Mock Printz 2026 discussion

You've voted for Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor.
Did you like Strange the Dreamer? Do you think it is Printz worthy? Why or why not.

I adore Laini Taylor and loved Strange the Dreamer. Taylor is a cut above when it comes to worldbuilding. She really gets librarians. Lazlo Strange may be one of my favorite of her characters yet. But it's not a complete story. It's the first in a duology and leaves us on a bit of a cliffhanger. While that's not ideal for me as a reader, it irks me more when I think about giving the book an award. I loved that Kelly Barnhill got the Newbery last year, but fantasy rarely gets recognized at awards season and I think Barnhill is more the exception to the rule. I don't think Taylor will see a Printz from this one.

I really liked Strange the Dreamer and although it is fantasy and Printz never recognizes fantasy, I do think it will will be considered.
Looking over over the Printz criteria, I think Strange meets most of them. It has several themes and the characters are archetypes as opposed to stereotypes. The setting is unique and the story begins at the end and then develops linearly.

My only issue was that it was too loquacious but otherwise it was a solid read.

Loved this book, but I am pretty certain it will not get any Printz consideration. Mostly, because it's a part of a duology. Were it a standalone, I think it would have had a chance, even though I feel Taylor is moving more and more in the commercial fiction direction.

Whew! I finished it. Very lush and complex. I love the world-building. At times the descriptions got a bit repetitive, but this is definitely a well-thought out and thoroughly plotted story. The characters are all so real, even those who have relatively small parts. I can see it as a contender.

Overall I enjoyed this read. Fantasy is not my go-to genre but Taylor provides reliable well-written escapism, I placed a request on this the minute I knew it was coming to my library. With that being said this is not my idea of a printz read. Fantasy isn't their usual pick,either, and if they did settle on an other worldly novel, I don't think it'd be this one. It seems like it could have been a solid 75 pages shorter and that would make it more approachable and a more digestible read. I know who I'll recommend this to...but they're all 30 year-old women.

I can see the elements that would make it printz worthy. I think the book has an unique voice that does bring something different to the table. The characters and weep were great. The downfall for me was the length. Sometimes I felt there was a bit of fluff in there and my attention would wane. There is nothing wrong with a thick book, but I don't think I need to be on a roller coaster of attention to keep focused on it. I ended up ditching it half way through.

I am on disc six of Strange the Dreamer. It's an interesting read so far and I'll probably finish it. I took a pause to listen to The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas. I'm loving that book right now. I'll probably finish up Strange the Dreamer after. I finished Caraval but, it wasn't my jam. I found Scarlet a little annoying and the pacing of story a bit off putting.

I agree with many of the statements already mentioned. Taylor has strong elements present such as characters and setting, but I think the length is holding this book back. Which, like Briony said, there's nothing wrong with a lengthy book I just feel that the length of this book didn't add any extra value to the story. That said I did enjoy the book and look forward to reading the sequel. Not a Printz contender though.

I agree with all of the above. Loved the book, could have stayed in Lazlo's dreams indefinitely, probably not Printz material though.

I am stuck in the middle and can't get out...

Nope nope nope. IMO totally not Printz worthy.

A few spoilers ahead:

I've really enjoyed Taylor's fantasy fiction before but this one so did not do it for me. I alternated between irritability and boredom reading it, basically a mood of "Yeah yeah yeah I get it, so when is something going to happen?" The downtrodden orphan/librarian bit went on for way too long, and the contrast between humble Lazlo and the egotistical golden boy Thyon was boringly heavy-handed. When the adventure finally begins, Taylor immediately skips over the first promising development, depriving us of the hero's transformation, and basically says, "six months later he was no longer a weenie and had developed pecs and an attitude in the desert." Then we get into the lost city of Weep, and though I'll agree that Taylor's imagination is creative, and the citadel was fairly thoroughly imagined, I feel like her world-building doesn't go very deep. Generally I found her descriptions, and the characters' angst, more long-winded and overwrought than lush. I am generally someone who suspends disbelief and just immerses, and I don't try to "solve" the story, but here I guessed The Thing very early on. I thought the most compelling part was the dream world wherein the protagonists meet. But then there's that "to be continued" ending with the story almost arbitrarily hacked off, threads waving in the wind.

Interesting characters; novel ideas; erratic pacing; thin world building; repetitive description. To my mind this one does not meet the Printz criterion of literary excellence.

It took me a LONG time to get through this. Not just "get into it" which I never really did, but just to get past the first few chapters. That said, I am glad I did. I wasn't sucked in ever, really. But I can't deny it was really well written, I thought. It was just so different from things I have read before and things I like. http://revingsblog.blogspot.com/2017/...
This wouldn't be my choice for a Printz Award, but I don't know if that is fair because it was so not to my personal taste.

I guess the book seemed draggy to a lot of people, but I really enjoyed it. I finished it a while ago and it's still with me. I really cared about Lazlo and Sarai, and their world. Because there are just so many books to read I often do not read past the first volume in a series, just to get a feel for it, but I am truly anticipating the next book in this series. The writing is gorgeous too. Not sure what the Real Committee will think, but for me, this was fantasy at its best - an interesting, different world, populated by characters I care about who are dealing with a seemingly insurmountable problem that can be solved only through some magic/hidden means.

God, I love Laini Taylor's worlds so much! I never expected to connect with this one as much as Karou's in Daughter of Smoke and Bone, but I so did. I would be over the moon if it received a Printz nod; her writing is so different from any other authors' I would love for it to be recognized. Also, the audiobook is amazing!

I loved this book and I love Laini Taylor's writing. Daughter of Smoke and Bones series is a personal favorite. That said, I don't think this book will get a Printz nod. Why? The cliff-hanger at the end. (but if it did get a Printz, I wouldn't be sad.)

I just couldn't get in to this book, which was disappointing because I loved the Smoke & Bone trilogy so much. What makes Taylor's writing so wonderful is the lushness and attention to detail, but I think it was too much of a good thing. I listened to the audiobook, and it felt like it took forever to get through it. I would be surprised to see this get a medal.

This is the second book I've read by Laini Taylor, and I remain intrigued by her distinctive combination of Christian iconography (all those angels!), sensual (and sensory) description, and intricate world setting.

Took a little while to get hooked by the narrative (the plot is not the strongest part of the story - yet). Instead, Taylor introduced and amplified each character in a tightly organized way, so that by the end of the book the reader was right where she wanted us, emotionally attached to the protagonist and riveted by the revelation of his identity.

The dream world of Laszlo and Sarai was a tender (and highly effective) counterpoint to the harsh history of Weep (brought The Night Circus to mind) and made the conclusion of the book even more affecting.

I agree with most of the other commenters that this will probably not appeal to the Printz committee, as a fantasy and as part of a duology. Unfortunate....