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href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/15/the-little-white-horse-by-elizabeth-goudge/" title="Permalink to The Little White Horse by Elizabeth Goudge" rel="bookmark"><time class="entry-date published" datetime="2025-03-15T00:00:00-04:00">03/15/2025</time><time class="updated" datetime="2025-01-13T12:46:54-05:00">01/13/2025</time></a></span><span class="comments-link"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/15/the-little-white-horse-by-elizabeth-goudge/#comments">4 Comments</a></span> </div> <div class="entry-content"> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/little-white-horse.jpg"><img data-attachment-id="45335" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/15/the-little-white-horse-by-elizabeth-goudge/little-white-horse/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/little-white-horse.jpg" data-orig-size="166,254" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Little White Horse" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/little-white-horse.jpg?w=166" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/little-white-horse.jpg?w=166" width="166" height="254" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/little-white-horse.jpg?w=166" alt="" class="wp-image-45335" style="width:200px" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/little-white-horse.jpg 166w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/little-white-horse.jpg?w=98 98w" sizes="(max-width: 166px) 100vw, 166px" /></a></figure></div> <div style="height:25px" aria-hidden="true" class="wp-block-spacer"></div> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Information</h2> <p><strong>Goodreads</strong>: <em><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/420180.The_Little_White_Horse?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=zj9ktwR1aJ&rank=1">The Little White Horse</a></em><br><strong>Series</strong>: None<br><strong>Age Category</strong>: Children’s<br><strong>Source</strong>: Library<br><strong>Published</strong>: 1946</p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Summary</h2> <p>In 1842, thirteen-year-old Maria Merryweather, newly orphaned, arrives at her family’s ancestral estate, Moonacre Manor. At once she feels at home. Her cousin and guardian Sir Benjamin treats her kindly, her new room is beautiful, the villagers welcome her, and the animals love and protect her. But the family has a secret that has followed them through the ages. And only her strength and courage can help Maria make sure she can stay at Moonacre always.</p> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-large"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png"><img data-attachment-id="17323" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2018/05/24/long-may-she-reign-by-rhiannon-thomas-2/star-divider-min/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png" data-orig-size="605,58" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Star Divider-min" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=300" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=605" width="605" height="58" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=605" alt="Star Divider" class="wp-image-17323" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png 605w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=150 150w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=300 300w" sizes="(max-width: 605px) 100vw, 605px" /></a></figure></div> <div style="height:25px" aria-hidden="true" class="wp-block-spacer"></div> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Review</h2> <p><em>The Little White Horse</em> is a dream. From the first pages, readers understand that this world, though ours, is also magical. A white horse appears in the distance. A young orphan feels immediately at home. Flowers and clothes and love spring up like enchantments. This is the type of book that one sinks into, and never wants to leave.</p> <p>The young at heart will feel its spell at once. No questions will be asked about the book’s mysteries or strange coincidences. This is the type of story one accepts on faith. Because it is about goodness and virtue triumphing over evil–and the young know that these types of stories must always be true.</p> <p>And it is the type of story that understand children’s dreams. From Maria’s cozy tower room that she alone can enter to secret tunnels to young romance, the book is filled with elements that echo the longings of the young. How delightful to inherit a family estate filled with such wonderful things! How marvelous to find that your new friends and family welcome you into their hearts at once! How inspiring to realize that <em>you</em> are the answer to a centuries-long heartache. If a thirteen-year-old girl like Maria were to write a story, it would contain elements such as these.</p> <p>Captivating and charming, <em>The Little White Horse</em> is sure to appeal to readers who love fantasy and who remember what it was like to be a child on the cusp of adulthood. Maybe not all the plot points make sense. Maybe it all feels too good to be true. But that’s the point. That’s what makes it magical.</p> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="alignright size-large"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png"><img data-attachment-id="11154" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2016/01/14/men-of-iron-by-howard-pyle/krysta-64/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png" data-orig-size="165,75" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Krysta 64" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=165" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=165" width="165" height="75" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=165" alt="" class="wp-image-11154" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png 165w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=150 150w" sizes="(max-width: 165px) 100vw, 165px" /></a></figure></div> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/5-stars.png"><img data-attachment-id="11117" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2015/12/30/witch-wars-by-sibeal-pounder-arc-review/5-stars/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/5-stars.png" data-orig-size="252,75" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="5 Stars" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/5-stars.png?w=252" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/5-stars.png?w=252" loading="lazy" width="252" height="75" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/5-stars.png?w=252" alt="5 stars" class="wp-image-11117" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/5-stars.png 252w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/5-stars.png?w=150 150w" sizes="(max-width: 252px) 100vw, 252px" /></a></figure> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">You Might Also Like</h2> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2024/01/17/the-owl-service-by-alan-garner/"><em>The Owl Service </em>by Alan Garner</a></li> <li><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2024/07/06/the-secret-of-splint-hall-by-katie-cotton/"><em>The Secret of Splint Hall </em>by Katie Cotton</a></li> <li><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2013/11/07/over-sea-under-stone-by-susan-cooper/"><em>Over Sea, Under Stone</em> by Susan Cooper</a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </article> <article id="post-46303" class="post-46303 post type-post status-publish format-standard hentry category-memes tag-lets-talk-bookish without-featured-image"> <header class="entry-header "> <h1 class="entry-title"><a href=" https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/14/what-kinds-of-reviews-do-you-write-lets-talk-bookish/" rel="bookmark">What Kinds of Reviews Do You Write? (Let’s Talk Bookish)</a></h1> </header> <div class="entry-body"> <div class="entry-meta"> <span class="date"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/14/what-kinds-of-reviews-do-you-write-lets-talk-bookish/" title="Permalink to What Kinds of Reviews Do You Write? (Let’s Talk Bookish)" rel="bookmark"><time class="entry-date published" datetime="2025-03-14T09:06:13-04:00">03/14/2025</time><time class="updated" datetime="2025-03-14T09:06:45-04:00">03/14/2025</time></a></span><span class="comments-link"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/14/what-kinds-of-reviews-do-you-write-lets-talk-bookish/#comments">14 Comments</a></span> </div> <div class="entry-content"> <figure class="wp-block-image"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/ltb-updated-blue.png"><img data-attachment-id="45498" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/02/07/do-you-enjoy-reading-challenges-lets-talk-bookish/ltb-updated-blue/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/ltb-updated-blue.png" data-orig-size="1453,759" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="LTB Updated Blue" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/ltb-updated-blue.png?w=300" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/ltb-updated-blue.png?w=620" loading="lazy" width="1024" height="534" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/ltb-updated-blue.png?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-45498" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/ltb-updated-blue.png?w=1022 1022w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/ltb-updated-blue.png?w=150 150w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/ltb-updated-blue.png?w=300 300w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/ltb-updated-blue.png?w=768 768w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/ltb-updated-blue.png 1453w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></a></figure> <div style="height:20px" aria-hidden="true" class="wp-block-spacer"></div> <p><strong>Let’s Talk Bookish</strong> is a weekly meme that was created and hosted by Rukky @ <a href="https://eternitybooksreview.wordpress.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Eternity Books</a> and then cohosted with Dani @ <a href="https://literarylion.ca/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Literary Lion</a>. It is currently hosted by Aria @ <a href="https://booknookbits.home.blog/lets-talk-bookish/">Book Nook Bits</a> and Dini @ <a href="https://dinipandareads.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">dinipandareads</a>. The meme encourages participants to discuss a new topic each week and visit each other’s posts to keep the conversation going.</p> <p><strong>Prompt</strong>: Writing book reviews is a huge part of running a book blog. Do book reviews make up a big part of your blog content? Do you prefer to write long or short reviews? How does reviewing advance copies (ARCs) and working directly with authors and publishers change your approach to writing the reviews? Do you post on platforms other than your blog (i.e. Goodreads, The Storygraph, social media) and do those reviews differ from what you share on your blog?