your imagination.
It's a sad love story and a sad friendship story really. The only people Elizah connects with are those in the cemetery and really, being a loner isn't all it's cracked up to be. But somehow the entire situation is settling for her. She accepts it for what it is and while she wants to ask more of it, she doesn't because she knows she won't get it.
It's a story about a loner that isn't as much of a loner as she thought she was. It's a ghost story and a love story. A story of loss and healing. But really, it's just a great story.
Elizah is a loner by nature, which some people just can't grasp the concept of. People think that because someone actually chooses to not want to interact with people that there's something inherently wrong with them. The guidance counselor that Elizah goes to feels this is the case and not only she but Elizah's mother forces social interaction on her in a gross attempt to make her "normal." I can kind of relate to Elizah simply because I'm a loner myself. Not quite to the extent she is but I am looked at oddly by some people because I choose not to go out and socialize. Not to say I don't have friends; I'm just horrendously picky of the company I keep and bar hopping every weekend is not only a waste of my money, it's just not my scene. I have better things to do. Like talk to the voices in my head.
My favorite aspect of the story was the imagery of Nathaniel's village. Just the way it was described your mind couldn't really picture it without it being coated in a cold mist, as if looking through an early morning lens. You could see what it looked like but at the same time it was never really clear. You knew it looked like that colonial reproduction village just down stream but it fades in and out of the shadows as the sun casts them through the trees. Or doesn't. It was just so gripping and ethereal, tangible and intangible at the same time. I wanted to go there and see it for myself and just hoped I'd be able to get back. It leaves you (or you leave it) with a sense that just maybe if you took the wrong turn, you might not make it back. It's not scary but it is unsettling.
The adults in this book irk the crap out of me. I kind of half understand the mother's situation because she was married to a degenerate gambler for so long that was so afraid of people coming after him for money that he forced his family into solitude. I get that. But at the end of the day she was really self-involved and didn't so much care about how Elizah felt but more how people would view her because of Elizah's "abnormal" actions. She really wasn't a likable character and I'm not sure if she was supposed to be. She's damaged, yes, but I was in Elizah's head with her in every conversation she had with her mother going, "yeah, it's all about you, isn't it?" I felt it. I don't think you even needed to be an objective third party to know that.
The rest of the adults were kind of stock characters, cookie-cutter cut-outs that were way too into normal. But maybe that was the point. Maybe this overwhelming sense of suburbanite normalcy that ran throughout the book was a means to overcompensate for what they previously lived through. Sure, Dirk was too into playing the father-figure role and took it on way too quickly, but maybe that was the point. He's normal. Elizah's mother wanted normal and fast. I guess it fits.
I loved how Elizah's father was often compared to the actions of a ghost, flitting in and out of someone's life, neither there or not. A presence more than anything tangible. It described him perfectly; except for how much of a creep he really was. Big creep.
Nathaniel is the best part. It's pretty obvious from the beginning just what he is, and it's pretty easy to make the connections once the character start talking about local legends and Indian lore but I don't think it was meant to be subtle. But what was was Elizah's and Nathaniel's inherent connection to each other. That was subtle and I really liked how in the background it was kept. The notion of past lives was barely even scratched but it was there enough to make you question what was going on in that entire situation. It left a whole different, and separate, story lingering at the end that you wished was filled in but you're left to use just your imagination.
It's a sad love story and a sad friendship story really. The only people Elizah connects with are those in the cemetery and really, being a loner isn't all it's cracked up to be. But somehow the entire situation is settling for her. She accepts it for what it is and while she wants to ask more of it, she doesn't because she knows she won't get it.
It's a story about a loner that isn't as much of a loner as she thought she was. It's a ghost story and a love story. A story of loss and healing. But really, it's just a great story.
I absolutely love love love love love every book by Anne Spollen!! This book was pretty short, but it had a strong message and the writing was as always, incredible. Anyone can appreciate this book.
it was....okay. just okay. i thought the prose was beautiful, but even that was put off by how annoying of a character Elizah “I’m Not Like Other Girls” was. i think Spollen’s attempt to write with the voice of a teen girl was definitely a miss. the mood of the story was interesting enough, but the interactions with Nathaniel left much to be desired. i wouldn’t call this story “unique,” just very....”eehhh?” “different?” the slenderness of this book was initially attractive to me but i felt it would have been better if it was longer, if the story and characters were more fleshed out, of the spookiness was....spookier? in any case, Spollen does have a voice for the creeps and I hope she writes again to expand her creepiness. over all, an okay reread from a book i read in high school, but just like my first read through, this book is nothing spectacular or worth keeping.