MY THOUGHTS
This is a really short novel so the review will reflect the length.
I was slightly disappointed to read in the notes at the end of the book that the author thinks so little of his writing that he decided to use illustrations to help his readers understand his story. I am all for illustrations in novels and for the age of the readers that this novel is aimed at then illustrations are very important, but I hated reading about the author's self-doubt. But, this self-doubt does explain an awful lot.
The story, set against the backdrop of the American Revolution, is about six, for the most part, wealthy individuals all of whom have nobility running through their veins. These individuals are collected, for want of a better word, and sent to a special school where they can learn and grow together (the why for this is never really explained). Here they learn to put aside differences and rub along together and learn from each other. The collecting of these characters happens in the first part of this novel and it is also where we are introduced to the characters one by one. I have to admit that these short sharp chapters that went from one end of the world to the other left me rather confused. At one point I thought that instead of reading a novel I was reading a collection of short stories that did not make a great deal of sense. It is only when I reach the second part of this novel that the story become a little clearer and I was able to follow it.
There were several things that I disliked about this book, so l am going to talk about them first to get them out of the way. They are as follows:
Repeated sentences, highlighted in blue, in the middle of the story - I did not understand why they were there and they completely threw me out of the world the author had created.
The excessive amount of quotes - if this book is aimed at young adult then some of these quotes would have flown right over their head and there was just so many of them that they interfered with the story.
On the other side, there were several things that I really liked:
The characters' individuality and how they slowly began to build a lasting relationship with each other. All six protagonists come from very different backgrounds which I thought was fascinating and I liked how they learned from each other.
The originality of the story. I have never read a book quite like it, and I liked where the author was going with the story.
This novel would certainly appeal to a younger audience. I just wish the author did not doubt in his writing abilities as much because he is a talented writer - BELIEVE IN YOURSELF!
I have found this novel very difficult to rate because there were a lot of things that I did not understand or like about the way the book was presented, but there were moments of brilliance in the writing itself. I have, after much deliberation, gone with a four-star rating because I think this story has a lot of potential and I think this series, once the author has more confidence in his own abilities, promises to be a very good one.
This novel is available on #KindleUnlimited
Tom Durwood is a teacher, writer and editor with an interest in history. Tom most recently taught English Composition and Empire and Literature at Valley Forge Military College, where he won the Teacher of the Year Award five times. Tom has taught Public Speaking and Basic Communications as guest lecturer for the Naval Special Warfare Development Group at the Dam’s Neck Annex of the Naval War College.
Tom’s ebook Empire and Literature matches global works of film and fiction to specific quadrants of empire, finding surprising parallels. Literature, film, art and architecture are viewed against the rise and fall of empire. In a foreword to Empire and Literature, postcolonial scholar Dipesh Chakrabarty of the University of Chicago calls it “imaginative and innovative.” Prof. Chakrabarty writes that “Durwood has given us a thought-provoking introduction to the humanities.” His subsequent book “Kid Lit: An Introduction to Literary Criticism” has been well-reviewed. “My favorite nonfiction book of the year,” writes The Literary Apothecary (Goodreads).
Early reader response to Tom’s historical fiction adventures has been promising. “A true pleasure … the richness of the layers of Tom’s novel is compelling,” writes Fatima Sharrafedine in her foreword to “The Illustrated Boatman’s Daughter.” The Midwest Book Review calls that same adventure “uniformly gripping and educational … pairing action and adventure with social issues.” Adds Prairie Review, “A deeply intriguing, ambitious historical fiction series.”
Tom briefly ran his own children’s book imprint, Calico Books (Contemporary Books, Chicago). Tom’s newspaper column “Shelter” appeared in the North County Times for seven years. Tom earned a Masters in English Literature in San Diego, where he also served as Executive Director of San Diego Habitat for Humanity.
Website • Website • Twitter • Facebook • LinkedIn • Instagram • Pinterest • Amazon Author Page • Goodreads
Thank you so much for the very thorougher review.
ReplyDeleteA big thank you for hosting today's blog tour stop.