Scan barcode
rainbowbookworm's review against another edition
5.0
This is an amazing fairy tale and I love the story of how it came to be: the choreographer for the Royal Ballet in London commissioned it and used it as an inspiration for a piece.
mollywetta's review against another edition
4.0
Delightful, a bit creepy, everything you want in a fairy tale.
aquint's review against another edition
2.0
Interesting idea but not well executed. A few of the illustrations were quite lovely but the story was not developed enough.
hellocookie's review against another edition
4.0
I have a love/hate relationship with Audrey Niffenegger. I first discovered her work through the best selling novel, The Time Traveler's Wife and fell in love with her writing and the book itself.
Desperate for more, I found some of her other works like Three Incestuous Sisters, a book absolutely NOTHING like The Time Traveler's wife. I brushed it off thinking that it was just a quirky book she had gotten off her chest.
Then Her Fearful Symmetry came out and I rushed to the store to buy my copy. It took me a while to get to it, but when I finally did, my first reaction upon finishing it was "Holy CRAP! What the hell did I just read?!" I was in a mild frenzy trying to process it all in my mind. I eventually decided that I loved it in all its effed up glory, but to this day, it still sort of haunts me.
I had absolutely no idea that Raven Girl was even something on the way. I found out a couple days ago that it was released in bookstores and I set out to find the strange fairytale. I had a really hard time of it. Sooner rather than later, I succeeded in finding in and set out to read the 60+ pages of writing and illustrations by Niffenegger herself. It took me about 20 minutes to get through it.
I've come to the conclusion that The Time Traveler's Wife was in fact the "freak" book in Niffenegger's career. Everything else she produces insists on being dark, twisted, perverse and just downright bizarre. And the for the most part, I love it.
Raven Girl was deeply strange but so damn beautiful in its own way. A modern fairytale about a girl born to a Postman and a Raven. It's a simple story that takes you a lot of expected places but is a thoroughly enjoyable ride. Niffenegger's illustration are unique and strange, a perfect accompaniment to the words on the page.
It's definitely not for everyone, but all in all, it's another story that will stick with me and make me think on it for a while to come.
Desperate for more, I found some of her other works like Three Incestuous Sisters, a book absolutely NOTHING like The Time Traveler's wife. I brushed it off thinking that it was just a quirky book she had gotten off her chest.
Then Her Fearful Symmetry came out and I rushed to the store to buy my copy. It took me a while to get to it, but when I finally did, my first reaction upon finishing it was "Holy CRAP! What the hell did I just read?!" I was in a mild frenzy trying to process it all in my mind. I eventually decided that I loved it in all its effed up glory, but to this day, it still sort of haunts me.
I had absolutely no idea that Raven Girl was even something on the way. I found out a couple days ago that it was released in bookstores and I set out to find the strange fairytale. I had a really hard time of it. Sooner rather than later, I succeeded in finding in and set out to read the 60+ pages of writing and illustrations by Niffenegger herself. It took me about 20 minutes to get through it.
I've come to the conclusion that The Time Traveler's Wife was in fact the "freak" book in Niffenegger's career. Everything else she produces insists on being dark, twisted, perverse and just downright bizarre. And the for the most part, I love it.
Raven Girl was deeply strange but so damn beautiful in its own way. A modern fairytale about a girl born to a Postman and a Raven. It's a simple story that takes you a lot of expected places but is a thoroughly enjoyable ride. Niffenegger's illustration are unique and strange, a perfect accompaniment to the words on the page.
It's definitely not for everyone, but all in all, it's another story that will stick with me and make me think on it for a while to come.
kusine's review against another edition
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
liketheday's review against another edition
3.0
It is a true fact that I will read basically anything that Ms. Niffenegger publishes, because even when it's weird it's usually pretty good.
Well, this is very very weird.
read more...
Well, this is very very weird.
read more...
sucitta's review against another edition
3.0
The only books by Audrey Niffenegger that I've read are Time Traveler's Wife and Her Fearful Symmetry; my favorite is still TTW. I had no idea she was writing this until I saw the giveaway for it.
