Tag: Historical Fiction

Book Review | After Alice by Gregory Maguire

Posted on by Adventures in Polishland

After Alice by Gregory Maguire

Published by William Morrow on October 1, 2015

Genres: Adult, Historical Fiction, Fantasy

Format: eARC

Pages: 273

Source: Edelweiss

Goodreads: ★★

From the multi-million-copy bestselling author of Wicked comes a magical new twist on Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, published to coincide with the 150th anniversary of Lewis’s Carroll’s beloved classic

When Alice toppled down the rabbit-hole 150 years ago, she found a Wonderland as rife with inconsistent rules and abrasive egos as the world she left behind. But what of that world? How did 1860s Oxford react to Alice’s disappearance?

In this brilliant new work of fiction, Gregory Maguire turns his dazzling imagination to the question of underworlds, undergrounds, underpinnings — and understandings old and new, offering an inventive spin on Carroll’s enduring tale. Ada, a friend of Alice’s mentioned briefly in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, is off to visit her friend, but arrives a moment too late — and tumbles down the rabbit hole herself.

Ada brings to Wonderland her own imperfect apprehension of cause and effect as she embarks on an odyssey to find Alice and see her safely home from this surreal world below the world. If Euridyce can ever be returned to the arms of Orpheus, or Lazarus can be raised from the tomb, perhaps Alice can be returned to life. Either way, everything that happens next isAfter Alice.

REVIEW

After Alice by Gregory Maguire is a retelling of Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. While I’ve not yet read the beloved classic, I did read and enjoy Maguire’s Wicked several years ago. Unfortunately, After Alice was not my cup of tea, and I struggled to get through the novel despite its short length.

The main reason why I had a difficult time with After Alice is the flowery and complex writing. I’ve been reading so much young adult literature lately that it can sometimes be hard to transition back to adult. I did settle into the book’s pace after a while, but I honestly never got into the writing style completely. The vocabulary was difficult to follow, partly because this is a historical fiction book. This dense writing slowed down the pace of the book, and I even put it down to read another book at one point.

Moreover, there are a few things I really did enjoy about After Alice. First, I thought the setting was really interesting. The book takes place in Oxford, England in the 1860s, and follows two families of the time. Ada is the daughter of a vicar, and suffers from a physical handicap that makes it difficult for her to walk. Her only friend is Alice, of the original Wonderland story, who lives nearby. I really enjoyed learning about the society of the time when it comes to family, race, the class system, and more. I did learn quite a bit, and it’s always nice for fiction to teach a thing or two about history. Charles Darwin is even a character!

In addition, I kept reading the book because I wanted to know what was going to happen. Ada ends up falling into Wonderland, and she is trying to find Alice so she can bring her home. Ada meets many of the familiar Wonderland faces along the way, so I was intrigued to find out if she would find Alice after all. Unfortunately, the ending was a bit lackluster to me, and a bit of a let down in the end.

Thus, while there are a lot of aspects of After Alice that I did enjoy, my reading experience was not a great one. I think it would have improved significantly if the book was constructed in a different way. For example, the point-of-view, though always in third-person, changed randomly throughout the story. Sometimes we are following Ada in Wonderland, other times her governess Miss Armstrong and Alice’s sister Lydia. This constant switch did create suspense in the story, but it also was quite confusing. I also found that many aspects of the book were skimmed over when I wish they were explored more.

While I wouldn’t necessarily recommend After Alice, I think if you enjoy retellings of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland this might be more your style. I did enjoy the book I read by Maguire in the past, so I’m not giving up on his writing completely. One day I want to return to his Wicked series, and I would also love to hear your thoughts on his books in a comment.

BUY THE BOOK

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository

When you buy a book through the Amazon or Book Depository links above, I earn a small commission through each website’s affiliate program. All opinions are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information. 

Book Review | Girl in the Blue Coat by Monica Hesse

Posted on by Adventures in Polishland

Girl in the Blue Coat by Monica Hesse

Published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers on April 5th 2016

Genres: Young Adult, Historical Fiction

Format: ARC

Pages: 320

Source: Publisher

Goodreads: ★★★★ 1/2 

An unforgettable story of bravery, grief, and love in impossible times

The missing girl is Jewish. I need you to find her before the Nazis do.

Amsterdam, 1943. Hanneke spends her days procuring and delivering sought-after black market goods to paying customers, her nights hiding the true nature of her work from her concerned parents, and every waking moment mourning her boyfriend, who was killed on the Dutch front lines when the Germans invaded. She likes to think of her illegal work as a small act of rebellion.

