Mini-Reviews #3: Children's and YA

Here are my thoughts on four books I've read recently. Read previous mini-review posts here and here.

 

My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton and Jodi Meadows

I really liked this book. It retells the story of Lady Jane Grey, set in an alternative version of sixteenth-century England where some people (Edians) have the ability to turn into animals. Others think that this ability is unnatural and that Edians should all be destroyed. It's very well done and very entertaining. Definitely recommended, especially if you are a history fan.

Outcast by Rosemary Sutcliff

This was my second attempt at reading this author; I have to admit I didn't especially enjoy The Eagle of the Ninth, but I'm glad I gave Rosemary Sutcliff another try! I really enjoyed this book. It was in essence a fairly straightforward story, about a boy trying to escape from slavery and find a place to belong, but it was very well done. I think the tension between "light" and "dark" moments was exactly right; there was enough suffering and danger to make the story authentic and to make you care about Beric, and what happened to him, but it never got so bleak as to be depressing; generally it was just at the darkest moment that Beric's fortunes seemed to change, and the ending was happy, although it relied on one or two convenient coincidences. Overall, I thought this was a very good, and very enjoyable book, and I'm definitely going to be reading more from the author in the future.

Autumn Term by Antonia Forest

I did enjoy this, but I didn't love it like I was expecting to. I'm not sure why that was - I think I just didn't feel enough interest in the main events of the story. I liked the characters - the sister/family relationships especially, although we only get little glimpses of them. But I definitely would like to read more of this in future books; I own one other in the series, and will look into getting the rest (they are a little bit pricy though; I was lucky to pick up the two I own cheaply at a charity shop).

Pea's Book of Best Friends by Susie Day

I really liked this. It was quite reminiscent of Hilary McKay, who is one of my favourite authors. It's quite a simple story, the story of three sisters who move to London when their mother becomes a  successful author. Although excited at first, it's not quite what they expected; Pea (the main character) finds she has a hard time making friends, and there are other aspects that don't quite go to plan - like when they arrive in their house and find they've forgotten to buy furniture, so only have a small amount from their old (much smaller) house. Overall, this was a quick but entertaining read. I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the series (there are four books in all, plus a companion book about the Llewellyns' next-door neighbours).

Mini-Reviews #2: August 2016

Yes, this post is rather late; I wrote it quite a few weeks ago and then mostly forgot about it. I didn't do a monthly wrap-up for August though, so if you want to know my thoughts on some of what I read then, read on!

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

 

 

This is outside of my usual genres and I didn't know that much about the book prior to reading it (other than that it was a Cinderella retelling set in the future), but I'd heard a lot of good things about it so decided to give it a go. I thought it was really good - I was really drawn into the story and it definitely kept me reading wanting to know what happened next. The connection with Cinderella is clear, but the book deviates quite a bit from the original story (which was good, because it kept me reading to find out what would happen next). The story does end on a bit of a cliffhanger though with quite a few loose ends not resolved so now I really want to get the next book in the series, Scarlet.

 

Journey to the Centre of the Earth by Jules Verne

Rating: 4 out of 5

 

 

 

This was a fun, quick read. Axel, the narrator, reluctantly accompanies his professor uncle on a seemingly crazy attempt to reach the centre of the earth by travelling down through a volcano; a third companion is their mostly-silent guide Hans. I found this book a bit slow to start off with but I was later swept up in the excitement of the journey and the wondrous things that the three travellers encounter on their journey (but I won't spoil it for you). It's a short book, and didn't take me long to read, but it was definitely worthwhile reading.

The Forever Girl by Alexander McCall Smith

Rating: 3 out of 5

 

 

I enjoyed reading this, and it was quite a quick read, but really not very much happened in the story. It's the kind of story where the main conflict is that the characters just don't really communicate with each other, and if they would just talk about stuff it would make everything a lot simpler (but then there wouldn't really have been much of a story). So it was a bit frustrating at times. But still it was an enjoyable read, and just what I needed at the time.

Gatty's Tale by Kevin Crossley-Holland

I first read this book back in November 2011. Although I know I really enjoyed it, I'd forgotten most of what happened in the story. This was probably a good thing from a re-reading point of view, since I was surprised by some of the twists the story took, although I remembered the main plot points. I think overall my feelings are not much changed from the first time I read it (so it has stood the test of time for me fairly well so far).

The heroine of this story is Gatty, a fifteen-year-old field-girl living in the year 1203. After her father's death, she is given the opportunity to become a chamber-servant to Lady Gwyneth de Ewloe, raising her position in the world. This leads to the chance for her to travel to Jerusalem when Lady Gwyneth decides to go on a pilgrimage there. (Although I have described it as an opportunity, Gatty isn't given much choice in any of these matters; she has to go along with what is decided for her by her superiors.) In the Middle Ages, journeying from England to Jersualem is a fairly major undertaking; the entire journey takes almost a year to complete, there and back. So it's a pretty big deal, and Gatty grows up a lot and learns a lot about the world, and herself, on the way. As she reflects towards the end of the book, she is "the same, but not the same".

I liked Gatty a lot as a character, and she definitely grows and develops throughout the story. The developments of her relationships with the other characters, particularly Lady Gwyneth (who is like a mother figure to her) and Nest (Lady Gwyneth's other chamber-servant, who is very different from Gatty and initially dislikes her, but they come to like and understand each other better during the story), are also very well done.

  

I like the concept of a journey as a plot device, as a chance for self-discovery. The journey itself is interesting to read about, as there are a number of problems and difficulties to overcome, and not all of the pilgrims make it to Jerusalem. Quite a few things happen on the journey; thieves, unscrupulous tradesmen, dangerous terrain (such as riding along the edge of a precipice), and various other dangers and temptations, and there are times when it looks as though everything is lost - but all comes right in the end. Naturally, we also learn about life in the 1200s, and see the sights of medieval Europe along with Gatty.

The writing is also very good, and the ending of the book is just about right too. Although overall it is a slightly bittersweet book, in which bad things do happen, there is enough good in it to outweigh the bad and to finish with a happy ending.

This is technically a sequel to the author's Arthur trilogy, which it would probably be helpful to read first, but you definitely don't have to have read it. (I did enjoy it overall, but not as much as this book.) It has also been published under the title Crossing to Paradise. Find it on Goodreads here.