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A review by momelimberham
Lady of Ch'iao Kuo: Red Bird of the South, Southern China, A.D. 531 by Laurence Yep
adventurous
dark
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Although this book is a middle grade read and I am an adult, I enjoyed it! The beginning is a bit slow, but it works great to contrast the more fast-paced remaining 3/4 of the book. Although nothing is described in graphic detail, there IS mention of violence. Some things are left up to our imaginations, as well as that of the main character, which seems appropriate for the reading level.
The protagonist's experiences of self-doubt, her ups and downs, all felt very believable and earned. It made sense when she felt like she'd messed up, and it made sense when she felt like she'd gotten a "win." The story doesn't get all wrapped up neatly at the end - it's historical fiction taking place over the course of like 3 months, so of course not - but it ends on a "happily for now."
The biggest flaw of this book is the problem with it being written in a diary format, sometimes it doesn't make sense. She'll have entries that end "...and I - what was that noise? Sounds like thunder." I get for narrative reasons why that happens, but it got to be really ridiculous because it just kept happening. If I was writing and got interrupted by a loud noise, I wouldn't write "what was that loud noise?", I would just get up and see what it was! So that was silly.
The protagonist's experiences of self-doubt, her ups and downs, all felt very believable and earned. It made sense when she felt like she'd messed up, and it made sense when she felt like she'd gotten a "win." The story doesn't get all wrapped up neatly at the end - it's historical fiction taking place over the course of like 3 months, so of course not - but it ends on a "happily for now."
The biggest flaw of this book is the problem with it being written in a diary format, sometimes it doesn't make sense. She'll have entries that end "...and I - what was that noise? Sounds like thunder." I get for narrative reasons why that happens, but it got to be really ridiculous because it just kept happening. If I was writing and got interrupted by a loud noise, I wouldn't write "what was that loud noise?", I would just get up and see what it was! So that was silly.