</p> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png"><img data-attachment-id="17323" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2018/05/24/long-may-she-reign-by-rhiannon-thomas-2/star-divider-min/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png" data-orig-size="605,58" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Star Divider-min" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=300" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=605" loading="lazy" width="605" height="58" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png" alt="Star Divider" class="wp-image-17323" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png 605w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=150&h=14 150w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=300&h=29 300w" sizes="(max-width: 605px) 100vw, 605px" /></a></figure></div> <div style="height:20px" aria-hidden="true" class="wp-block-spacer"></div> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Reviews Are a Strong Part of the Blog</h2> <p>We publish lots of reviews at Pages Unbound (most of them currently by Krysta who is reading more than I am right now!), and I always think reviews are a strong part of any book blog. I wrote a post several years ago pondering <strong><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2016/10/12/can-you-run-a-book-blog-without-book-reviews/">whether one can have a book blog without book reviews</a></strong>, and I think it’s very possible, but would require a heavy focus on original content like lists and discussion posts rather than things like memes and short updates like “what are you reading this week?”</p> <p>For a while, we were posting about two discussion posts a week at Pages Unbound, and I think they tend to drive more traffic than reviews. I’m looking to get back into that this year with at least one discussion per week, and we’ve been exceeding that recently.</p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Short or Long?</h2> <p>I like to write medium reviews. For some books, I could go on forever, but I get the sense people’s eyes glaze over and they stop reading them. After a certain length, I try to just wrap things up. I only write shorter reviews if I put off the review so long I forgot the book or if I just really have nothing to say besides, “It was a book. It was fine, I guess.” I think reviews need to be a certain length to get into some details and really say something about the book, in most cases.</p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">ARCs</h2> <p>We’ve largely stopped reviewing ARCs at Pages Unbound, unless we win them in a giveaway or something. Personally I don’t love reading ebooks and don’t like being beholden to Netgalley, so with the move away from physical books, especially for bloggers, I have a lot less interest in ARCs.</p> <p>I always hated receiving them directly from the author vs. a publicist, however. I do think there’s pressure to find something nice about the book and not rate it too badly if you have to email the author back and tell them “to their [virtual] face” that the book was a piece of garbage and you’re giving it one star. And with some authors acting…unpredictably to lower ratings, I just don’t think getting a free book (particularly an ebook which isn’t really a “thing” I can even own and book on my shelf) is worth the hassle.</p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Other Platforms</h2> <p>I do post reviews on Goodreads and sometimes Storygraph, but they tend to be shorter versions with my main impressions of the book, rather than a copy and paste of the whole review. I read years go it might hurt your blog traffic to cross-post exactly the same thing, as Goodreads is likely to rank higher than your blog in search engines, and it comes across as duplicate less valuable content. I don’t know if that advice still holds with how Google works now, but I’ve been abiding by it.</p> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="alignright size-full"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/briana.png"><img data-attachment-id="11129" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2016/01/08/the-goblins-puzzle-by-andrew-s-chilton/briana-2/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/briana.png" data-orig-size="150,75" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Briana" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/briana.png?w=150" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/briana.png?w=150" loading="lazy" width="150" height="75" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/briana.png" alt="Briana" class="wp-image-11129" /></a></figure></div> <p></p> </div> </div> </article> <article id="post-45392" class="post-45392 post type-post status-publish format-standard hentry category-classics category-mystery tag-agatha-christie tag-classic tag-mystery without-featured-image"> <header class="entry-header "> <h1 class="entry-title"><a href=" https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/13/the-secret-adversary-by-agatha-christie-2/" rel="bookmark">The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie</a></h1> </header> <div class="entry-body"> <div class="entry-meta"> <span class="date"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/13/the-secret-adversary-by-agatha-christie-2/" title="Permalink to The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie" rel="bookmark"><time class="entry-date published" datetime="2025-03-13T00:00:00-04:00">03/13/2025</time><time class="updated" datetime="2025-03-09T20:13:15-04:00">03/09/2025</time></a></span><span class="comments-link"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/13/the-secret-adversary-by-agatha-christie-2/#comments">1 Comment</a></span> </div> <div class="entry-content"> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/secret-adversary.jpg"><img data-attachment-id="45398" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/13/the-secret-adversary-by-agatha-christie-2/secret-adversary/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/secret-adversary.jpg" data-orig-size="1500,2405" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Secret Adversary" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/secret-adversary.jpg?w=187" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/secret-adversary.jpg?w=620" loading="lazy" width="639" height="1024" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/secret-adversary.jpg?w=639" alt="Secret Adversary" class="wp-image-45398" style="width:200px" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/secret-adversary.jpg?w=639 639w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/secret-adversary.jpg?w=1278 1278w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/secret-adversary.jpg?w=94 94w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/secret-adversary.jpg?w=187 187w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/secret-adversary.jpg?w=768 768w" sizes="(max-width: 639px) 100vw, 639px" /></a></figure></div> <div style="height:25px" aria-hidden="true" class="wp-block-spacer"></div> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Information</h2> <p><strong>Goodreads</strong>: <em><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/49596.The_Secret_Adversary?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=ND1UHn3m4V&rank=1">The Secret Adversary</a></em><br><strong>Series</strong>: Tommy & Tuppence #1<br><strong>Age Category</strong>: Adult<br><strong>Source</strong>: Library<br><strong>Published</strong>: 1922</p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Summary</h2> <p>With the war over, friends Tommy and Tuppence find themselves adrift–and rather broke. To earn money, they decide to start a business venture, Young Adventures Ltd. They’ll do anything and go anywhere! Little do they realize that their first offer will lead them into a dangerous game of political espionage.</p> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-large"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png"><img data-attachment-id="17323" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2018/05/24/long-may-she-reign-by-rhiannon-thomas-2/star-divider-min/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png" data-orig-size="605,58" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Star Divider-min" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=300" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=605" loading="lazy" width="605" height="58" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=605" alt="Star Divider" class="wp-image-17323" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png 605w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=150 150w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=300 300w" sizes="(max-width: 605px) 100vw, 605px" /></a></figure></div> <div style="height:25px" aria-hidden="true" class="wp-block-spacer"></div> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Review</h2> <p><em>The Secret Adversary</em> is just plain fun. I don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t a political espionage story featuring two young people who don’t even know what they’re doing. But they’re dedicated and eager! So there’s that. Pick this one up if you’re looking for something that’s not too serious, but seriously a good time.</p> <p>I think what really makes this book are Tommy and Tuppence. They just seem so earnest. Sure, they’ve never done any detective work before. And, yes, it’s true that they are likely in terrible danger. And no one will help them if they get into trouble. But they need to earn a living somehow, darn it, and this way is as good as any other. It’s just a laughable setup, but they go for it with gusto–even Tommy, who is generally described as cautious and dependable. He’s on an adventure with Tuppence and he’s not going to back out now.</p> <p>This is all very refreshing, and it gets even more delightful as readers get to see how two amateurs go about sleuthing, based on their ideas from novels. It’s very meta, like the reader trying to solve a real-life mystery based on what they gleaned from an Agatha Christie mystery. So they set off tailing people and disguising themselves and using colorful detective lingo to sell their story to impressionable youths. It’s quite amusing.</p> <p>The mystery is clever, too. I initially thought I had solved it, but, at the last minute, Christie had me second guessing myself. I love when I can’t quite figure it out–and that experience is exactly what <em>The Secret Adversary </em>provided me.</p> <p>I really wasn’t expecting this a sort of political thriller (with a side of humor) from Christie, but I found it absolutely delightful. I can’t wait read more of Tommy and Tuppence’s adventures!</p> <p>*<strong>Read Briana’s review of <em><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2019/05/20/the-secret-adversary-by-agatha-christie/">The Secret Adversary</a></em>.