Catherynne M. Valente

All Osmo Unknown wants is to venture out beyond his small town of Littlebridge - and to be known as something other than a turnip. One day, his mother accidentally kills a Quidnunk, a fearsome and intelligent creature that lives deep in the woods. This shouldn’t have anything to do with Osmo, except there was a treaty between the Quidnunx and the people of Littlebridge that was forged hundreds of years ago.

Accompanied by a half-badger/half-wombat named Bonk and an antisocial pangolin girl named Never, Omsmo must embark on a quest to find the Eightpenny Woods - the kingdom where all the forest creatures go when they die - to make amends.

This took me a little bit to get into it. I knew it was going to be good, but my attention for it didn’t truly catch on until a little over 100 pages in, once all the group had been assembled.

As much as Bonk initially annoyed me, the more and more I got to know him, the more I understood and liked him. I even started writing down my favorite insult names he used: ornery wee fork, ya dropped egg, absolute doorknob, trashcake supreme. I loved Never off the bat and loved every inch of her antisocial self.

There’s a narrator you see only in the beginning and towards the end, that breaks the fourth wall between the narrator and the reader - otherwise it’s told in third person through Osmo’s POV.

I can see middle grade readers really enjoying this and walking away from the last few pages feeling like they themselves went on an adventure. Even as an adult, I felt that I was just told the most fabulous story sitting around a campfire. Give it a few more pages when you’re getting into it than you probably usually do - but you won’t regret it!… (mere)

A high two stars for this one. The pace finally picks up the way I had been hoping for about 75% of the way through, and then I had to finish the rest in one sitting. And that was pretty good! But it's a *slog* to get there, with tons of interesting ideas poetically over-described for (what felt like) hundreds of pages. I get the impression everything was the author's darling she couldn't bear to cut, and you have to read a book like that to realize why writers have to cut so much of the good stuff.

There are dozens of characters who I frequently couldn't keep straight, and they all have mythologically significant names. A good sprinkling of bi and gay characters.

I cared more about Severin before we got to the final few chapters; the ending felt a little cheap. When it still looked like she had died horribly and tragically young, instead of turning into a disembodied omniscient being. And how did Percy learn all that stuff about callowhales anyway---just further scientific advancements, since it's like 40 years after the main action? And no, Severin's fate isn't particularly ambiguous---the author is clearly putting her finger on the scale for one reading, while also technically leaving it "open to interpretation." Whatever, man.

Probably would make a neat film, with the advantage that you wouldn't have to read all the damn descriptions. I would also read the book Valente has set up for 6 generations down the line, with genetic and social changes and when the averted colonial-powers conflict finally hits, but I don't think I trust Valente with story-via-documents anymore.… (mere)