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scriptedsolstice's Reviews (170)
I can't believe I never read this book as a child. I saw the movie but I couldn't remember very much.
The Golden Compass (my edition is called Northern Lights) is set in a world where humans have daemons - an animal companion that ultimately is their soul. We follow Lyra and her daemon Pan as they go on a snowy adventure so investigate the mysterious disappearances of children, and learn about the phenomenon of 'Dust'.
Some of the scenes in here were really well written. I could picture myself within the walls of a historical British college with moody lighting and old brick walls. I felt cold when we travelled North with Lyra and was in awe at some of the battle scenes. I also think Pullman does a lot of telling instead of showing and I didn't mind at all! I did find myself to be slightly confused when it came to the church discussions though.
Lyra is such a strong character and I really enjoyed getting to know her and following her thoughts. She's really headstrong and smart and deeply care for others.
One reason why I gave the book 4 stars instead of 5 is that I think the writing didn't always reflect her age well. Lyra is 12, yet when she is corrected on how to say 'Aurora' she still says it wrong, but later manages to say it correctly. I also think she read a lot younger, particularly in the beginning. Until I found out she was 12, I originally thought of her as around 9. Nevertheless I really enjoyed reading this and i'm excited to continue in the series!
Oh and there’s also bears who wear armour and witches
The Golden Compass (my edition is called Northern Lights) is set in a world where humans have daemons - an animal companion that ultimately is their soul. We follow Lyra and her daemon Pan as they go on a snowy adventure so investigate the mysterious disappearances of children, and learn about the phenomenon of 'Dust'.
Some of the scenes in here were really well written. I could picture myself within the walls of a historical British college with moody lighting and old brick walls. I felt cold when we travelled North with Lyra and was in awe at some of the battle scenes. I also think Pullman does a lot of telling instead of showing and I didn't mind at all! I did find myself to be slightly confused when it came to the church discussions though.
Lyra is such a strong character and I really enjoyed getting to know her and following her thoughts. She's really headstrong and smart and deeply care for others.
One reason why I gave the book 4 stars instead of 5 is that I think the writing didn't always reflect her age well. Lyra is 12, yet when she is corrected on how to say 'Aurora' she still says it wrong, but later manages to say it correctly. I also think she read a lot younger, particularly in the beginning. Until I found out she was 12, I originally thought of her as around 9. Nevertheless I really enjoyed reading this and i'm excited to continue in the series!
Oh and there’s also bears who wear armour and witches
*ACTUAL RATING 2.5*
I’m really struggling to form my thoughts on this book. It wasn’t bad, but I didn’t enjoy it. How I Live Now tells the story of Elizabeth (who goes by Daisy for some reason, if any one knows pls tell me
I’m really struggling to form my thoughts on this book. It wasn’t bad, but I didn’t enjoy it. How I Live Now tells the story of Elizabeth (who goes by Daisy for some reason, if any one knows pls tell me
There’s absolutely nothing wrong with this book, I’m just not the intended audience so I didn’t feel anything other than enjoyment, and that’s okay!
The world was so weird and wonderful and, like Alice I definitely was curious! There’s something really charming and special about this story that made me smile whilst listening. The audiobook is read by Scarlett Johansson which I really recommend, she has a great reading voice. I think it is a great children’s book, and, had I read this as a child I think I would have quite enjoyed it.
The world was so weird and wonderful and, like Alice I definitely was curious! There’s something really charming and special about this story that made me smile whilst listening. The audiobook is read by Scarlett Johansson which I really recommend, she has a great reading voice. I think it is a great children’s book, and, had I read this as a child I think I would have quite enjoyed it.
*3.5 stars*
Binti is such a refreshing novella with original characters rich in cultural difference. Binti is a Himba, who leaves her family to study at Oozma University. Once aboard her transport to travel to the University, her ship is boarded by a strange alien race called the Meduse.
I highly enjoyed the concept and the racial and cultural commentary. When Binti would describe her people and her home, I could really get a sense of what it means to her. The book is a super light read and doesn’t offer anything particularly challenging, which is where it fell a little flat for me. The writing was pretty simple and basic, which made a lot of the story quite bland. I did still enjoy this and will continue the series purely on the fact that I enjoy the character of Binti.
Binti is such a refreshing novella with original characters rich in cultural difference. Binti is a Himba, who leaves her family to study at Oozma University. Once aboard her transport to travel to the University, her ship is boarded by a strange alien race called the Meduse.
I highly enjoyed the concept and the racial and cultural commentary. When Binti would describe her people and her home, I could really get a sense of what it means to her. The book is a super light read and doesn’t offer anything particularly challenging, which is where it fell a little flat for me. The writing was pretty simple and basic, which made a lot of the story quite bland. I did still enjoy this and will continue the series purely on the fact that I enjoy the character of Binti.