</strong></p> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="alignright size-full"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png"><img data-attachment-id="11154" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2016/01/14/men-of-iron-by-howard-pyle/krysta-64/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png" data-orig-size="165,75" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Krysta 64" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=165" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=165" loading="lazy" width="165" height="75" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png" alt="" class="wp-image-11154" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png 165w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=150&h=68 150w" sizes="(max-width: 165px) 100vw, 165px" /></a></figure></div> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/5-stars.png"><img data-attachment-id="11117" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2015/12/30/witch-wars-by-sibeal-pounder-arc-review/5-stars/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/5-stars.png" data-orig-size="252,75" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="5 Stars" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/5-stars.png?w=252" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/5-stars.png?w=252" loading="lazy" width="252" height="75" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/5-stars.png" alt="5 stars" class="wp-image-11117" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/5-stars.png 252w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/5-stars.png?w=150&h=45 150w" sizes="(max-width: 252px) 100vw, 252px" /></a></figure> <p></p> </div> </div> </article> <article id="post-45730" class="post-45730 post type-post status-publish format-standard hentry category-classics category-mystery tag-classic tag-cozy-mystery tag-mystery without-featured-image"> <header class="entry-header "> <h1 class="entry-title"><a href=" https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/12/the-moonstone-by-wilkie-collins/" rel="bookmark">The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins</a></h1> </header> <div class="entry-body"> <div class="entry-meta"> <span class="date"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/12/the-moonstone-by-wilkie-collins/" title="Permalink to The Moonstone by Wilkie Collins" rel="bookmark"><time class="entry-date published" datetime="2025-03-12T00:00:00-04:00">03/12/2025</time><time class="updated" datetime="2025-02-11T11:06:11-05:00">02/11/2025</time></a></span><span class="comments-link"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/12/the-moonstone-by-wilkie-collins/#comments">2 Comments</a></span> </div> <div class="entry-content"> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/moonstone.jpg"><img data-attachment-id="45733" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/12/the-moonstone-by-wilkie-collins/moonstone/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/moonstone.jpg" data-orig-size="307,475" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Moonstone" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/moonstone.jpg?w=194" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/moonstone.jpg?w=307" loading="lazy" width="307" height="475" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/moonstone.jpg?w=307" alt="The Moonstone" class="wp-image-45733" style="width:200px" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/moonstone.jpg 307w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/moonstone.jpg?w=97 97w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/moonstone.jpg?w=194 194w" sizes="(max-width: 307px) 100vw, 307px" /></a></figure></div> <div style="height:25px" aria-hidden="true" class="wp-block-spacer"></div> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Information</h2> <p><strong>Goodreads</strong>: <em><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/867638.The_Moonstone">The Moonstone</a></em><br><strong>Series</strong>: None<br><strong>Age Category</strong>: Adults<br><strong>Source</strong>: Library<br><strong>Published:</strong> 1868</p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Summary</h2> <p>Years ago, a villainous English soldier stole the Moonstone, a renowned gem, from India. It is rumored to bring bad luck to all who possess it, until it is returned to its rightful place. Now eighteen-year-old Rachel Verinder has inherited it for her birthday. But that very night, it is stolen. </p> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png"><img data-attachment-id="17323" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2018/05/24/long-may-she-reign-by-rhiannon-thomas-2/star-divider-min/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png" data-orig-size="605,58" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Star Divider-min" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=300" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=605" loading="lazy" width="605" height="58" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png" alt="Star Divider" class="wp-image-17323" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png 605w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=150&h=14 150w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=300&h=29 300w" sizes="(max-width: 605px) 100vw, 605px" /></a></figure></div> <div style="height:25px" aria-hidden="true" class="wp-block-spacer"></div> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Review</h2> <p><em>The Moonstone</em> is one of those books that clearly has literary significance, yet failed to capture me in many regards. At times, I felt intensely interested in the characters and in the solution of the mystery. Yet, over all, I thought the story too long. It drags as the characters keep repeating all the clues gathered till that point, then go on to explicate them for the readers, lest the readers not understand the significance for themselves. Despite some wonderful characterization, I found myself fervently wishing that the story would just conclude already.</p> <p>Of course, my feelings on the matter are not universal. Many readers have found much to delight them in <em>The Moonstone</em>. And, again, it has much literary significance. It is considered one of the first detective novels in the English language. And it introduced many staples of the genre, such as the English countryside house mystery with a large number of suspects, the use of red herrings, and the inept policemen. I was very amused when (now) normal elements of the detective novel–such as trailing a potential suspect or reenacting the scene of the crime–were greeted with exclamations of amazement or distrust by the characters. They marvel at these strategies as something wholly new. Still, an appreciation of a book and its place in literary history does not always translate to full enjoyment of a book.</p> <p>What I most enjoyed about <em>The Moonstone</em> are the characters. It is written in sections by various characters, so readers can view these individuals both through their own eyes and through others’. I really apreciated the steward/butler Gabriel Betteredge, who takes a personal interest in the family and who always refers to <em>Robinson Crusoe</em> for advice in times of crisis. It was fun to see his assessment of himself juxtaposed with the judgment of the formidable Miss Clack. Miss Clack, distributor of religious tracts and hypocrite when it comes to money and worldly affairs, is also excellently drawn, as are many of the others.</p> <p>Wilkie Collins also notably treats the servants and the Indian jugglers/Hindu Brahmins with more respect than one might expect from a novel from his time. Betteredge is shown as reliable and trustworthy, of course. But the housemaid Rosanna Spearman is also shown much empathy. Though she is said not to be pretty and has a past life as a thief, the book treats her as a dignified human being who can change the trajectory of her life and who is to be seen as a person with feelings–not just as a nonentity to be bossed around and to clean. </p> <p>The Indian jugglers, meanwhile, might initially seem like they are the villains, tracking the main characters’ movements and lurking outside houses to steal the Moonstone back. Yet a careful reading shows that the English here are the villains, colonizers who have stolen and kept what is not theirs. (The whole time I was wondering why the English just didn’t give the thing back, since they knew it was stolen and knew it would cause them trouble. But that’s the point. They know and they do not care. They delight in having something “exotic” that others want.)</p> <p>Despite all this, however, I found the story to drag. The characters simply spend too much time rehashing what has already occurred, comparing notes and telling readers how to interpret the clues. At times, a new clue would appear–and often these clues were a bit too sensational for me. I imagine sensational literature was popular at the time, but I sometimes found myself thinking, “Really? THAT is what we are going with?”</p> <p>Ultimately, I think I would have enjoyed <em>The Moonstone</em> if it had been about half the length. There is a compelling mystery and excellently drawn characters here. They just get bogged down in repetition of plot points.</p> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="alignright size-full"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png"><img data-attachment-id="11154" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2016/01/14/men-of-iron-by-howard-pyle/krysta-64/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png" data-orig-size="165,75" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Krysta 64" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=165" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=165" loading="lazy" width="165" height="75" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png" alt="" class="wp-image-11154" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png 165w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=150&h=68 150w" sizes="(max-width: 165px) 100vw, 165px" /></a></figure></div> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/3-stars.png"><img data-attachment-id="11122" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2016/01/08/the-goblins-puzzle-by-andrew-s-chilton/3-stars/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/3-stars.png" data-orig-size="252,75" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="3 stars" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/3-stars.png?w=252" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/3-stars.png?w=252" loading="lazy" width="252" height="75" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/3-stars.png" alt="3 Stars" class="wp-image-11122" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/3-stars.png 252w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/3-stars.png?w=150&h=45 150w" sizes="(max-width: 252px) 100vw, 252px" /></a></figure> <p></p> </div> </div> </article> <article id="post-46037" class="post-46037 post type-post status-publish format-standard hentry category-discussion-post tag-discussion tag-middle-grade without-featured-image"> <header class="entry-header "> <h1 class="entry-title"><a href=" https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/11/should-authors-stop-setting-their-realistic-middle-grade-books-in-the-past/" rel="bookmark">Should Authors Stop Setting Their Realistic Middle Grade Books in the Past?