Take a photo of a barcode or cover
awesummy 's review for:
The Westing Game
by Ellen Raskin
Not quite as good as I remembered it. This time, as I already knew what the twist was, I had the luxury of evaluating whether or not the prose actually elucidates the information necessary for the reader to solve the mystery before the characters do (it functionally doesn't). The pacing is extremely odd, and does not lend itself to actual problem solving. Perhaps I'm expecting too much from this book targeted to children.
Also, the first time I read this, I suppose I was not yet sensitive to the optics of some of the specific and highly racialized tropes in this book, like the 28-year-old trophy wife from China who can't speak English and steals people's valuables, or the black judge who has a chip on her shoulder from being the child of servants, or the Greek family whose (dark) skin color is brought up numerous times.... what weird things to mention which add virtually nothing to the plot, except to suggest that each of these people has shameful secrets which are presented as equivalents to a white character literally bombing the building several times. Weird!
Also, the first time I read this, I suppose I was not yet sensitive to the optics of some of the specific and highly racialized tropes in this book, like the 28-year-old trophy wife from China who can't speak English and steals people's valuables, or the black judge who has a chip on her shoulder from being the child of servants, or the Greek family whose (dark) skin color is brought up numerous times.... what weird things to mention which add virtually nothing to the plot, except to suggest that each of these people has shameful secrets which are presented as equivalents to a white character literally bombing the building several times. Weird!