A review by pangnaolin
Whichwood by Tahereh Mafi

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad medium-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

4.25

I was quite surprised at how beautiful & dark this was for a supposed Y/A book. Embarrassingly, I had no idea it was the second in a series when I first read it, but I enjoyed it thoroughly despite the lack of context! Laylee was such an intriguing & captivating character, cleaning corpses for a living and being quite a dark, bleak, and gory character, but at the same time, surprisingly full of heart.

I remember especially loving Benyamin and his care for bugs, too! Every interaction with the world or a character felt like a new exploration, and allowed me to really feel immersed in it all.

I'm not sure how much I'd like it on a re-read, as my style and maturity with writing have already matured quite a bit, but I do have a fondness for it, regardless. I'd just caution that I'd be wary of giving this to actual young people exploring Y/A just because it could be a bit dark for some, depending on their preferences, but it's worth a shot if it's something they're interested in.