Scan barcode
A review by jackleopards
Down Among the Sticks and Bones by Seanan McGuire
5.0
The prequel to [b: Every Heart a Doorway|25526296|Every Heart a Doorway (Wayward Children #1)|Seanan McGuire|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1431438555l/25526296._SX50_.jpg|45313140] tells the more in-depth story of the identical twin sisters, Jack and Jill. Jack was one of the characters I liked in the first book and I’m glad that I get to have more of her dark humor, the geeky vibes she gives off, and her riveting character development, where she was also introduced as a diverse character when she catches feelings with the innkeeper’s daughter.
In this prequel, we see how sensitive the relationship of the twins are as a cause to making ends meet with the pressure of keeping up with the high standards set for them by their most unlikeable of the unlikeable parents we could ever think of: perfectionists, toxic, egocentric, careless, irresponsible, and very workaholics. Thus the sisters are alike yet different — raised by their parents in a way that are opposite to what they are in the present. Jack is nerdy and hardworking, and one who is eager to know how science works to feed her curious mind, whereas Jill sees herself as a doll who stands still on perfect dresses with pink laces and ribbons, a princess who wanted to be loved and be noticed.
In the world with a gothic setting, we get to see how they grew farther apart as they are splitted up as the vampire’s daughter and as a mad scientist’s apprentice. One of the things that I loved in this series is that Maguire writes her books with a story that speaks for itself and leaves her readers with a message about the impacts of putting yourself in a box and letting the society mold you as they want you to be; a message about avoiding other people treat you as an accessory only to be admired at, but just simply be yourself, in your own unique way.
In this prequel, we see how sensitive the relationship of the twins are as a cause to making ends meet with the pressure of keeping up with the high standards set for them by their most unlikeable of the unlikeable parents we could ever think of: perfectionists, toxic, egocentric, careless, irresponsible, and very workaholics. Thus the sisters are alike yet different — raised by their parents in a way that are opposite to what they are in the present. Jack is nerdy and hardworking, and one who is eager to know how science works to feed her curious mind, whereas Jill sees herself as a doll who stands still on perfect dresses with pink laces and ribbons, a princess who wanted to be loved and be noticed.
“It was an uncomfortable thing, feeling like their parents weren’t doing what was best for them; like this house, this vast, perfectly organized house, with its clean, artfully decorated rooms, was pressing the life out of them one inch at a time. If they didn’t find a way out, they were going to become paper dolls, flat and faceless and ready to be dressed however their parents wanted them to be.”
In the world with a gothic setting, we get to see how they grew farther apart as they are splitted up as the vampire’s daughter and as a mad scientist’s apprentice. One of the things that I loved in this series is that Maguire writes her books with a story that speaks for itself and leaves her readers with a message about the impacts of putting yourself in a box and letting the society mold you as they want you to be; a message about avoiding other people treat you as an accessory only to be admired at, but just simply be yourself, in your own unique way.
“The trouble with denying children the freedom to be themselves—with forcing them into an idea of what they should be, not allowing them to choose their own paths—is that all too often, the one drawing the design knows nothing of the desires of their model. Children are not formless clay, to be shaped according to the sculptor’s whim, nor are they blank but identical dolls, waiting to be slipped into the mode that suits them best.”