Review: School Library Journal
Monday, September 8th, 2008
It’s up at B&N, so I think I can unveil…
MY FIRST MIXED REVIEW!!!
Is that weird? That I’m so excited about being an author, even the dreaded “mixed review” feels like a good thing? I mean, it had to happen eventually…   So it’s a rite of passage.
(though it occurs to me that not every author posts negative press, I’m not every author. I’m me!)
An adventurous young milkmaid named Lucy decides to climb the Scratchy Mountains to learn more about her mother, who vanished many years before. At the top of a mountain she discovers a town dominated by unnecessary rules, where the weather runs on schedule, and the townspeople live in alphabetical order. Lucy’s friend Wynston, who is the prince of their small town, and who is supposed to be looking for a suitable princess to marry, follows her up the mountain and helps her rescue her pet prairie dog. As they work together, their spirited friendship blossoms. Ultimately, they discover that it’s okay to bend rules if not break them. This fairy tale, set in a time “before television and interstate highways” in the land of Bewilderness, has appealing characters who grow and develop; clear, accessible language; lively dialogue; and a light humorous tone. While the pacing is a little slow and the central message somewhat heavy-handed, children may enjoy the whimsical setting and the sweet friendship that blossoms between the protagonists.-Mari Pongkhamsing, St. Perpetua School, Lafayette, CA
The weird thing about reading this is that I don’t *totally* disagree. In a word where Percy Jackson slays an evil beast on every third page, my book does have a slow pace, a kind of funny lopsided gait. It’s old fashioned. But that’s intentional. If I had a different editor, we might have opted to “speed it up” by slashing out the little songs and the winding paths, the long dialogue bits and the chunks of expository writing.
And while I don’t think the book is heavyhanded at all, it does have “themes”. It does have a discernible “message” by design. I wanted to “say things” in my book, and so I did.
And it isn’t altogether frustrating to be read by a smart reader, and reviewed this way. It just means she wasn’t my perfect reader!
How’s that for Pollyanna? ( also a heavyhanded slow book)