On a routine delivery, a client asks Hanneke for help. Expecting to hear that Mrs. Janssen wants meat or kerosene, Hanneke is shocked by the older woman’s frantic plea to find a person–a Jewish teenager Mrs. Janssen had been hiding, who has vanished without a trace from a secret room. Hanneke initially wants nothing to do with such dangerous work, but is ultimately drawn into a web of mysteries and stunning revelations that lead her into the heart of the resistance, open her eyes to the horrors of the Nazi war machine, and compel her to take desperate action.

Meticulously researched, intricately plotted, and beautifully written, Girl in the Blue Coat is an extraordinary, gripping novel from a bright new voice in historical fiction.

REVIEW

I was very excited to receive an advanced copy of Girl in the Blue Coat to review, as I’ve been wanting to read more historical fiction. This novel follows Hanneke, a teenager living in Amsterdam during World War II. Hanneke works in the black market to provide for her family, and one day a client asks if she can help find a missing girl. All Hanneke knows is that the girl wears a blue coat, but for some reason she is drawn to helping find this girl. The book follows the mystery surrounding the girl in the blue coat, and sheds light on what Amsterdam was like during World War II.

I really enjoyed Girl in the Blue Coat. It is a fast-paced novel that is quite easy to read. I do think the writing was a bit straightforward, and that it is at the younger end of young adult, but I otherwise really loved the book. It’s great that the novel is set in Amsterdam, because I didn’t know much about Amersterdam during World War II. I also thought it was interesting that Girl in the Blue Coat is from the perspective of a non-Jewish character, as the book shows a different side of the Holocaust. I especially found it intriguing to learn that people had no idea what was happening to the Jewish people in their communities, except that they were in danger and being deported.

Moreover, I was very impressed with how the book jumps right into the action without any big build-up before the story takes place. I also found it cool how Hesse weaves smaller mysteries into the overarching plot. I not only wanted to find out where the girl in the blue coat was, but what exactly happened to Hanneke’s boyfriend, who we find out passed away right from the start of the novel. The story-within-a-story device works really well in Girl in the Blue Coat. I appreciated how intricately woven the plot is.

The characters in the novel are likable, but I do find that they lacked some development. This is especially true for the side characters. Hanneke, on the other hand, is written well. She has moments where she is an unreliable narrator, but she tells you when she’s lying. It’s up to the reader to figure out what the truth may be, and I found that to be a page-turner.

All in all, I really enjoyed Girl in the Blue Coat. I recommend it for fans of historical fiction, especially if you want a different kind of World War II story. This is also a great young adult story if you like independent female protagonists or a good mystery. It’s overall a fun and quick read, with a good mix of emotion due to the subject matter. Girl in the Blue Coat reminded me why I love historical fiction!

BUY THE BOOK

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository

When you buy a book through the Amazon or Book Depository links above, I earn a small commission through each website’s affiliate program. All opinions are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information.

Book Review | Newt’s Emerald by Garth Nix

Posted on by Adventures in Polishland

Newt’s Emerald by Garth Nix

Published by Katherine Tegan Books on October 13, 2015

Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Historical Fiction

Format: ARC

Pages: 304

Source: Book Expo America

Goodreads: ★★★

On her eighteenth birthday, Lady Truthful, nicknamed “Newt,” will inherit her family’s treasure: the Newington Emerald. A dazzling heart-shaped gem, the Emerald also bestows its wearer with magical powers.

When the Emerald disappears one stormy night, Newt sets off to recover it. Her plan entails dressing up as a man, mustache included, as no well-bred young lady should be seen out and about on her own. While in disguise, Newt encounters the handsome but shrewd Major Harnett, who volunteers to help find the missing Emerald under the assumption that she is a man. Once she and her unsuspecting ally are caught up in a dangerous adventure that includes an evil sorceress, Newt realizes that something else is afoot: the beating of her heart.

In Newt’s Emerald, the bestselling author of Sabriel, Garth Nix, takes a waggish approach to the forever popular Regency romance and presents a charmed world where everyone has something to hide.

REVIEW

I received an ARC of Newt’s Emerald while attending Book Expo America in 2015, and was excited to read a book by well-known fantasy author Garth Nix for the first time. Newt’s Emerald is a magical fantasy story that takes place in London during the Regency era. The book follows Lady Truthful as she turns 18-years-old. Her father shows her the emerald she will inherit during her birthday dinner, when suddenly a big storm occurs and the emerald is stolen. Truthful travels to London to visit her aunt, and to help find the emerald.

I thought the idea for Newt’s Emerald was a lot of fun, but unfortunately the book fell a bit flat for me. My first issue is with the writing style. Nix does an excellent job of writing in the British English of the time period, but it was difficult to adapt because there was a lot of vocabulary I didn’t know. While there is a glossary in the back of the book, many of the words I looked up weren’t listed there. Similarly, Nix assumes that the reader is already familiar with the magic system in the book. Perhaps if you read a lot of books in this genre you would be, but I would have liked a lot more world-building. This is especially true for a young adult novel, in which many of the readers might not be familiar with this particular magic system.

