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A review by stephanieridiculous
Igraine the Brave by Cornelia Funke
3.5
I often read the 1 and 2 star reviews, and I just wanna acknowledge that many of the 1-2 star reviews on this book are just... wildly wrong. The title didn't have anything to do with the book? Our MC is called Igraine the Brave like 12 times. The parents are forcing her to do what they want, not what she wants, and that they gave her a dope set of armor is somehow proof that they are forcing her to be a magician and not a knight??? I don't understand.
Anyway. This isn't going to blow your mind, but it's a fun romp. There's a sprinkling of fatphobia, admittedly a lot of moral lessons, and if I didn't read with my ears (shout out to the narrator doing great voices) I could see this being a smidge too dry. This might be an unpopular take, but I did appreciate that Igraine is often saved by adults in the last second - she accomplishes things on her own, for sure, but at no point are all the stakes on her; she contributes heavily to the victory, but it doesn't depend on her, and I feel like that's a much healthier model for children than some other stories that pit the kid against all of the adults in their life. Igraine's family is loving, healthy, and encouraging. They accept her and cheer her on, and the only person in the whole book to question her desire to be a knight because she's a girl is the villain. I dig that and wish there was more of that around when I was a kid.
All in all a pretty fun read!
(note: the comments about other reviews are based on the review on Goodreads as this is a crossposted review)
Anyway. This isn't going to blow your mind, but it's a fun romp. There's a sprinkling of fatphobia, admittedly a lot of moral lessons, and if I didn't read with my ears (shout out to the narrator doing great voices) I could see this being a smidge too dry. This might be an unpopular take, but I did appreciate that Igraine is often saved by adults in the last second - she accomplishes things on her own, for sure, but at no point are all the stakes on her; she contributes heavily to the victory, but it doesn't depend on her, and I feel like that's a much healthier model for children than some other stories that pit the kid against all of the adults in their life. Igraine's family is loving, healthy, and encouraging. They accept her and cheer her on, and the only person in the whole book to question her desire to be a knight because she's a girl is the villain. I dig that and wish there was more of that around when I was a kid.
All in all a pretty fun read!
(note: the comments about other reviews are based on the review on Goodreads as this is a crossposted review)