neilazaara 's review for:

Sipsworth by Simon Van Booy

3.0

hopeful lighthearted relaxing slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

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It was cute. But I wasn’t blown away. It didn’t feel as emotional as it could have been and there was little internal monologue related to changes in Helen’s mindset towards life. I wish we had a bit more of her backstory and motivations, rather than a superficial view of what was happening in the moment. An elderly lady who used to be a cardiac surgeon could have been such an interesting character to follow but for some reason we focused on the mundanity of her life when she’s old. It didn’t quite fit her persona from the past and felt like a totally different person in my opinion.

Sipsworth was cute and I didn’t expect the events of the latter half involving him but… It would have been better as a rat than a mouse as they have more personality and more complex neurological workings which would have fit perfectly this story. I needed the mouse to be a bit more at the centre of the story rather than just a means to an end.

Overall, it wasn’t bad and the side characters were fun to follow but I wish we dug a bit deeper when it comes to interactions and motivations. It felt a bit too surface level and it missed to fully get me invested in their lives.