This was so wonderful! Seanan McGuire takes inspiration from worlds such as Alice and Narnia, and adapts them to the real world - what effects would these worlds have on children who return to the real world?
The murder mystery plot was a nice surprise as I wasn’t expecting it at all! I was really impressed by the amount of detail given to these characters and the world considering that this book is pretty short. I loved finding out about each child’s portal world and it also has great asexual representation.
I can’t wait to look at these worlds in more detail in the next books.
The murder mystery plot was a nice surprise as I wasn’t expecting it at all! I was really impressed by the amount of detail given to these characters and the world considering that this book is pretty short. I loved finding out about each child’s portal world and it also has great asexual representation.
I can’t wait to look at these worlds in more detail in the next books.
Super fun, fast to read and gorgeously dark and gothic.
I can’t believe I never read this series as child, but I’m glad I’ve gotten into it now! It is filled with sarcastic humour that keeps you really entertained, and I love how the author speaks to the reader!
I can’t believe I never read this series as child, but I’m glad I’ve gotten into it now! It is filled with sarcastic humour that keeps you really entertained, and I love how the author speaks to the reader!
I really enjoyed this! Roald Dahl’s writing is funny and made me laugh multiple times whilst reading! The story is super fun and magical, but also has underlying messages of humbleness and appreciating what you have.
Follow Me To Ground tells the story of Ada and her father, who cure the humans in their village using the mysterious soil in their garden, and/or putting them to sleep, singing to them and opening up their bodies.
I won’t give any more of the story away so I’ll just focus on the elements of the book. This definitely reads like a fairytale. Ada and her father use song to drive away sickness, they age incredibly slow and we find out that Ada’s father turns into a wolf and goes hunting in the woods occasionally.
Ada is the strangest of creatures and we discover that she was in fact made from this strange soil in their garden. She often has weird thoughts of bodies, and what is contained within them. She hears blood, smells substances and she tells them to us which was definitely disturbing and creepy! She also seems to have no love for the humans, which her and her father call “cures”. She merely sees them as a pastime, something she can do without much concentration at all. Ada does develop feelings for one of her cures, Samson, and we get to see exactly how she feels and thinks about him as their relationship escalates.
I do think that the book needs more detail, or even a sequel. I would love to know why Ada and her father even bother curing humans, and if there is anything in it for them? Does the Ground hold a sort of power in this sense?
I was also very confused with the chapter beginnings. Each chapter is the name of a cure who gives us a few sentences about Ada and her father, before we return to Ada’s perspective. There was no clear shift when this occurred and took me half the book to realise that this was going on. However, this could just be the Kindle formatting.
Overall, this is one of the strangest books I have ever read. If you enjoy creepy fairy-tale vibes and magical realism, I recommend this book! However, it does lack any rules or explanations for why Ada and her father have the ability to cure people, which isn’t something I enjoy.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK for the ARC in exchange for an honest review
I won’t give any more of the story away so I’ll just focus on the elements of the book. This definitely reads like a fairytale. Ada and her father use song to drive away sickness, they age incredibly slow and we find out that Ada’s father turns into a wolf and goes hunting in the woods occasionally.
Ada is the strangest of creatures and we discover that she was in fact made from this strange soil in their garden. She often has weird thoughts of bodies, and what is contained within them. She hears blood, smells substances and she tells them to us which was definitely disturbing and creepy! She also seems to have no love for the humans, which her and her father call “cures”. She merely sees them as a pastime, something she can do without much concentration at all. Ada does develop feelings for one of her cures, Samson, and we get to see exactly how she feels and thinks about him as their relationship escalates.
I do think that the book needs more detail, or even a sequel. I would love to know why Ada and her father even bother curing humans, and if there is anything in it for them? Does the Ground hold a sort of power in this sense?
I was also very confused with the chapter beginnings. Each chapter is the name of a cure who gives us a few sentences about Ada and her father, before we return to Ada’s perspective. There was no clear shift when this occurred and took me half the book to realise that this was going on. However, this could just be the Kindle formatting.
Overall, this is one of the strangest books I have ever read. If you enjoy creepy fairy-tale vibes and magical realism, I recommend this book! However, it does lack any rules or explanations for why Ada and her father have the ability to cure people, which isn’t something I enjoy.
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK for the ARC in exchange for an honest review
This was super cute! I haven’t gotten on well with classics in the past but this one changed my perspective! Each chapter was like a new little adventure which was really fun and light-hearted!
Gotta say I do prefer the film, but I’m happy that the film came about through this book! Mary Poppins as a character is just way more likeable in the film IMO, whereas in the book she is pretty rude and full of herself (I did find this funny though
Gotta say I do prefer the film, but I’m happy that the film came about through this book! Mary Poppins as a character is just way more likeable in the film IMO, whereas in the book she is pretty rude and full of herself (I did find this funny though