Month: Jul 2020

ARC REVIEW: THE STORY OF BABUSHKA by Catherine Flores

Francesca Lucy1 Comment

*Thank you to Catherine Flores for sending me an e-ARC of this book to read and review*

The Story of Babushka follows a Russian Nesting Doll (a Babushka) who goes in search of the meaning of life. Her five bodies each represent different elements of her character (beauty, wealth, talent, intelligence and love) and they all go off independently throughout the story to find purpose and meaning, based on their own individual traits. This book is intended for children aged 8-14, but definitely has potential crossover interest for an older audience looking for something sweet and easy.

This was an absolute pleasure to read. It’s obviously intended for an audience slightly younger than me (I’m 21…) but I found myself just as engrossed in this story as I would have been ten years ago. Babushka’s struggles resonated with me as an adult, and I found the message to be one that would be equally understandable and enjoyable for children who are starting to ask themselves what they want to do when they grow up, as well as one that makes you really think about your own interests and ambitions, whatever your age. Babushka’s five bodies are instantly likeable and only have good intentions, so I feel that she could be a good role-model character and I’m sure that all children could instantly connect with at least one of her major traits.

The subject matter is just as fascinating as the characters. A lot is included in this story, with struggles including political and social issues, and relationship problems, all addressed in a way that may enlighten children without completely overwhelming them. A couple of the struggles that the characters face aren’t ones that are frequently addressed in younger reads, but it is written in such an accessible and understandable way that I genuinely think children would understand and learn a lot. It has a beautiful moral and such an important plot that I would certainly recommend this as an enjoyable read for adults and parents, and an educational one for slightly younger readers.

Reading this book was a lovely way to spend a Sunday afternoon and I cannot recommend it highly enough, for its gorgeous illustrations, its poignant message and its genuine portrayal of emotional struggles that so many people go through at some point in their lives. It’s a quick and easy book that I finished almost a week ago now and still haven’t been able to get out of my head.

Rating: 5/5

PS: As an added bonus, the author linked me to a website for the book (https://thestoryofbabushka.com/) which is absolutely stunning! The interactivity with the animated elements is adorable, and I’m sure that young readers who are interested in the book would love this too!

ARC REVIEW: FORESHADOW by Nova Ren Suma, Emily X.R. Pan, et al.

Francesca Lucy1 Comment

This is my first time reviewing a short story anthology, and only my fifth time reading one (my former favourite being Slasher Girls and Monster Boys), so I’m honestly not entirely sure how to go about this! BUT I know that I loved the collection and wanted to share my thoughts with you, so here we go:

*Thank you to Algonquin Young Readers for the e-ARC of this wonderful collection*

Foreshadow is an anthology of short stories by thirteen incredible, diverse and lesser-known Young Adult authors, introduced by a variety of famous names. Each story is followed by a short essay by Nova Ren Suma or Emily X. R. Pan about a theme, motif or technique used within, and each essay is followed by a writing prompt on a similar theme.

I adored this collection. When I first heard about it, I was instantly obsessed, and when I started reading, that didn’t change at all. The range in these stories means that there is at least one in the collection that everyone will love, and I found myself constantly surprised by the genre variance from one tale to the next. It’s consistent in the way that each story resonates with the reader, but uses an incredible array of settings, genres and voices to achieve this. It is easy to see how every single author used their own personality to shape their contribution to this collection and it was fascinating to become so invested in thirteen different plots in such a short space of time.

I do have to admit that a couple of the stories weren’t my favourite, but the entire concept of this collection completely made up for it. I found that, even if a specific story wasn’t for me, I connected with the characters anyway and looked forward to the analysis that followed. Plus, whether I loved them all or not, I can easily say that every story in this book is edited to perfection. A few of my favourites (that were 5/5 reads easily) were ESCAPE, SOLACE, GLOW and BREAK, all of which have inspired me to check out the authors in the hope that they have something else I can read immediately.

This beautiful collection showcases the diversity that Young Adult Fiction has to offer, as well as the depth that can be achieved in a short story, which is interesting for all readers, but especially for aspiring authors. This collection made me want to open up a new document and start writing after every single story, and I haven’t read anything powerful enough to inspire me like that in a long time.  I would recommend this to anyone who is looking for a diverse and thought-provoking collection of stories by up-and-coming new authors, but would argue that it’s essential reading for anyone who wants to be inspired to begin (or continue) their own writing journey.

RATING: 5/5

Side note: this collection was originally a digital anthology, published at foreshadowya.com, where there are additional stories and content warnings for everything included in this collection!

Foreshadow comes out on October 20th 2020.

BOOK REVIEW: SEA WIFE by Amity Gaige (BLOG TOUR STOP)

Francesca Lucy1 Comment

Hi, welcome to my first ever blog tour review! Firstly, thank you so much to Grace Vincent at Fleet for the advance copy of this book, and HAPPY PUBLICATION DAY to Amity Gaige! This was such a fascinating read and I’m so excited to be part of the blog tour.

Seawife tells the story of a woman named Juliet, whose husband convinces her to join him on a year-long trip around the Caribbean, living almost entirely on the ocean. When their voyage is over, and tragedy has struck, Juliet must adjust back into life on land and to parenting their two children in a more conventional way.

All the while, though, her mind is still on their journey across the ocean and her husband’s sailing obsession, and we learn the specifics of their trips through a combination of Juliet’s story, Michael’s logbook and, occasionally, their daughter Sybil’s thoughts and prayers.

It might just be because this isn’t a genre that I’ve really looked into, but I have never read a book like Seawife. The style and subject matter were both so completely new to me that I found myself getting quickly sucked in, and I ended up so glad that I gave this book a go! I was definitely intimidated by all of Michael’s technical terminology at the beginning, but the story is written in such a compelling and accessible way that I was genuinely interested in the technicalities of sailing by the time I finished (something I really never thought I’d say!)

Juliet speaks of the sceptics of her voyage in this book and, I admit, I also didn’t understand the allure of a life on the ocean until the story really got into it. I never would have considered the possibility of abandoning life, school, work, etc, to live in a 44 square-foot floating home, but I was very quickly hooked on learning about their new lifestyle. Their life story is beautiful, fascinating and completely believable, and it definitely made me re-evaluate my initial thoughts. By the end, it seemed strange when the characters were on land, and I wanted to hear more and more about their life on the water.

The characters in this book- primarily Juliet, her husband Michael, their daughter Sybil and their son George- were all really interesting, both in terms of their personalities and their relationships with each other, and I found myself deeply invested in the lives of each of them. I think Sybil may be my favourite character, overall. She was believable as a young child, funny and enthusiastic, but also grown-up in a way that her lifestyle would make her. George was adorable as well. Michael and Juliet were both strong-willed, firm in their beliefs and completely genuine and seeing the complexities of their marriage was fascinating.

Overall, I found this story to be a compelling depiction of the dangers and the allures of a life at sea. It’s thought-provoking, gripping and completely absorbing and I would absolutely recommend it to anyone who has ever wondered about life on the ocean, or even just anyone who wants some good, old-fashioned escapism.

RATING: 4.5/5

You can find out more about this book on the Little, Brown site, and I would definitely recommend you pick up a copy from The Hive (support your local indie!) or Waterstones.