I haven't read a lot of fairytale stories in awhile so I was intrigued enough to try this one out, and since I've read her before I already knew what to expect. Raven Girl is a dark, modern fairytale about a man that falls in love with a raven, and they end up having a raven child, who even though she's human has raven characteristics; for instance, she speaks raven. What really stuck with me was the overall theme of people who are different from societal norms. Her is a girl who looks human in every way, yet she can's speak, which inhibits her from interacting with anyone. She knows she's different, and she desperately wants to be the raven that she knows she is on the inside. No one stops her, which unlike in our society now, where people would probably fight her from changing into the raven she knows she is. She doesn't tell her parents what she wants to do, but I'm certain if she did they wouldn't tell her not to do it, because that's what parents do -- they support you.
Maybe I read too much into this story, but I think you're supposed to interpret this however you want, and this is what I took away from the story. It isn't amazing, and it isn't spectacular, but I still liked it, and the illustrations are so pretty and evocative.
---
Big, big thanks to Nicole Abrams (if I remember correctly!?) for the giveaway!
I haven't read a lot of fairytale stories in awhile so I was intrigued enough to try this one out, and since I've read her before I already knew what to expect. Raven Girl is a dark, modern fairytale about a man that falls in love with a raven, and they end up having a raven child, who even though she's human has raven characteristics; for instance, she speaks raven. What really stuck with me was the overall theme of people who are different from societal norms. Her is a girl who looks human in every way, yet she can's speak, which inhibits her from interacting with anyone. She knows she's different, and she desperately wants to be the raven that she knows she is on the inside. No one stops her, which unlike in our society now, where people would probably fight her from changing into the raven she knows she is. She doesn't tell her parents what she wants to do, but I'm certain if she did they wouldn't tell her not to do it, because that's what parents do -- they support you.
Maybe I read too much into this story, but I think you're supposed to interpret this however you want, and this is what I took away from the story. It isn't amazing, and it isn't spectacular, but I still liked it, and the illustrations are so pretty and evocative.
---
Big, big thanks to Nicole Abrams (if I remember correctly!?) for the giveaway!
bmg20's review against another edition
3.0
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars
Source: Library Checkout
"Today we are going to talk about where the human race may be headed. We have the power to improve ourselves, if we wish to do so. We can become anything we wish to be."
After the postman fell in love with a raven they had a child, a child that looked like a normal human being except for the fact that she could not speak (only caw) and she had an extreme longing to fly. She traverses life as easily as any normal girl but she's constantly living a life that is lacking. When a doctor, a Dr. Moreau type, tells her that he has the ability to give her the wings she's always dreamed of she feels the stirrings of hope.
This story actually came to be after Audrey was asked to collaborate with the Royal ballet in order to a dark fairytale type story to life on the stage. With it's haunting subject, dream-like qualities and gothic undertones I can definitely see this being a beautiful stage production.
The artwork was gorgeous and the creation process of the illustrations was far more complex than I would have normally guessed. Using a procedure called aquatint, it's a process that was intended to imitate watercolors but it's an extremely time-consuming process. To learn more about aquatinting, Audrey discusses it in detail in this video on youtube: http://youtu.be/oO4v9miJLxY
The Raven Girl is an obscure tale of a metamorphosis of sorts. She underwent an artistic transformation because after living with knowing she was different for so long she finally became who she was always meant to be.
Source: Library Checkout
"Today we are going to talk about where the human race may be headed. We have the power to improve ourselves, if we wish to do so. We can become anything we wish to be."
After the postman fell in love with a raven they had a child, a child that looked like a normal human being except for the fact that she could not speak (only caw) and she had an extreme longing to fly. She traverses life as easily as any normal girl but she's constantly living a life that is lacking. When a doctor, a Dr. Moreau type, tells her that he has the ability to give her the wings she's always dreamed of she feels the stirrings of hope.
This story actually came to be after Audrey was asked to collaborate with the Royal ballet in order to a dark fairytale type story to life on the stage. With it's haunting subject, dream-like qualities and gothic undertones I can definitely see this being a beautiful stage production.
The artwork was gorgeous and the creation process of the illustrations was far more complex than I would have normally guessed. Using a procedure called aquatint, it's a process that was intended to imitate watercolors but it's an extremely time-consuming process. To learn more about aquatinting, Audrey discusses it in detail in this video on youtube: http://youtu.be/oO4v9miJLxY
The Raven Girl is an obscure tale of a metamorphosis of sorts. She underwent an artistic transformation because after living with knowing she was different for so long she finally became who she was always meant to be.