We Went to the Woods by Caite Dolan-Leach
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
There's an ominous feel to We Went to the Woods at the beginning. Our narrator (lead gal) is telling us the story after it's happened and so we know that whatever the scenario was it didn't go exactly well for her; although she did survive. The first few chapters give us a basic set-up of our lead gal and her current circumstances; as well as introduce us to the other four people who make up the core of the characters that live on the 'homestead' with our lead gal eventually. And of course we get the rhetoric about sustainability and climate change. Let's talk about that first:
Moral Message
You can't go into a book like Caite Dolan-Leach has written and not expect to be lectured about how the Earth is dying and we are the cause. There is a very, very strong message here that our current way of life in first world countries is going to end badly (as we all know already) and that we should look to alternatives to resolve the issue. In the case of We Went to the Woods the 'solution' is to live on a homestead where they only eat locally sourced items or ones they grew themselves. There is talk of the planning that is involved in preparing for winter and other logistical items that would come up. I liked that the specifics of the homestead were addressed and that the novel is set in a place where there is a true winter.
Plot
I'd like to say there is more plot here than there is. There is an attempt at plot that includes a weird nearby cult-like group, some environmental protests, sexual relations amoungst our homestead characters and other random things; but at no time is there ever anything driving the story forward except that existence is perceived as linear. So time just moves forward. It's not enough for me and felt more like I was reading a very boring diary than a story that I was invested in.
Boring
The reality is that We Went to the Woods is just boring after about 100 pages. No one really cares enough to read about cutting wood, growing vegetables, or other basic rustic living tasks. And while random things happen like a bear trap is found, some relations between characters, a storm or two; nothing really 'happens' in a way that feels like it matters. The sub-plot of the local 'cult' that lives nearby was not enough for me, and was so cliche that I felt like it was stolen right from a hundred books before it. I just never felt like there was anything interesting enough to really latch onto. So I forced myself to finish this one because it was needed for a challenge. Sad but true.
Overall
The best part of We Went to the Woods is that Dolan-Leach has clearly lived in a cold place or researched it really well. The snowy, cold winter months are handled superbly. As a Canadian this is a big pet peeve of mine with survival based books and it was nice for things like frostbite to be handled appropriately. Otherwise I struggle to come up with anything that I felt was worthwhile in this story. The way cults lure in members is not new, the idea of survival on local aspects only is not new, and the weird relationships people cultivate in small quarters is just not enough either. Especially knowing that at any time these characters can drive out to town and be a part of 'regular society' again takes away most danger that presents itself.
There might be a story to be told here but it would need to be re-worked and handled in a different way to really be worthy of telling.
Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.
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I finished two whole stitched item in 2019 (ABC Sampler) and this piece that I started on Dec 3. How sad is that? (LOL)
I have a cousin who is 7 years old and her family lives in the same city as me. Most of my family doesn't live where I do. As I'm (obviously) much older than her she often refers to me as Auntie Mel. Along with many other amazing children that I get to be Auntie to without a family/blood connection.
This year I decided I wanted to do a 'fancy' ornament up for her. As I'm a terrible finisher I decided to do a perforated paper ornament that could then be layered and assembled. I love Brooke's ornaments as they use beads, Krenik, ribbon, etc. but are easy to stitch up and put together. For those new to these supplies perforated paper is the perfect way to learn to use any of these supplies for the first time.
I really wanted to have her name on it somewhere and so as I was flipping through Christmas ornament patterns I had I came across this Brooke's one from a Just Cross Stitch ornament magazine. The four stocking's made me realize that my cousin's name, Evie, is also four letters. I then giggled when I saw that the original word 'give' has all the letters from her name in it! Clearly this was a sign. So in my version below the stockings make up her name. I also changed a couple of the colours just because of what I had on hand for supplies.
I'm really pleased with my glue gun skills (lol) to put this together. Each stocking, ribbon, and the kitty are attached to the larger figure. Here she is in all her glory:
Normally I would commit to stitching more, blogging more, or some other thing here based on the date; but let's not fool ourselves into believing any of those things are going to happen even if I try to commit to them. So I'll casually be trying to stitch and post more... I did make a list of things I'd like to give more 'attention' to and one of the is posting here (and responding to a fellow stitcher and reader Leonore!) more often. Another is trying to avoid the trap of cell phone games and social media so I spend my time in a more meaningful way.
Rebel Born by Amy A. Bartol
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
This conclusion to the three book series Secondborn lacks the intrigue, politics, and mystery of it's two predecessors. As the series progressed into book 2 it held most of these elements with a slight increase in the science fiction aspects of the story. But our lead gal remained the same and her narrative was very compelling. Unfortunately book 3, Rebel Born, by Bartol is a bit of a mess. It takes our fantasy world and adds too much technology, too quickly.
Pet Peeve
Nothing bothers me more in literature than convenience. If your character needs all the stars to align every chapter for events to move forward, and you always make that automatically happen, then it's boring. Compelling stories have tension, excitement, uncertainty, etc. A good author keeps the line between what needs to happen, versus what does, very thin and always ensures that the events and outcomes are plausible (inside their worlds rules), logical and intricate enough to surprise the reader at times. Events that are curated too tightly, because the plot heavily relies on them, and don't easily fit cohesively in the story are frustrating and make me twitch. Reading is difficult when your twitching so much your eyes can't keep their place on the page.
Characters
There is one strong aspect to Bartol's trilogy however: the characters. She has a strong heroine, and sultry compassionate men whom all feel genuine.
From sentimental quotes like:
"life is lost without love”
To downright evil thoughts like:
"I merely strive to annihilate weakness. Isn’t that the very purest form of evolution?”
Bartol keeps the reader entranced by having authentic and honest people in her story. If only a book could stand entirely on the shoulders of it's characters, and didn't need believable plot, then Bartol might have a hit on her hands. Unfortunately, as much as character studies are one of my favourite types of reads, a character can't save a book entirely. We are not saved by our characters from Rebel Born being stupendously unbelievable and leaping technological barriers too quickly.
Sci-Fi/Fantasy Combos
As a reader of both the science fiction and fantasy genres I often love when they merge together. But it's tricky to balance the need for magic to be well 'magical' and science to be technical. Unfortunately these types of books are rarely done well. It seems to be quite the literary challenge to set up parameters for both science and magic that don't contradict each other or feel out of place in the same world. Bartol falls to the same trap I've seen in countless other books that merge sci-fi and fantasy together. In Rebel Born magic does X and technology does well... everything else. In fact magic becomes insignificant at one point and science the 'supreme ruler' of her world. This would be fine if the science used didn't resolve every single plot issue by just being. Where's the ingenuity of the characters in the resolution? Giving all the glory to magic or science is never satisfying for the reader. I want books to be clever and represent events in a compelling way where our characters are critical to the outcome; not just have science (or magic) make everything resolve by default.
Overall
Bartol has the writing style and character development skill needed to write good books; but she needs to work on her plot resolutions. I want to see our characters analyze and sort out situations on their own more; without the power of magic or science creating a perfect fix. The resolution can involve magic or science, don't get me wrong, but it shouldn't just be a 'wave and everything is better' scenario at the end of three books. Overall I wanted more from Bartol's series. I'll look for her publications in the future but will be a little wary of investing into any large series by her until I've seen a trilogy that doesn't rely on the flip of a magic wand (or press of a button) to make everything all better.
Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.
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