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4.24 AVERAGE
4.24 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Loveable characters:
Yes
a very sweet read.
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Not my favorite read for elementary/middle fiction, but I know exactly what child I would give this book to and I enjoyed seeing all of the animals working together. I loved the inclusion of the paintings and seeing their credits at the end of the book. Overall, a quick and enjoyable read, perfect for kids who love "The Wild Robot", "Pax", or kids who love reading about animals more than about humans.
adventurous
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
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:
No
I absolutely loved this book so much! We are following Johannes, a stray dog who lives in an urban park (loosely based on San Francisco's Golden Gate Park) with lots of other wild animals. There are bison who live in a fenced-in enclosure in the park and they are the overseers. But since they are fenced in, they need "eyes" on all the goings-on to be sure the park's equilibrium is maintained. That's where Johannes (and his friends) come in. He can run as fast as the speed of light (according to him) and observe everything to be reported back to the bison. But, lots of things are about to change, including Johannes's view of the world. You MUST listen to this on audio, with Ethan Hawke narrating. I can't even believe how good he is at doing all the animal voices, but especially Johannes who is so, so funny and earnest (and very, very fast).
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
hopeful
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I liked this a lot initially, but it waned for me a bit as it went on. I liked the unique perspective; any book from an animal's perspective is wonderful, and I read looooots when I was younger. I tried to imagine reading this out loud to/with an elementary-aged child, which I think would work somewhat. Overall, it felt like the story lost some of the wonder of its premise by introducing too many threads. It's not like everything needs a reason, but some of the plot points that took up a lot of time didn't get fully explored to my satisfaction. Why were the pictures in the gallery so compelling to Johannes? Why was he best suited to be the Eyes, and how did he contribute to that project helping the community in the park? Yeah, I think if this had been a little simpler it would have had a deeper resonance. But I'm a Dave Eggers skeptic so that may bias me a bit. I did like the ending.
Incredible book. The audiobook read by Ethan Hawke is an extra treat.
adventurous
emotional
funny
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
I laughed out loud a lot. What a cute dog. Don't tell him I said that.