</a></h1> </header> <div class="entry-body"> <div class="entry-meta"> <span class="date"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/11/should-authors-stop-setting-their-realistic-middle-grade-books-in-the-past/" title="Permalink to Should Authors Stop Setting Their Realistic Middle Grade Books in the Past?" rel="bookmark"><time class="entry-date published" datetime="2025-03-11T00:00:00-04:00">03/11/2025</time><time class="updated" datetime="2025-03-05T12:49:32-05:00">03/05/2025</time></a></span><span class="comments-link"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/11/should-authors-stop-setting-their-realistic-middle-grade-books-in-the-past/#comments">4 Comments</a></span> </div> <div class="entry-content"> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/should-authors-stop-setting-their-realistic-middle-grade-books-in-the-past.png"><img data-attachment-id="46175" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/11/should-authors-stop-setting-their-realistic-middle-grade-books-in-the-past/should-authors-stop-setting-their-realistic-middle-grade-books-in-the-past/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/should-authors-stop-setting-their-realistic-middle-grade-books-in-the-past.png" data-orig-size="735,1102" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Should Authors Stop Setting Their Realistic Middle Grade Books in the Past" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/should-authors-stop-setting-their-realistic-middle-grade-books-in-the-past.png?w=200" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/should-authors-stop-setting-their-realistic-middle-grade-books-in-the-past.png?w=620" loading="lazy" width="683" height="1024" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/should-authors-stop-setting-their-realistic-middle-grade-books-in-the-past.png?w=683" alt="" class="wp-image-46175" style="width:300px" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/should-authors-stop-setting-their-realistic-middle-grade-books-in-the-past.png?w=683 683w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/should-authors-stop-setting-their-realistic-middle-grade-books-in-the-past.png?w=100 100w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/should-authors-stop-setting-their-realistic-middle-grade-books-in-the-past.png?w=200 200w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/should-authors-stop-setting-their-realistic-middle-grade-books-in-the-past.png 735w" sizes="(max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px" /></a></figure></div> <div style="height:25px" aria-hidden="true" class="wp-block-spacer"></div> <p>While reading reviews for Remy Lai’s latest graphic novel, <em>Chickenpox</em>, on Goodreads, I stumbled upon a critique that resonated with me. A reviewer called out authors for routinely setting their realistic graphic novels in the past, allegedly for wanting to have to avoid writing in smartphones and other modern inconveniences. (The reviewer does go on to note that <em>Chickenpox</em> at least has a good reason for its setting: the Lai siblings all get chickenpox because there wasn’t a vaccine yet.) Here’s the critique:</p> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/90s-middle-grade-comment.png"><img data-attachment-id="46045" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/11/should-authors-stop-setting-their-realistic-middle-grade-books-in-the-past/90s-middle-grade-comment/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/90s-middle-grade-comment.png" data-orig-size="1200,298" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="90s middle grade comment" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/90s-middle-grade-comment.png?w=300" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/90s-middle-grade-comment.png?w=620" loading="lazy" width="1024" height="254" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/90s-middle-grade-comment.png?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-46045" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/90s-middle-grade-comment.png?w=1024 1024w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/90s-middle-grade-comment.png?w=150 150w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/90s-middle-grade-comment.png?w=300 300w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/90s-middle-grade-comment.png?w=768 768w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/90s-middle-grade-comment.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></a></figure> <div style="height:25px" aria-hidden="true" class="wp-block-spacer"></div> <p>I read many realistic graphic novels marketed towards tweens and have noticed that, yes, there is a large number set in past decades. The trend seems to be to write semi-autobiographical works, in the vein of Raina Telgemeier’s (incredibly popular) <em><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2017/01/08/smile-by-raina-telgemeier/">Smile</a></em>. Presumably, the authors set the books in the past because that is when they grew up. Maybe they <em>are</em> trying to avoid having to write smartphones into the plot. Maybe they think that, if the book is based on their experiences, it needs to be in the “right” decade for honesty’s sake, or something. Maybe they really didn’t think that hard about it at all and just wrote it in the past because it was in their past. Yet the fact remains. A large number of realistic middle grade books are not set in the present-day, despite clearly being written as relatable middle school experiences. I can list a fair number without even thinking that hard:</p> <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2017/06/06/el-deafo-by-cece-bell/"><em>El Deafo</em> by Cece Bell</a> (1970s)</li> <li><em>Big Apple Diaries</em> by Alyssa Bermudez (2000-2001)</li> <li><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2018/05/10/real-friends-by-shannon-hale-text-leuyen-pham-illustrations-and-jane-poole-color/">Real Friends Series by Shannon Hale</a> (1970s-80s)</li> <li><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2019/08/28/sunny-side-up-by-jennifer-l-holm-matthew-holm-lark-pien/">Sunny Series by Jennifer L. Holm, et al. </a>(1970s)</li> <li><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/02/25/chickenpox-by-remy-lai/"><em>Chickenpox</em> by Remy Lai</a> (1990s)</li> <li><em>Continental Drifter</em> by Kathy McLeod (1990s)</li> <li><em>A First Time for Everything</em> by Dan Santat (1989)</li> <li><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2022/10/01/the-tryout-by-christina-soontornvat-joanna-cacao/"><em>The Tryout </em>by Christina Soontornvat & Joanna Cacao</a> (1990s)</li> <li><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2023/06/17/parachute-kids-by-betty-c-tang/"><em>Parachute Kids</em> by Betty C. Tang</a> (1980s)</li> <li><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2018/12/08/front-desk-by-kelly-yang/"><em>Front Desk</em> by Kelly Yang </a>(1990s) (prose novel)</li> </ul> <p>Of course, some of these books do have reasons to be set in the past (if a reason is needed). Presumably Cece Bell’s experiences in school as a Deaf student would look quite different in the 1970s than today. <em>Big Apple Diaries </em>is set in New York City and addresses September 11. The events of <em>Chickenpox</em>, as noted above, could only really happen before the chickenpox vaccine came out. (At least, as long as parents are still vaccinating their children.) To say that authors just want to avoid writing in certain elements from the present day might be to miss the point.</p> <p>Admittedly, though, I have sometimes wondered why certain memoir-esque books are set in the past. A work like <em>The Tryout</em> feels like it could very easily be set in the present day. In fact, when I think back on it, I start to wonder if it was really set in the 1990s or if I just think that because it is semi-autobiographical. A work like Gale Galligan’s <em><strong><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/02/12/fresh-start-by-gale-galligan/">Fresh Start</a></strong></em> confuses me, too. It is based on Galligan’s experiences in middle school, but appears to be set in the present day as Ollie has a cellphone. At some point, some of these books are kind of nebulous, and one starts to guess at the time setting based on exactly what Tally above mentions: the presence or absence of smartphones. If the characters are not texting and scrolling all day, I mentally catalog a book as being set before 2007, even if nothing in the book specifically gives a date.</p> <p>I never believed that books have to be set in the present day to be “relatable.” People can relate to characters in the past. Just because they wore different clothing or did not have cars or air conditioning does not mean they did not experience relatable emotions or moments like the desire to fit in, a longing for friends, or struggles over certain school subjects. “Relatable” does not have to mean “exactly like a reader in every way.” Yet, because so many of these middle grade books are clearly meant to evoke some sort of quintessential middle school experience, one might wonder why the authors keep setting them in the 1970s-1990s. </p> <p>I especially wonder why many of these books are set in past decades, when the setting often seems unimportant or ill defined. If authors are setting these books in prior decades, I think the books should really commit to it. The Sunny series by Jennifer L. Holm, et al. does this pretty well. The books draw attention to certain clothing styles and will explain elements that contemporary readers might not understand. Sometimes it reads like nostalgia bait for adult readers, but at least one knows without a doubt when the story is set. But plenty of realistic middle grade graphic novels seem like they could be set anywhere from the 1990s to the 2010s. Is this on purpose? I don’t know!</p> <p>As I reader, I personally do not mind middle school books being set in the past. Many of the characters experience issues that still resonate with students today, even if they are depicted as happening decades earlier. Still, it is interesting to muse over the rise of the semi-autobiographical middle grade graphic novel. Is it the <em>Smile</em> effect? Perhaps these books sell and that’s why more and more authors are producing them? In the end, I have to assume that tween readers don’t mind them, or we wouldn’t see so many publishers investing in them.