Reviews

Across the Wall: Tales of the Old Kingdom and Elsewhere by Garth Nix

sophia_a_v_b's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.75

lpcoolgirl's review against another edition

5.0

Loved this collection of stories, there were some really wacky stories, though Nicholas Sayre and the Creature in the Case was my favourite! Now to read more!

musgrovej's review against another edition

adventurous reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

phunkypbj's review against another edition

3.0

I was a little disappointed in this collection of short stories. I had read a short story by [author: Garth Nix] and really loved it and, of course, love the Sabriel trilogy, but I was let down by a lot of these stories. Nix attempts a lot of humor in this collection, and I have to say, humor isn't his forte. Overall, though, there were some good moments so, if you're a fan of the author it's worth a look.

queergoth_reads's review against another edition

adventurous dark lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? N/A
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.0

I bought this because I wanted all the old Kingdom stories I could get my hands on. I feel like when it comes to the rest of this book I'm not really the target audience which might be why I was kind of disappointed with it. Some of the stories were good but some of them were not for me at all. And I feel like a couple of them definitely had a "men writing women" vibe which I was very surprised by as I don't feel that way about any of the Old Kingdom books which are generally focused on the female characters. It's possible that some of the older stories just haven't aged all that well. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Sexual assault, and Blood

Moderate: Racism and Religious bigotry

Minor: Child abuse

foreveryoungadult's review against another edition

Graded By: Stephanie
Cover Story: Misleading
The Best: “Nicholas Sayre and the Creature in the Case”, “Charlie Rabbit”
The Worst: “Under the Lake”
The Weird: “The Lightning Bringer”, “The Hope Chest”
Bonus Factors: Australia, Choose Your Own Adventure
Anti-Bonus Factor: Crappy Parents
Break Glass In Case Of: An All-Abiding Love of Garth Nix

Read the full book report here.

eponaismycopilot's review against another edition

Read Creature in the Case & really enjoyed it! No interest in the other stories, however.

alffbooks's review against another edition

5.0

Very quick to read and really fun. I loved the little sort of introduction before each story to tell you a little something more about the story and how it came about,some nice insight into how a writer's life sometimes runs.
The stories are great fun and not connected making it easier(not easy, just very slightly less impossible) to put down the book between stories!
Another book by Garth Nix that did all but disappoint me! Brilliant!

sophiahelix's review against another edition

3.0

I was desperate for another look at the world of the Old Kingdom, and the primary novella in the story, "Nick and the Creature in the Case," was great... but sadly, only a novella, and it ends just it feels like the story is warming up. The other short stories in the book were enjoyable too, but it's really just a solid fantasy collection.

melbsreads's review against another edition

4.0

It's been a while since I read any Garth Nix. I picked it up expecting it to be the next book in the Abhorsen series, but quickly discovered that it's a series of short stories. While only the first and the last related to the world of the Abhorsen series, this was a thoroughly enjoyable collection of Nix's work, spanning almost 20 years of his writing career. It's a great opportunity to see how a writer's style can develop over time.