This book just spoke to me when I found it at the library, so let's give it a read and review! Spoilers ahead.
An orphaned girl named Yanka always felt like she doesn't quite belong in her village. She's far stronger and larger than any of the other kids, feels a strange draw to the local forest and knows nothing of her past other than that she was found in a bear's den as a baby. When she one day wakes up with the ability to speak to animals, as well as a pair bear legs rather than the human ones she is used to, she sets out on a journey into the mysterious forest to discover her past and hopefully change back into her full human self.
I was already pretty eager to read this book going in, but it was just such a treat once I really got started. It has everything: enjoyable yet flawed characters, a strong message of found family and protecting those you love, an epic journey of self-discovery, interesting and unique world-building and a neat climax to top it all off.
I can't really think of something I don't like about this book. I wouldn't call it perfect or anything, but it's definitely one of my favorites I've read in recent times. It just felt really inventive and a lot of the time I had no idea where the story was going. Yanka was going on a journey into the unknown to discover her past, and the reader is brought right along with her, with all the mysteries and perils that come with it.
Yanka is also a very lovable character, as were the others. None of them are quite perfect, but they're just such a treat to read about, especially once they all come together as a large family. My favorites were probably Mousetrap the weasel and Ivan the old wolf, but the rest of the cast were lovely as well.
The mystery of her past was also delivered to us masterfully. Rather than just spoon-feeding us the information, or even having Yanka discover it piece by piece, it turns out that the stories she's been told by family friend Anatoly all her childhood, stories both she and her adoptive mother dismiss as fairy tales, actually do tie very much directly into her backstory, with them having far more elements of truth to them than Yanka could ever predict. Throughout the story she manages to piece together who she is, who her family is and what happened before she was found in the bear cave by cleverly putting together the stories she hears and has been told int he past. It's just a really neat way to put together her backstory, rather than just plainly infodumping. We're given the "fairy tales" on random intervals throughout the story, often times not chronologically, so the reader can put together the pieces and hints we're being given right alongside Yanka once we learn there's more to Anatoly's stories than we initially expected.
The climax was also rather cool and I obviously also love the conclusion of Yanka growing to love herself for who she is. A bit cliché, but still very wholesome. She fully embraces herself as being half bear (by now being able to shapeshift into one fully) and half human, she embraces Anatoly and the rest of her new and old friends as her true family and she just loves herself for who she is now. Just so good to see.
So yeah, this one is a definite recommendation. Whether you want a cast of likable characters, a story with interesting Slavic-inspired world-building, or an epic journey of self discovery: this book has you covered.
Rating: 4/5
No comments:
Post a Comment