</p> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="alignright size-full"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png"><img data-attachment-id="11154" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2016/01/14/men-of-iron-by-howard-pyle/krysta-64/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png" data-orig-size="165,75" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Krysta 64" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=165" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=165" loading="lazy" width="165" height="75" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png" alt="" class="wp-image-11154" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png 165w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=150&h=68 150w" sizes="(max-width: 165px) 100vw, 165px" /></a></figure></div> <p></p> </div> </div> </article> <article id="post-46257" class="post-46257 post type-post status-publish format-standard hentry category-fantasy category-young-adult tag-fantasy tag-young-adult without-featured-image"> <header class="entry-header "> <h1 class="entry-title"><a href=" https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/10/song-of-the-six-realms-by-judy-i-lin/" rel="bookmark">Song of the Six Realms by Judy I. Lin</a></h1> </header> <div class="entry-body"> <div class="entry-meta"> <span class="date"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/10/song-of-the-six-realms-by-judy-i-lin/" title="Permalink to Song of the Six Realms by Judy I. Lin" rel="bookmark"><time class="entry-date published" datetime="2025-03-10T00:01:00-04:00">03/10/2025</time><time class="updated" datetime="2025-03-09T23:29:56-04:00">03/09/2025</time></a></span><span class="comments-link"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/10/song-of-the-six-realms-by-judy-i-lin/#comments">6 Comments</a></span> </div> <div class="entry-content"> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-medium"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/song-of-the-six-realms.jpg"><img data-attachment-id="46268" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/10/song-of-the-six-realms-by-judy-i-lin/song-of-the-six-realms/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/song-of-the-six-realms.jpg" data-orig-size="822,1275" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Song of the Six Realms" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/song-of-the-six-realms.jpg?w=193" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/song-of-the-six-realms.jpg?w=620" loading="lazy" width="193" height="299" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/song-of-the-six-realms.jpg?w=193" alt="" class="wp-image-46268" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/song-of-the-six-realms.jpg?w=193 193w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/song-of-the-six-realms.jpg?w=386 386w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/song-of-the-six-realms.jpg?w=97 97w" sizes="(max-width: 193px) 100vw, 193px" /></a></figure></div> <div style="height:20px" aria-hidden="true" class="wp-block-spacer"></div> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Information</h2> <p><strong>Goodreads</strong>: <em><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/172979755-song-of-the-six-realms?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=cKfc3UZcpR&rank=1">Song of the Six Realms</a></em><br><strong>Series</strong>: None<br><strong>Age Category:</strong> Young Adult<br><strong>Source</strong>: Purchased<br><strong>Published</strong>: April 23, 2024</p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Official Summary</h2> <p><strong>Judy I. Lin, #1 <em>New York Times</em> bestselling author of <em>A Magic Steeped in Poison</em>, weaves a dreamy gothic romance worthy of the heavens in <em>Song of the Six Realms</em>.</strong></p> <p>Xue, a talented young musician, has no past and probably no future. Orphaned at a young age, her kindly poet uncle took her in and arranged for an apprenticeship at one of the most esteemed entertainment houses in the kingdom. She doesn’t remember much from before entering the House of Flowing Water, and when her uncle is suddenly killed in a bandit attack, she is devastated to lose her last connection to a life outside of her indenture contract.</p> <p>With no family and no patron, Xue is facing the possibility of a lifetime of servitude playing the qin for nobles that praise her talent with one breath and sneer at her lowly social status with the next. Then one night she is unexpectedly called to the garden to put on a private performance for the enigmatic Duke Meng. The young man is strangely kind and awkward for nobility, and surprises Xue further with an irresistible offer: serve as a musician in residence at his manor for one year, and he’ll set her free of her indenture.</p> <p>But the Duke’s motives become increasingly more suspect when he and Xue barely survive an attack by a nightmarish monster, and when he whisks her away to his estate, she discovers he’s not just some country noble: He’s the Duke of Dreams, one of the divine rulers of the Celestial Realm. There she learns the Six Realms are on the brink of disaster, and incursions by demonic beasts are growing more frequent.</p> <p>The Duke needs Xue’s help to unlock memories from her past that could hold the answers to how to stop the impending war… but first Xue will need to survive being the target of every monster and deity in the Six Realms.</p> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png"><img data-attachment-id="17323" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2018/05/24/long-may-she-reign-by-rhiannon-thomas-2/star-divider-min/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png" data-orig-size="605,58" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Star Divider-min" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=300" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=605" loading="lazy" width="605" height="58" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png" alt="Star Divider" class="wp-image-17323" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png 605w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=150&h=14 150w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=300&h=29 300w" sizes="(max-width: 605px) 100vw, 605px" /></a></figure></div> <div style="height:20px" aria-hidden="true" class="wp-block-spacer"></div> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Review</h2> <p>This is the first book I’ve read by Judy I. Lin, and overall I just feel her books are nice. They do the job for a YA book, and clearly I keep picking up new ones (the covers are so tempting!), but then I leave thinking the book was fine but I didn’t love it. Such was the case, once again, with Song of the Six Realms.</p> <p>I did start the book with some interest, as I liked that protagonist Xue is a musician, and readers can see into her world as a student in an entertainment house, somewhere she both has potential she could have nowhere else, yet somewhere she also feels trapped. And then readers see her passion and how she interprets music, and that’s always beautiful; I think people who love reading can appreciate any character who is very into art of any type.</p> <p>The book then takes a more fantastical turn, as unexplainable creatures appear and Xue is whisked off to an estate where all is not what it seems.</p> <p>Personally, I am not a huge fan of books that rely a lot on the mythology of the fantasy world, which is then explained at length through interspersed original legends and also explanations from various characters. It can be a lot to take in and turn into info dumps, which is the case here. Then there’s the fact that I need to be reading all these things that are kind of confusing and disorienting with great attention because obviously it’s not just a fun extra tale or background information; I need to treat it like a mystery and piece together how the legend is actually related to the novel and how some character in the legend is also one in the book, or some mystical “lost” item is something the protagonist unknowingly has seen or whatever. It’s not inherently a flaw. I assume some readers love this stuff, but unfortunately it’s not my thing most of the time.</p> <p>I also felt the pacing of the book slowed down in the second half of the book, and I actually put it down and read something else for a couple weeks, nearly DNFing the novel. It feels as if the book takes a sudden turn from the plot of the first half, as suddenly characters are talking about Xue completing some sort of trial (which I thought sounded more stereotypically YA than the first half of the book), and I simply became less invested. The romance also doesn’t materialize as much as I was hoping. I did finish, but I was never as fully gripped by the narrative as I was at the start.</p> <p>So, the book is solid. I think a different reader than I might like it better. Perhaps Lin’s books are not quite to my taste and after three I should admit it and move on.</p> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="alignright size-full"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/briana.png"><img data-attachment-id="11129" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2016/01/08/the-goblins-puzzle-by-andrew-s-chilton/briana-2/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/briana.png" data-orig-size="150,75" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Briana" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/briana.png?w=150" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/briana.png?w=150" loading="lazy" width="150" height="75" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/briana.png" alt="Briana" class="wp-image-11129" /></a></figure></div> <p></p> </div> </div> </article> <article id="post-45241" class="post-45241 post type-post status-publish format-standard hentry category-childrens category-classics tag-classic tag-louisa-may-alcott without-featured-image"> <header class="entry-header "> <h1 class="entry-title"><a href=" https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/08/little-men-by-louisa-may-alcott/" rel="bookmark">Little Men by Louisa May Alcott</a></h1> </header> <div class="entry-body"> <div class="entry-meta"> <span class="date"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/08/little-men-by-louisa-may-alcott/" title="Permalink to Little Men by Louisa May Alcott" rel="bookmark"><time class="entry-date published" datetime="2025-03-08T00:00:00-05:00">03/08/2025</time><time class="updated" datetime="2025-01-13T13:01:04-05:00">01/13/2025</time></a></span><span class="comments-link"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/08/little-men-by-louisa-may-alcott/#comments">10 Comments</a></span> </div> <div class="entry-content"> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/little-men.jpg"><img data-attachment-id="8988" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2015/02/27/if-you-like-stories-with-boarding-schools-then-read-part-two/little-men/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/little-men.jpg" data-orig-size="309,475" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"1"}" data-image-title="Little Men" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/little-men.jpg?w=195" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/little-men.jpg?w=309" loading="lazy" width="309" height="475" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/little-men.jpg?w=309" alt="" class="wp-image-8988" style="width:200px" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/little-men.jpg 309w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/little-men.jpg?w=98 98w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/little-men.jpg?w=195 195w" sizes="(max-width: 309px) 100vw, 309px" /></a></figure></div> <div style="height:25px" aria-hidden="true" class="wp-block-spacer"></div> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Information</h2> <p><strong>Goodreads</strong>: <em><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1329952.Little_Men">Little Men</a></em><br><strong>Series</strong>: Little Women #2<br><strong>Age Category</strong>: Children’s<br><strong>Source</strong>: Purchased<br><strong>Published</strong>: 1871</p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Summary</h2> <p>Jo and Professor Bhaer have two sons of their own, as well as the Professor’s two nephews. But they’ve also opened a school for boys at Plumfield. Jo is in her element as the boys get in and out of scrapes and have many adventures that delight her still-young soul.