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4.03 AVERAGE
4.03 AVERAGE
It was alright, but I almost wonder if Mr. Barker had scrapped his plans for a fantastical encyclopedia and wove in a novel instead. Each passage seems like a description of some strange new creature with a bizarre affliction/wardrobe/companion and a scrappy 'can do' attitude. While certainly entertaining, I often found my attention wandering and then snapping guiltily back into place.
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
These books are fun, memorable, and the artwork is absolutely incredible. I loved reading these books when I was a kid and still do today as an adult.
I need answers!!!
So much magic and mystery, and cliff hangers! I didn't expect to be adding the next books onto my TBR, but it'll have to be done.
I love the potent imagery and was wrapped up in a whole other mystical world.
So much magic and mystery, and cliff hangers! I didn't expect to be adding the next books onto my TBR, but it'll have to be done.
I love the potent imagery and was wrapped up in a whole other mystical world.
This was a really fun book to listen to! I love whimsy and I love adventure and I love being mad at my dad. This book delivers on all those fronts!! The worldbuilding is really lovely - I even listened through the appendix at the end, because I enjoyed the descriptions of the Abarat's bountiful mysteries! I like a book where I'm not expected to understand the entire world, but I can appreciate it anyway. I'm also really into a book with plentiful loose ends! Of course, there are more books, and I'm sure any loose ends will be addressed, but I just really like being able to flow through a story without worrying about what's going to be "completed."
The characters are really charming and lovable. The protagonist is extremely relatable, but we are Not The Same person, which is one of my favorite kinds of protagonists. I enjoy reading from the perspective of a character I can sympathize with and understand, but whose decisions, actions, and points of view ask me to consider things from a new angle. Candy is a kid, and smart, and kind, and reserved, and practical, and a little magical.
Something I didn't enjoy was the feeling that the entire magical world was created around Candy. Because of her, maybe, or in response to her. I know that this is how magical worlds are born - a child can dream them into existence, so of course they swirl around the child, and exist in communication with that child. But when a narrative presents some islands, some people indigenous to the islands, and a white protagonist who everyone calls "Lady" and has some sort of divine/inherent Right to the magic/resources of the land ... it feels a little icky! Little hint of colonialism there.
The characters are really charming and lovable. The protagonist is extremely relatable, but we are Not The Same person, which is one of my favorite kinds of protagonists. I enjoy reading from the perspective of a character I can sympathize with and understand, but whose decisions, actions, and points of view ask me to consider things from a new angle. Candy is a kid, and smart, and kind, and reserved, and practical, and a little magical.
Something I didn't enjoy was the feeling that the entire magical world was created around Candy. Because of her, maybe, or in response to her. I know that this is how magical worlds are born - a child can dream them into existence, so of course they swirl around the child, and exist in communication with that child. But when a narrative presents some islands, some people indigenous to the islands, and a white protagonist who everyone calls "Lady" and has some sort of divine/inherent Right to the magic/resources of the land ... it feels a little icky! Little hint of colonialism there.
Abarat is filled with fantastical words and intruiging characters. The author's artwork is a perfect complement to the story he weaves, and I cannot wait for the next one.
I was a bit hesitant about reading this book. The story sounded intriguing but the main character's name annoyed me vaguely - Candy Quackenbush. What a ridiculous name. Not in a quirky, interesting way - just ... well, annoying. Except Barker won me over within the first chapter and I wasn't focused on Candy's name anymore - just the character herself. Candy walks out of tiny Chickentown, Minnesota, one day and falls right into the Abarat - an archepelago of islands corresponding to the hours of the day.
The Abarat is filled with memorable and interesting characters that keep the plot moving and draw the reader along for a fun ride. Quirky and just a touch off-kilter nothing is as you'd expect and everything is original and fresh. Barker takes some of the fantasy tropes, such as a young girl/boy on a quest, with a DESTINY, and makes them new and exciting and gives the story his own special twist.
I can't wait to read the sequel.
The Abarat is filled with memorable and interesting characters that keep the plot moving and draw the reader along for a fun ride. Quirky and just a touch off-kilter nothing is as you'd expect and everything is original and fresh. Barker takes some of the fantasy tropes, such as a young girl/boy on a quest, with a DESTINY, and makes them new and exciting and gives the story his own special twist.
I can't wait to read the sequel.
One of those books I always saw in the library but never ended up picking up. I love that this felt so unique and different, and that I truly could not predict the names and places and types of people throughout. Though it did feel a tad repetitive, the audiobook was so well narrated that it was manageable. I may manage to read forward in this series, if only to learn what happened to Finnegan…
adventurous
4.0 this started out as a 5 star read but then I just wasn’t feeling it as much. I wasn’t connecting to the characters and I thought it should have had more of a plot. I still really liked it though and I will reread this in the future.
You can definitely read this as a stand-alone.
You can definitely read this as a stand-alone.