Moreover, I also found that the book’s short length held back the story. The characters were underdeveloped, as was the romance. A longer book would have also helped to build suspense. This is especially true at the end of the novel. I won’t spoil the story for you, but I will say that I was very disappointed with the ending. The book built up to a climax that happens in the last couple of pages. Then, the book is suddenly over. This sudden ending really detracted from my enjoyment of the story. This could have been solved with a longer book, or even an epilogue.

That being said, there were still some things I liked about Newt’s Emerald in addition to the plot idea. First, I loved the character of Truthful’s aunt, Lady Badgery. Ever since becoming an aunt, I’ve loved aunts in literature. Lady Badgery is sassy and smart, but also quite loving. She really takes Truthful under her wing, and I loved seeing how their relationship played a role in the book. In addition, I loved the glamorous setting of Newt’s Emerald. Not only was glamour a part of the magic system, but I really liked all of the balls Truthful attended, as well as the careful attention to fashion. I don’t believe I’ve ever read a book in the Regency era before, and this definitely piqued my interest.

All in all, I was quite disappointed with Newt’s Emerald because it was underdeveloped and slow-going. It reads more like middle grade than young adult, so I would recommend it for younger readers. While I thought the story had a fun plot, it just wasn’t done well for my tastes. I am interested to hear your thoughts on Nix’s other books. I know his Abhorson series is well-loved, so I might give that a try in the future.

BUY THE BOOK

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository

When you buy a book through the Amazon or Book Depository links above, I earn a small commission through each website’s affiliate program. All opinions are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information.

Book Review | Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson

Posted on by Adventures in Polishland

Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson

Published by Aladdin on September 1, 2000

Genres: Middle Grade, Historial Fiction, Survival

Pages: 272

Format: Paperback

Source: Purchased

Goodreads: ★★★★★

It’s late summer 1793, and the streets of Philadelphia are abuzz with mosquitoes and rumors of fever. Down near the docks, many have taken ill, and the fatalities are mounting. Now they include Polly, the serving girl at the Cook Coffeehouse. But fourteen-year-old Mattie Cook doesn’t get a moment to mourn the passing of her childhood playmate. New customers have overrun her family’s coffee shop, located far from the mosquito-infested river, and Mattie’s concerns of fever are all but overshadowed by dreams of growing her family’s small business into a thriving enterprise. But when the fever begins to strike closer to home, Mattie’s struggle to build a new life must give way to a new fight-the fight to stay alive.

REVIEW

Growing up I was a regular at my local library, and one book that I specifically remember checking out on more than one occasion is Fever 1793. It wasn’t until recent years that I discovered it is written by the same author of the acclaimed young adult contemporary Speak – a book I didn’t love despite the hype surrounding it. I’ve been wanting to reread Fever 1793 ever since that discovery, and when I found a used copy at the Strand for $1 I just had to pick it up.

Fever 1793 is the story of young Mattie Cook, a teenager growing up in Philadelphia and helping her widowed mother run a coffeehouse. The story opens with one of Mattie’s childhood friends suddenly dying from the yellow fever, which erupts into a full epidemic throughout her city. Readers follow Mattie as she attempts to escape the disease by leaving Philadelphia for the countryside with her beloved grandfather. Of course, things do not go as planned.

I am very impressed with how deep and emotional Fever 1793 is, especially for a middle grade novel. I grew to love each and every character, and found myself reaching for the tissues on more than one occasion. Mattie is an excellent first-person narrator, and while some of the dialogue in the book can be considered corny by today’s standards, the language stays true to the time period.

In the same way, it is clear the author did substantial research on yellow fever in order to write a historical fiction novel quite focused on the history.  I really liked how each chapter opened with a quotation from primary source material, whether it be a book from the 18th century or a letter from a politician of the time. It added a lot of credibility to the story, and also made the fictional characters seem more real. I also thought it was smart that the novel concluded with a few pages describing the history of the yellow fever. It’s always nice to know precisely what parts of historical fiction are true to history versus created by the author.

All in all, I have nothing but praise for Fever 1793. While my opinion may be biased due to me loving this book as a child, I’m so happy I still enjoyed it as an adult. If you’re looking for a great historical fiction novel, I highly recommend this one. Whether you’re at the middle grade reading level or not, Fever 1793 is bound to be a great read for you.

BUY THE BOOK
 
When you buy a book through the Amazon or Book Depository links above, I earn a small commission through each website’s affiliate program. All opinions are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information.