</p> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-large"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png"><img data-attachment-id="17323" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2018/05/24/long-may-she-reign-by-rhiannon-thomas-2/star-divider-min/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png" data-orig-size="605,58" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Star Divider-min" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=300" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=605" loading="lazy" width="605" height="58" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=605" alt="Star Divider" class="wp-image-17323" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png 605w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=150 150w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=300 300w" sizes="(max-width: 605px) 100vw, 605px" /></a></figure></div> <div style="height:25px" aria-hidden="true" class="wp-block-spacer"></div> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Review</h2> <p><em>Little Men</em> never won me over the same was as <em>Little Women</em> when I was growing up. This was perhaps inevitable as the focus moves off the March sisters to their children. And, of course, the Marches can never be the same. Even if Meg is still domestic, Amy elegant, and Jo fond of fun, they are all grown up. And it would be wrong and weird if they hadn’t changed at all. So that was a struggle for me. However, while rereading <em>Little Men</em>, I found it more enchanting than I had remembered. Alcott clearly has a fondness for boys and their adventures, and that shows. It’s a fine book about childhood and growing up–and I think fans of the first book will enjoy it.</p> <p>Part of Alcott’s charm is that she seems to remember what it was like to be a child. So she treats their little worries seriously, even when other adults might think them silly. And she knows just how hard something like a betrayal can hard or how important a kind word can be. She treats her children with respect, remembering that they have their own thoughts and feelings, and are being shaped by their experiences in ways sometimes adults forget. That’s what makes this book special.</p> <p>And what a cast of characters she has to choose from! Readers have a range to enjoy, so they can find one they especially relate to. I used to really feel for Nat, who is gentle with an artistic temperament. This time around I was drawn to Tommy’s boyish antics and frank and loyal nature. Dan is always a favorite, of course, being the “black sheep” of the fold who might still make a fine man if supported and loved and instilled with the proper values.</p> <p>Alcott continues her policy of trying to be open-minded and showing that different skills and ways of life are valuable. Daisy, for instance, is the quiet, domestic girl (reminiscent of her mother Meg) and Alcott opines a bit on the importance of housekeeping skills like cooking. However, she also introduces tomboy Nan, who clearly is ready to forge a less traditional path than many women at the time did. Alcott doesn’t say one or the other is better. Rather, she shows that women have an array of choices and can make themselves useful in the way that suits them best. I enjoy that she doesn’t have to uphold one version of femininity at the expense of another.</p> <p>Readers who enjoyed <em>Little Women</em> may or may not find this sequel to their taste. They will find more adventures of growing up here, but the focus is on the lives of boys at the time–and their adventures are pretty different from the types of things the March sisters were able to experience. Additionally, seeing the Marches all grown up be a shock; readers who want impetuous, boyish Jo won’t find that in this mature woman now dispensing advice to her boys à la Marmee (who is alive but stays off-page). So it’s really up to the reader. Continue on and see how the lives of Marches play out. Or leave Jo and her sisters frozen nicely as their younger, more memorable versions. </p> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="alignright size-large"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png"><img data-attachment-id="11154" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2016/01/14/men-of-iron-by-howard-pyle/krysta-64/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png" data-orig-size="165,75" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Krysta 64" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=165" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=165" loading="lazy" width="165" height="75" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=165" alt="" class="wp-image-11154" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png 165w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=150 150w" sizes="(max-width: 165px) 100vw, 165px" /></a></figure></div> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/4-stars.png"><img data-attachment-id="11123" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2016/01/08/the-goblins-puzzle-by-andrew-s-chilton/4-stars/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/4-stars.png" data-orig-size="252,75" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="4 stars" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/4-stars.png?w=252" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/4-stars.png?w=252" loading="lazy" width="252" height="75" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/4-stars.png?w=252" alt="4 stars" class="wp-image-11123" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/4-stars.png 252w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/4-stars.png?w=150 150w" sizes="(max-width: 252px) 100vw, 252px" /></a></figure> <p></p> </div> </div> </article> <article id="post-46156" class="post-46156 post type-post status-publish format-standard hentry category-discussion-post tag-discussion tag-harper-lee tag-the-land-of-sweet-forever without-featured-image"> <header class="entry-header "> <h1 class="entry-title"><a href=" https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/07/a-new-harper-lee-book-is-being-published-why-is-there-no-controvery-this-time/" rel="bookmark">A New Harper Lee Book is Being Published: Why Is There No Controvery This Time?</a></h1> </header> <div class="entry-body"> <div class="entry-meta"> <span class="date"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/07/a-new-harper-lee-book-is-being-published-why-is-there-no-controvery-this-time/" title="Permalink to A New Harper Lee Book is Being Published: Why Is There No Controvery This Time?" rel="bookmark"><time class="entry-date published" datetime="2025-03-07T00:00:00-05:00">03/07/2025</time><time class="updated" datetime="2025-03-04T19:54:01-05:00">03/04/2025</time></a></span><span class="comments-link"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/07/a-new-harper-lee-book-is-being-published-why-is-there-no-controvery-this-time/#comments">9 Comments</a></span> </div> <div class="entry-content"> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/land-of-sweet-forever-discussion.png"><img data-attachment-id="46171" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/07/a-new-harper-lee-book-is-being-published-why-is-there-no-controvery-this-time/land-of-sweet-forever-discussion/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/land-of-sweet-forever-discussion.png" data-orig-size="1000,1500" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Land of Sweet Forever discussion" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/land-of-sweet-forever-discussion.png?w=200" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/land-of-sweet-forever-discussion.png?w=620" loading="lazy" width="683" height="1024" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/land-of-sweet-forever-discussion.png?w=683" alt="" class="wp-image-46171" style="width:350px" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/land-of-sweet-forever-discussion.png?w=683 683w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/land-of-sweet-forever-discussion.png?w=100 100w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/land-of-sweet-forever-discussion.png?w=200 200w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/land-of-sweet-forever-discussion.png?w=768 768w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/land-of-sweet-forever-discussion.png 1000w" sizes="(max-width: 683px) 100vw, 683px" /></a></figure></div> <div style="height:20px" aria-hidden="true" class="wp-block-spacer"></div> <p>In 2015, HarperCollins published <em><strong><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2016/09/26/4-things-to-know-about-go-set-a-watchman-by-harper-lee/">Go Set a Watchman</a></strong></em> by Harper Lee, a book Lee had shelved years earlier to instead write and publish <em>To Kill a Mockingbird</em>. Numerous news articles in 2015 <strong><a href="https://www.npr.org/2015/02/04/383854514/harper-lees-friend-says-author-is-hard-of-hearing-sound-of-mind">speculated </a></strong>whether Lee, who had had a stroke in 2007 and was in assisted living, had actually approved the publication of <em>Go Set a Watchman</em>, or whether someone in her circle was taking advantage of her. Now, Barnes and Noble has announced the publication of a new Harper Lee book, slated for October 2025, titled <em><a href="https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-land-of-sweet-forever-harper-lee/1147083757?ean=9780063470880">The Land of Sweet Forever</a></em>. So far, I have seen no controversy whatsoever, and I’ve been pondering why.</p> <p><em>The Guardian </em><strong><a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2025/mar/04/unseen-harper-lee-stories-to-kill-a-mockingbird-the-land-of-sweet-forever">describes <em>The Land of Sweet Forever</em></a></strong>: </p> <blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow"> <p>Eight short stories written before the author started the novel that would become <em>To Kill a Mockingbird</em> were found in Lee’s New York City apartment after she died in 2016. They will be published in a collection titled <em>The Land of Sweet Forever</em>, alongside eight previously published non-fiction pieces by Lee, and an introduction by Casey Cep, author of<em> Furious Hours: Murder, Fraud, and the Last Trial of Harper Lee</em>.</p> </blockquote> <p><a href="https://www.al.com/life/2025/03/legendary-alabama-author-harper-lee-has-a-new-book-publishing-9-years-after-her-death.html">AL.com notes</a>:</p> <blockquote class="wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow"> <p>HarperCollins said “The Land of Sweet Forever” contains eight short stories that were written by a Harper Lee, who was born Nelle Harper Lee in 1926, at a time when she was submitting articles to magazines and other publications.</p> </blockquote> <p><strong>There seem to be two main points here.</strong></p> <ol class="wp-block-list"> <li>Some of the works were, in fact, published during Lee’s lifetime.</li> <li>The other works were apparently meant for publication, even if they were not picked up by any magazines at the time.</li> </ol> <p><em>Go Set a Watchman,</em> in contrast, did not appear meant for publication, since Lee had not pursued publication of the work after the success of <em>To Kill a Mockingbird</em>, even though the book functions as a sequel with a grown-up Scout as the protagonist, and based on the fact the book is not actually finished. Readers were somewhat surprised in 2015 to purchase what is functionally a draft of a novel and not a final revised and perfectly polished version, as HarperCollins marketed it as a new novel and not an unfinished work.