Claire Messud's new novel, The Woman Upstairs, is fiercely intelligent and urgently intimate, written with precision, humor, and an incredible...
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This is one of those books packed with a complex story and thought-provoking ideas. Fraught with moral and religious dilemmas, especially showing how vast misunderstandings can be, not only between the obvious alien races, but between people of the same community and family.
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(9 of 23 readers found this comment helpful)
McKinley takes creatures of fantasy and puts them in the everyday world. The loch ness monster is very alive, and has male suitors; there's intelligent life on Mars (in the form of sentient lichens), and dragons are a rare, endangered species. So when this kid saves an orphaned baby dragon, he's not only breaking the law and causing tons of trouble for his family, but getting himself more closely involved with the giant, dangerous beasts than anyone has ever done before... A wonderfully imagined story full of details that make it feel very realistic.
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(11 of 19 readers found this comment helpful)
Very cute and clever! I loved this story about Elmer, a boy who runs away from home to rescue a baby dragon, when I was a kid and am now sharing it with my own daughter (4 years old). She can't wait to read each chapter!
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(8 of 21 readers found this comment helpful)
Vampires in an urban setting, the protagonist a baker who doesn't know she can wield magic, an eccentric landlady who turns out to know more than you'd suspect- this is a great story! The intricate details of the urban fantasy world McKinley created kept me riveted. I really liked the juxtaposition of magic and technology, and the contrast of the two main characters- one who embodied light, the other darkness. How they found themselves working together, when by nature they would be totally repelled by each other. I really wish there was a sequel.
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(9 of 15 readers found this comment helpful)
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Customer Comments
Jeane has commented on (132) products.
The Gunslinger :The Dark Tower I by Stephen King
Jeane, September 27, 2008
What an original book. Elements of fantasy, mystery and horror all mixed into an epic quest in a post-apocalyptic, western setting.(13 of 21 readers found this comment helpful)
Speaker for the Dead (Ender Wiggins Saga #2) by Orson Scott Card
Jeane, September 24, 2008
This is one of those books packed with a complex story and thought-provoking ideas. Fraught with moral and religious dilemmas, especially showing how vast misunderstandings can be, not only between the obvious alien races, but between people of the same community and family.(9 of 23 readers found this comment helpful)
Dragonhaven by Robin Mckinley
Jeane, September 24, 2008
McKinley takes creatures of fantasy and puts them in the everyday world. The loch ness monster is very alive, and has male suitors; there's intelligent life on Mars (in the form of sentient lichens), and dragons are a rare, endangered species. So when this kid saves an orphaned baby dragon, he's not only breaking the law and causing tons of trouble for his family, but getting himself more closely involved with the giant, dangerous beasts than anyone has ever done before... A wonderfully imagined story full of details that make it feel very realistic.(11 of 19 readers found this comment helpful)
My Father's Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett and Ruth Chrisman Gannett
Jeane, September 24, 2008
Very cute and clever! I loved this story about Elmer, a boy who runs away from home to rescue a baby dragon, when I was a kid and am now sharing it with my own daughter (4 years old). She can't wait to read each chapter!(8 of 21 readers found this comment helpful)
Sunshine by Robin Mckinley
Jeane, September 24, 2008
Vampires in an urban setting, the protagonist a baker who doesn't know she can wield magic, an eccentric landlady who turns out to know more than you'd suspect- this is a great story! The intricate details of the urban fantasy world McKinley created kept me riveted. I really liked the juxtaposition of magic and technology, and the contrast of the two main characters- one who embodied light, the other darkness. How they found themselves working together, when by nature they would be totally repelled by each other. I really wish there was a sequel.(9 of 15 readers found this comment helpful)
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