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A review by lizshayne
Over the Woodward Wall by A. Deborah Baker
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
So there's a very specific tone that I feel like a number of authors have been writing in recently and I'm not entirely sure who originated it, although it seems to be some amalgam of Baum and Juster, but that sees the portal fantasy as subversive and didactic at the same time.
I'm not sure what it's doing. I'm not sure it's sure what it's doing. But Valente's Girl etc., Kingfisher's Orcus, like half of McGuire's oeuvre, Sondheim's into the woods are all writing in this vein.
And, to be clear, it really works as a tone and a choice and while this is not my favorite of the genre, it's a solid entry.
McGuire knows the rules extremely well, which is why I admit that it irritates the nose out of me that she broke the rule of closure for this one. At the end of every book, you either get to go home or choose to stay. That's part of the story. That is THE arc. And I know why she broke that rule here (I've read Middlegame, I get the point), but because the break is in service to a different text rather than this book, which deviates from the genre for no reason, I'm grumpy. This book should have ended differently.
I'm not sure what it's doing. I'm not sure it's sure what it's doing. But Valente's Girl etc., Kingfisher's Orcus, like half of McGuire's oeuvre, Sondheim's into the woods are all writing in this vein.
And, to be clear, it really works as a tone and a choice and while this is not my favorite of the genre, it's a solid entry.
McGuire knows the rules extremely well, which is why I admit that it irritates the nose out of me that she broke the rule of closure for this one. At the end of every book, you either get to go home or choose to stay. That's part of the story. That is THE arc. And I know why she broke that rule here (I've read Middlegame, I get the point), but because the break is in service to a different text rather than this book, which deviates from the genre for no reason, I'm grumpy. This book should have ended differently.