</p> <p>Before publication, some readers accused <em>Go Set a Watchman</em> of being racist based on excerpted quotes without having read the full novel, but it’s clear that the main message of the work is that racism is bad. The premise is that Atticus holds racist views and Scout has to grapple with seeing her beloved father be so absolutely <em>wrong</em>; she explicitly calls him out. So while some might argue Lee shelved the work for not aging well and professing views she might not have agreed with, I think a stronger argument could be made that perhaps Lee, like many of her readers, didn’t want to view Atticus as a villain. Without the publication of <em>Go Set a Watchman</em>, Atticus Finch could remain one of the most admired men in American literature.</p> <p>Without having seen the stories in <em>The Land of Sweet Forever,</em> then, I wonder if the topics are just less controversial, which may have led Lee’s estate to believe they would be good for publication and her continued legacy as a writer.</p> <p>There’s also the simple fact that Lee passed away in 2016. Maybe nearly a decade after a writer’s death, people are less likely to care what their “wishes” in regards to their work might have been. Their work now belongs to the masses, and fans are delighted at any little scrap of writing that might be dug up, to get more work from someone who can no longer write anything new and to get more insight into their mind and writing process. Maybe when one is dead, anything is considered fair game. Certainly some authors’ private diaries and correspondence have been distributed to the public.</p> <p>So, I look forward to seeing more reactions to the announcement of new Harper Lee stories in the coming weeks, but it looks as if this book will slide much more under the radar than<em> Go Set a Watchman</em>. Perhaps a number of people won’t hear about it at all. There will be less controversy but also less publicity.</p> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="alignright size-full"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/briana.png"><img data-attachment-id="11129" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2016/01/08/the-goblins-puzzle-by-andrew-s-chilton/briana-2/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/briana.png" data-orig-size="150,75" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Briana" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/briana.png?w=150" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/briana.png?w=150" loading="lazy" width="150" height="75" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/briana.png" alt="Briana" class="wp-image-11129" /></a></figure></div> <p></p> </div> </div> </article> <article id="post-45549" class="post-45549 post type-post status-publish format-standard hentry category-fantasy-middle-grade category-middle-grade tag-fantasy tag-middle-grade without-featured-image"> <header class="entry-header "> <h1 class="entry-title"><a href=" https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/06/the-graveyard-gift-by-fern-forgettable-narrated-by-piper-cj/" rel="bookmark">The Graveyard Gift by Fern Forgettable, Narrated by Piper CJ</a></h1> </header> <div class="entry-body"> <div class="entry-meta"> <span class="date"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/06/the-graveyard-gift-by-fern-forgettable-narrated-by-piper-cj/" title="Permalink to The Graveyard Gift by Fern Forgettable, Narrated by Piper CJ" rel="bookmark"><time class="entry-date published" datetime="2025-03-06T00:00:00-05:00">03/06/2025</time><time class="updated" datetime="2025-01-20T21:36:33-05:00">01/20/2025</time></a></span><span class="comments-link"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/06/the-graveyard-gift-by-fern-forgettable-narrated-by-piper-cj/#comments">7 Comments</a></span> </div> <div class="entry-content"> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/graveyard-gift.jpg"><img data-attachment-id="45551" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/06/the-graveyard-gift-by-fern-forgettable-narrated-by-piper-cj/graveyard-gift/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/graveyard-gift.jpg" data-orig-size="1538,2175" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Graveyard Gift" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/graveyard-gift.jpg?w=212" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/graveyard-gift.jpg?w=620" loading="lazy" width="724" height="1023" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/graveyard-gift.jpg?w=724" alt="Graveyard Gift Book Cover" class="wp-image-45551" style="width:200px" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/graveyard-gift.jpg?w=724 724w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/graveyard-gift.jpg?w=1448 1448w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/graveyard-gift.jpg?w=106 106w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/graveyard-gift.jpg?w=212 212w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/graveyard-gift.jpg?w=768 768w" sizes="(max-width: 724px) 100vw, 724px" /></a></figure></div> <div style="height:25px" aria-hidden="true" class="wp-block-spacer"></div> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Information</h2> <p><strong>Goodreads</strong>: <em><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/205804244-the-graveyard-gift">The Graveyard Gift</a></em><br><strong>Series</strong>: Fern’s School for Wayward Fae #1<br><strong>Age Category:</strong> Middle Grade<br><strong>Source</strong>: Library<br><strong>Published</strong>: 2024</p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Summary</h2> <p>Rosemary Thorpe has always been a bit different. She can see how people die. That doesn’t endear her to people, so she’s not particularly surprised when her mother sends her away. But, en route to the hospital, she is whisked away to another world altogether. Her father, it appears, is a fairy. Now she has a banshee roommate and she’s going to school with a host of other demifae. But the school seems to be in trouble. Except no one will say why.</p> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png"><img data-attachment-id="17323" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2018/05/24/long-may-she-reign-by-rhiannon-thomas-2/star-divider-min/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png" data-orig-size="605,58" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Star Divider-min" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=300" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=605" loading="lazy" width="605" height="58" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png" alt="Star Divider" class="wp-image-17323" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png 605w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=150&h=14 150w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=300&h=29 300w" sizes="(max-width: 605px) 100vw, 605px" /></a></figure></div> <div style="height:25px" aria-hidden="true" class="wp-block-spacer"></div> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Review</h2> <p><em>The Graveyard Gift</em> seemed like just the type of middle grade book I would enjoy. A quirky middle grade fantasy inspired by Faerie and perhaps veering slightly towards the spooky. Surprisingly, this turned out not to be particularly true. The story gets bogged down early on in extensive explanations, which makes it feel more exhausting than quirky. And it’s not spooky at all, despite having “graveyard” in the title and a protagonist who can foresee death. It’s a bit over 200 pages, and I only started feeling invested around page 209. With more action, it would have been a sure win for me. As it is, I can only imagine the story <em>The Graveyard Gift</em> might have been.</p> <p>The first half of the book feels absolutely bewildering because it is a weird blend of a neverending info dump, along with randomly withheld information to create the “mystery.” Once Rosemary gets whisked off to her magical school, she quite literally has to take a tour with her roommate explaining how everything works. Then, she sits down to supper with the other students. And each one<em> gives a speech</em> including their name, age, place of origin, and magical power. I stopped caring about the characters after the second one started speaking and instead mused on all the better ways I could imagine to introduce people in a way that would let readers actually remember them.</p> <p>The weird part comes in when the characters refuse to explain what Seelie and Unseelie are, like it’s some great mystery, even though surely even someone like Rosemary ought to be able to take an educated guess here. They’re clearly two distinct groups of fairies. (But she also acts completely out of her depth when people say other words like “hobgoblin” or “gremlin” so maybe she just never read any fantasy growing up? Didn’t see any movies? Who knows.) The “mystery” is that the Seelie think they’re better than the Unseelie. But takes half the book to unveil this staggering bit of information, along with the fact that the school is in trouble of some sort. Even though that was obvious as soon as Rosemary was introduced to the staff who acted all confused and worried about this new development considering the current state of things.</p> <p>Readers are constantly told Rosemary is smart, but sometimes I failed to see it, especially in light of the big reveals. I guess it’s just unusual to have a character in a portal fantasy who seems completely unaware of typical fantasy storylines. Like she genuinely could not figure out that there are two types of fairies. And when finally explicitly told that the school is in trouble and the staff scared, she interprets this to mean <em>financial </em>trouble. (Well, it’s true she never asked about having to pay tuition when accepting a slot.) It just feels bizarre to see a girl going to an actual school of magic and learning to control her powers completely forget that super-powered beings might have worries that are scarier than tuition fees. </p> <p>After all this, the characters go world hopping a la <em>The Magician’s Nephew</em>. Yawn. I didn’t find it that funny or interesting. I just wanted something to actually happen.</p> <p>When at last the action begins, the story is almost over. I enjoyed maybe thirty pages before it ended in a very annoying cliffhanger. Not the type that leads you excited for the next book, but the kind that literally ends in the middle of scene with no explanation. I was hoping for an ending that felt conclusive, while still gesturing towards future adventures, so I was disappointed there.</p> <p>I see a lot of potential <em>The Graveyard Gift</em>. However, the large amount of info dumps and lack of plot-forwarding action mean I’m not particularly eager for the sequel. It’s a fine enough book, but I am ready to end my adventuring with Rosemary here.