The Ocean at the End of the Lane is two things: it’s a fantasy story about a seven year old boy who encounters some terrible, unbelievable things, as well as some wonderful, unbelievable things. It’s also a neat little ode to childhood and commentary on growing up. The unnamed narrator returns to his childhood home, which isn’t even there any longer, to attend a funeral, and finds himself taking a diversionary trip to the farm at the end of the lane. He vaguely remembers there […]
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The Language of Spells is a serviceable lite-fantasy story that I breezed through very quickly, but lacks staying power. The main character, Gwen Harper, is from a family that demonstrates magical abilities — hexes, spells, card reading, and certain individual talents manifest themselves in Gwen, her mother, and her great aunt Iris (notably not her sister, Ruby.) When Gwen learns that recently deceased Iris has left her a house in her name, in a small town that her family had lived in but left when […]
I know the birds were supposed to be important because the title said so
All the Birds in the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders is a perfectly cromulent novel. But there’s nothing about it that set my soul on fire. To be perfectly honest, I’m not really sure why it won the Emperor Norton award. It’s a fine novel, but I didn’t see anything that would be “extraordinary invention and creativity unhindered by the constraints of paltry reason.” in the novel. The plot follows Patricia and Lawrence from childhood through adulthood. Lawrence is a science geek and an inventor. […]
Holden Caulfield Goes to Hogwarts
Did you ever wonder about those white-haired, cynical wizards in fantasy stories? The ones that show up at strange times and disappear right when their magic would be most beneficial? Did you ever wonder what their backstory was? Me neither, but apparently Lev Grossman did. I wish I could take credit for the “Holden Caulfield goes to Hogwarts” thing, but I stole that from a friend of a friend. It’s fitting. The main character, Quentin Coldwater, is about seventeen at the start of the book. […]
Teenagers work through their grief
I can’t remember how this book got on my wish list. I haven’t read anything else by Meg Wolitzer. I generally stay with young adult books and she is more known for her adult books than this YA one. In any case, I put Belzhar on my list at some point and it became available recently. I had no idea what to expect, but was quickly drawn into a world of troubled teens. The story is told from perspective of a high school student named […]