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betwixt_the_pages 's review for:
Anyone But Ivy Pocket
by Caleb Krisp
Ivy Pocket is a twelve-year-old maid of no importance, with a very lofty opinion of herself. Dumped in Paris by the Countess Carbunkle, who would rather run away to South America than continue in Ivy's companionship, our young heroine (of sorts) finds herself with no money and no home to go to ... until she is summoned to the bedside of the dying Duchess of Trinity.
For the princely sum of £500 (enough to buy a carriage, and possibly a monkey), Ivy agrees to courier the Duchess's most precious possession – the Clock Diamond – to England, and to put it around the neck of the revolting Matilda Butterfield on her twelfth birthday. It's not long before Ivy finds herself at the heart of a conspiracy involving mischief, mayhem and murder.
Illustrated in humorous gothic detail by Barbara Cantini, Anyone But Ivy Pocket is just the beginning of one girl's deadly comic journey to discover who she really is ...
- - - - -
Rating: 4.5/5 Penguins
Quick Reasons: quirky, snarky, awesome characters; this story kept me on my toes; Ivy Pocket ALWAYS does the unexpected!; I laughed out loud way too many times; the illustrations are both gorgeous and entertaining; the prose is witty, full of attitude, and ever surprising
Huge thanks to Caleb Krisp and HarperCollins Publishers for sending me a hardcover copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review! This in no way altered my read of or opinions on this book.
(Soundtrack Insert: Confident, by Demi Lovato)
THIS BOOK! This book is absolutely adorable and dark and quirky and filled with attitude and...if I don't stop listing off the things I like about it, I'll never actually write my review, so let's jump into this! First and foremost: the illustrations. The illustrations are absolutely GORGEOUS, yet also filled with personality. I really enjoyed that the illustration at the beginning of this book (“I have all the natural instincts of...” followed by a word or phrase) plays into each and every chapter in some way—because Ivy Pocket is nothing but confident in herself and her “abilities!” I really enjoyed that the chapter header images, also, played a huge role in the read—namely, they gave me a small glimpse into whatever chaos or shenanigans were about to befall our MC.
(Soundtrack Insert: Love Myself, by Hailee Steinfeld)
Ivy Pocket is a character I never knew I needed SO BADLY to read about. She's a confident, snarky, imaginative 12 year old orphan, working as a maid. I mean, let's just start there, okay? She's 12! But her attitude? Her attitude is bigger than MINE, and I absolutely loved every single moment. I basked in her self assurance. I bathed in her snark. I need to take a lesson from Miss Pocket; she could teach me a thing or fifty about loving myself. I just think she is exactly the type of wonderful character little girls need to be reading—for her confidence. For her love in herself.
Of course, the other characters are just as brilliantly written, though as this is from Ivy's perspective, I think readers get rather a...caricature image of most of them. While the snark is on point, I feel like perhaps Ivy is a bit jaded where other people are concerned—and very quick to jump to judgments, at least at the beginning of this read. BUT—she's 12! I remember being just as cynical and presumptous at that age, so it's realistic.
(Soundtrack Insert: Diamond's are a Girl's Best Friend, by Nicole Kidman)
This story overall is playful, dark, sometimes disturbing (think Neil Gaiman's Coraline), full of witty snark, and positively entertaining—I laughed out loud for a good majority of the read, which doesn't happen often! The characters (especially Miss Pocket) never do exactly what you think they're going to; the prose keeps you on your toes (HAH, rhyme-win!). I was engrossed from beginning to end, and cannot wait to dive into the second book in this series!
The only downside? This is meant to be a four-novel set. Which means a bit of waiting is in my future, I'm afraid. I'm more than willing to take this journey, though—Ivy Pocket is a fascinating, awesome character, and I can't wait to see what adventures are in store for her! I recommend this book to lovers of mid-grade, Neil Gaiman, and Lemony Snicket. You'll SOB from laughing so hard during this read! This is definitely a book you don't want to miss!
