A review by ferdie
The Indian in the Cupboard by Lynne Reid Banks

adventurous funny lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

For being published in 1980, this book maintained its relevance and message today despite a few unaddressed racist moments. The moral of the story is that people do not deserve to be treated like objects, and friendship can persevere through differences. The execution of this message was nearly perfect and I did not expect to enjoy this book as much as I did. I listened to the audio book and would recommend it as it is read by the author and she does brilliant voices for each of the characters. There were a few moments I would have liked to see more of a discussion around, particularly when Boone made explicitly racist comments to Little Bull. The author chose to leave those be and push the two characters to be friends anyways without apology from Boone or discussion on how Little Bull's hurt was valid. I would be willing to see if that is addressed in the rest of the series but that was really the only disappointing thing about this book. Rating it lower for that and because middle grade isn't my preferred genre though I really enjoyed this classic.