Scan barcode
A review by novelinsights
Starglass by Phoebe North
4.0
There were a lot of things to like about this book. The premise of a Jewish spaceship was cool, for one. I don't see a lot of Jewish representation in sff, and it was cool to see an environment where a real-world culture/religion other than Eastern European Christianity was dominant. I also appreciated that the focus was on the culture more so than the actual religion, since I'm not a huge fan of the general concept of religion myself and would have quickly been bored by a book that felt preachy.
I also liked the protagonist's struggle with wanting to be an artist but being forced to take on a more practical career. I also wish desperately that I could have a creative career but have turned to the sciences to pay the bills, and it was nice to see a protagonist in a similar predicament, even if it was for the crew's necessity rather than for money. I also liked that she made an effort with the career she ended up with and came to like it, although she still would have rather been an artist. I thought this was more realistic than her loving or despising it. I've had a lot of negative feelings toward my own career and it was inspiring to see someone trying to make the most of their situation while still acknowledging it wasn't what they really wanted.
Additionally, this book did a good job of showing rebellion in a realistic, non-romanticized light.
The book also did a good job of depicting social relationships. I was particularly impressed with the relationship between Terra and her father, especially in that while it was dysfunctional and problematic, they clearly still loved each other. I also liked the way that multiple romantic relationships were shown as things that could come and go; I feel like, in YA, a lot of the relationships are implied to be lifelong, but part of the message of this book seemed to be that you shouldn't have to commit to someone for the rest of your life when you're only a teenager.
The main thing I didn't like about this book was that the protagonist was often a bit short-sighted and failed to think about the obvious consequences of her actions at times. Still, it was an enjoyable book and I look forward to reading the sequel.
I also liked the protagonist's struggle with wanting to be an artist but being forced to take on a more practical career. I also wish desperately that I could have a creative career but have turned to the sciences to pay the bills, and it was nice to see a protagonist in a similar predicament, even if it was for the crew's necessity rather than for money. I also liked that she made an effort with the career she ended up with and came to like it, although she still would have rather been an artist. I thought this was more realistic than her loving or despising it. I've had a lot of negative feelings toward my own career and it was inspiring to see someone trying to make the most of their situation while still acknowledging it wasn't what they really wanted.
Additionally, this book did a good job of showing rebellion in a realistic, non-romanticized light.
Spoiler
It felt poignant in the current era of vaccine conspiracy theories and whatnot that the rebel organization was so compelling but actually had everything completely wrong in the end. I especially liked how Terra realized how much of it actually didn't make sense when she really sat down to think about it, such as how the crops weren't taken care of in the dome because no one had any intention of staying there.The book also did a good job of depicting social relationships. I was particularly impressed with the relationship between Terra and her father, especially in that while it was dysfunctional and problematic, they clearly still loved each other. I also liked the way that multiple romantic relationships were shown as things that could come and go; I feel like, in YA, a lot of the relationships are implied to be lifelong, but part of the message of this book seemed to be that you shouldn't have to commit to someone for the rest of your life when you're only a teenager.
The main thing I didn't like about this book was that the protagonist was often a bit short-sighted and failed to think about the obvious consequences of her actions at times.