For the princely sum of £500 (enough to buy a carriage, and possibly a monkey), Ivy agrees to courier the Duchess's most precious possession – the Clock Diamond – to England, and to put it around the neck of the revolting Matilda Butterfield on her twelfth birthday. It's not long before Ivy finds herself at the heart of a conspiracy involving mischief, mayhem and murder.
Illustrated in humorous gothic detail by Barbara Cantini, Anyone But Ivy Pocket is just the beginning of one girl's deadly comic journey to discover who she really is ...
- - - - -
Rating: 4.5/5 Penguins
Quick Reasons: quirky, snarky, awesome characters; this story kept me on my toes; Ivy Pocket ALWAYS does the unexpected!; I laughed out loud way too many times; the illustrations are both gorgeous and entertaining; the prose is witty, full of attitude, and ever surprising
Huge thanks to Caleb Krisp and HarperCollins Publishers for sending me a hardcover copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review! This in no way altered my read of or opinions on this book.
(Soundtrack Insert: Confident, by Demi Lovato)
“My parents fell into a volcano,” I said. “My mother was blown deep into the Congo, where she now lives with a tribe of vegetarian pygmies, and my father had the good sense to explode on impact.”
THIS BOOK! This book is absolutely adorable and dark and quirky and filled with attitude and...if I don't stop listing off the things I like about it, I'll never actually write my review, so let's jump into this! First and foremost: the illustrations. The illustrations are absolutely GORGEOUS, yet also filled with personality. I really enjoyed that the illustration at the beginning of this book (“I have all the natural instincts of...” followed by a word or phrase) plays into each and every chapter in some way—because Ivy Pocket is nothing but confident in herself and her “abilities!” I really enjoyed that the chapter header images, also, played a huge role in the read—namely, they gave me a small glimpse into whatever chaos or shenanigans were about to befall our MC.
(Soundtrack Insert: Love Myself, by Hailee Steinfeld)
Ivy Pocket is a character I never knew I needed SO BADLY to read about. She's a confident, snarky, imaginative 12 year old orphan, working as a maid. I mean, let's just start there, okay? She's 12! But her attitude? Her attitude is bigger than MINE, and I absolutely loved every single moment. I basked in her self assurance. I bathed in her snark. I need to take a lesson from Miss Pocket; she could teach me a thing or fifty about loving myself. I just think she is exactly the type of wonderful character little girls need to be reading—for her confidence. For her love in herself.
The floor was a battlefield of scattered clocks. They no longer ticked as one. The room had lost its heartbeat.
Of course, the other characters are just as brilliantly written, though as this is from Ivy's perspective, I think readers get rather a...caricature image of most of them. While the snark is on point, I feel like perhaps Ivy is a bit jaded where other people are concerned—and very quick to jump to judgments, at least at the beginning of this read. BUT—she's 12! I remember being just as cynical and presumptous at that age, so it's realistic.
(Soundtrack Insert: Diamond's are a Girl's Best Friend, by Nicole Kidman)
This story overall is playful, dark, sometimes disturbing (think Neil Gaiman's Coraline), full of witty snark, and positively entertaining—I laughed out loud for a good majority of the read, which doesn't happen often! The characters (especially Miss Pocket) never do exactly what you think they're going to; the prose keeps you on your toes (HAH, rhyme-win!). I was engrossed from beginning to end, and cannot wait to dive into the second book in this series!
“Can you forgive a lonely old ghost?” she sobbed. I shrugged. “Unlikely, dear. I have a talent for grudges. I once carried one for an entire winter. The back pain was monstrous.”
The only downside? This is meant to be a four-novel set. Which means a bit of waiting is in my future, I'm afraid. I'm more than willing to take this journey, though—Ivy Pocket is a fascinating, awesome character, and I can't wait to see what adventures are in store for her! I recommend this book to lovers of mid-grade, Neil Gaiman, and Lemony Snicket. You'll SOB from laughing so hard during this read! This is definitely a book you don't want to miss!