</p> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="alignright size-full"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png"><img data-attachment-id="11154" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2016/01/14/men-of-iron-by-howard-pyle/krysta-64/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png" data-orig-size="165,75" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Krysta 64" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=165" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=165" loading="lazy" width="165" height="75" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png" alt="" class="wp-image-11154" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png 165w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=150&h=68 150w" sizes="(max-width: 165px) 100vw, 165px" /></a></figure></div> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/3-stars.png"><img data-attachment-id="11122" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2016/01/08/the-goblins-puzzle-by-andrew-s-chilton/3-stars/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/3-stars.png" data-orig-size="252,75" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="3 stars" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/3-stars.png?w=252" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/3-stars.png?w=252" loading="lazy" width="252" height="75" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/3-stars.png" alt="3 Stars" class="wp-image-11122" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/3-stars.png 252w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/3-stars.png?w=150&h=45 150w" sizes="(max-width: 252px) 100vw, 252px" /></a></figure> <p></p> </div> </div> </article> <article id="post-45420" class="post-45420 post type-post status-publish format-standard hentry category-childrens category-classics tag-classic tag-louisa-may-alcott without-featured-image"> <header class="entry-header "> <h1 class="entry-title"><a href=" https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/05/the-annotated-little-women-by-louisa-may-alcott-ed-by-john-matteson/" rel="bookmark">The Annotated Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, ed. by John Matteson</a></h1> </header> <div class="entry-body"> <div class="entry-meta"> <span class="date"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/05/the-annotated-little-women-by-louisa-may-alcott-ed-by-john-matteson/" title="Permalink to The Annotated Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, ed. by John Matteson" rel="bookmark"><time class="entry-date published" datetime="2025-03-05T00:00:00-05:00">03/05/2025</time><time class="updated" datetime="2025-01-21T10:37:33-05:00">01/21/2025</time></a></span><span class="comments-link"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/05/the-annotated-little-women-by-louisa-may-alcott-ed-by-john-matteson/#comments">3 Comments</a></span> </div> <div class="entry-content"> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/annotated-little-women.jpg"><img data-attachment-id="45581" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2025/03/05/the-annotated-little-women-by-louisa-may-alcott-ed-by-john-matteson/annotated-little-women/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/annotated-little-women.jpg" data-orig-size="346,400" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Annotated Little Women" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/annotated-little-women.jpg?w=260" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/annotated-little-women.jpg?w=346" loading="lazy" width="346" height="400" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/annotated-little-women.jpg?w=346" alt="Annotated Little Women Book Cover" class="wp-image-45581" style="width:200px" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/annotated-little-women.jpg 346w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/annotated-little-women.jpg?w=130 130w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/annotated-little-women.jpg?w=260 260w" sizes="(max-width: 346px) 100vw, 346px" /></a></figure></div> <div style="height:25px" aria-hidden="true" class="wp-block-spacer"></div> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Information</h2> <p><strong>Goodreads</strong>: <em><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25621294-the-annotated-little-women">The Annotated Little Women</a></em><br><strong>Series</strong>: Little Women #1<br><strong>Age Category:</strong> Children’s<br><strong>Source</strong>: Library<br><strong>Published</strong>: 1868 (annotated version 2015)</p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Summary</h2> <p>Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy anxiously await their father’s return from the American Civil War. As they wait, however, they strive to grow up into women their father can be proud of. This version includes notes on various historical items and terms, explanations connecting Alcott’s work with her life, and photographs ranging from artwork and people mentioned in the text to art produced by Alcott’s sister May.</p> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png"><img data-attachment-id="17323" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2018/05/24/long-may-she-reign-by-rhiannon-thomas-2/star-divider-min/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png" data-orig-size="605,58" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Star Divider-min" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=300" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=605" loading="lazy" width="605" height="58" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png" alt="Star Divider" class="wp-image-17323" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png 605w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=150&h=14 150w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/star-divider-min.png?w=300&h=29 300w" sizes="(max-width: 605px) 100vw, 605px" /></a></figure></div> <div style="height:25px" aria-hidden="true" class="wp-block-spacer"></div> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Review</h2> <p>How to review <em>Little Women</em>? Though published in 1868 and set during and after the American Civil War, the characters, their joys, and their trials still feel as real and relevant today as when they first charmed young audiences. What reader has not felt inspired by Jo’s aspirations to become an author? Not felt Meg’s desire to be like the other girls? Not understood Amy’s longing for beauty or been moved by Beth’s quiet fortitude? <em>Little Women</em> remains because its characters are us. Even 150 years later.</p> <p>Part of <em>Little Women</em>‘s longevity is, I think, due to Alcott basing it on her own life. Jo is not a fictionalized character representing something out of reach, but Alcott herself, determined to work herself to the bone if it meant both literary success and the comfort of her family. Meg is not a moral on domesticity, but a representation of a real woman’s real choice to find happiness in home and family. Beth is not an angel too good to be true, but a memory of someone Alcott found to be good and true. There is some moralizing, but Alcott firmly believed in trying to be useful, kind, and charitable, and lived it out herself the best she could.</p> <p>This annotated version edited by John Matteson brings all these resonances further into the light, showcasing not only the books, poems, songs, stories, art, and historical figures that crept into Alcott’s work, but also her family and her experiences. For me, these moments were the highlight, more than the emphasis on explaining apparently every allusion. (The extensive notes dedicated to the chapters following Amy abroad were really more than I wanted.) I wanted to know which characters and events were based on real people and things that happened. Wanted to know how Alcott responded to these events, not in her fiction, but in her life.</p> <p>The historical notes are helpful, too, of course. I’ve never been too interested in notes explaining all the different types of carriages, but you will find that sort of thing here. What I find really helpful are things like learning that “clever” could mean “kind” in Alcott’s day, or an explanation of why Amy was so embarrassed to be seen with a lobster (I learned that from the <em><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2020/07/05/the-little-women-cookbook-tempting-recipes-from-the-march-sisters-and-their-friends-and-family-by-wini-moranville/">Little Women Cookbook</a></em>). Notes that make the text clearer.</p> <p>Fans of <em>Little Women</em> will find this book a treasure. It’s full of notes, as well as photos of artwork and people. I particularly liked the inclusion of some of May Alcott’s work. (Her illustrations for the first issue of <em>Little Women</em> are appalling.) So if you are a fan of Alcott or her most famous work, be sure to pick this one up!</p> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="alignright size-full"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png"><img data-attachment-id="11154" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2016/01/14/men-of-iron-by-howard-pyle/krysta-64/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png" data-orig-size="165,75" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="Krysta 64" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=165" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=165" loading="lazy" width="165" height="75" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png" alt="" class="wp-image-11154" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png 165w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/krysta-64.png?w=150&h=68 150w" sizes="(max-width: 165px) 100vw, 165px" /></a></figure></div> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/5-stars.png"><img data-attachment-id="11117" data-permalink="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/2015/12/30/witch-wars-by-sibeal-pounder-arc-review/5-stars/#main" data-orig-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/5-stars.png" data-orig-size="252,75" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="5 Stars" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="" data-medium-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/5-stars.png?w=252" data-large-file="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/5-stars.png?w=252" loading="lazy" width="252" height="75" src="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/5-stars.png" alt="5 stars" class="wp-image-11117" srcset="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/5-stars.png 252w, https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/5-stars.png?w=150&h=45 150w" sizes="(max-width: 252px) 100vw, 252px" /></a></figure> <p></p> </div> </div> </article> <nav class="navigation paging-navigation" role="navigation"> <h1 class="screen-reader-text">Posts navigation</h1> <div class="nav-links"> <div class="nav-previous"><a href="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/page/2/" ><span class="meta-nav"></span> Older posts</a></div> </div> </nav> </main> </div> <div id="secondary" class="widget-area sidebar-widget-area" role="complementary"> <aside id="search-3" class="widget widget_search"><h3 class="widget-title">Search Our Blog</h3><form role="search" method="get" class="search-form" action="https://pagesunbound.wordpress.com/"> <label> <span class="screen-reader-text">Search for:</span> <input type="search" class="search-field" placeholder="Search …" value="" name="s" /> </label> <input type="submit" class="search-submit" value="Search" /> </form></aside><aside id="media_image-7" class="widget widget_media_image"><style>.widget.widget_media_image { overflow: hidden; 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