Into the Forest discussion

This is the spoiler thread for the young Adult winner of the May 15-July 14 group read
Summer in Orcus by T. Kingfisher

I wasn't too impressed with this one.

It felt a little like Valente's Fairyland series, but with none of the ornate language and not as much creativity. There were bits that were brilliant (Sleipnirians, for instance) but other elements were just average.

Honestly, this feels like a middle grade fiction book to me. Partially in the writing style, but also because it's rather episodic.

Yet, it was marked it as an adult book, mostly just because the main character was too realistic for Kingfisher (Vernon) to feel like they'd appeal to kids.

She says, comparing her book to Narnia:

I wanted to write a story about a child who I could identify with. And I knew, as I was writing it, that it would be nearly impossible to sell to a children’s book publisher because children are often impatient with slow meandering journeys, and very impatient with weakness.

[...]

What could I tell [a hypothetical reader]? That realistically, Edmund would probably wake up screaming at night from the vision of the Christmas squirrels turned to stone by the White Witch? That the smell of sugar and rose-water from Turkish delight would leave him slumped against doorframes outside of candy shops, trying to breathe? That Eustace is the only one who acts remotely like I would really act, and Coriakin the star is a dangerous tyrant and Aravis can do about a thousand times better than Shasta?

I wanted to write a story where someone acted at least a little like I would. I knew that meant that the climax could not be a battle scene. Summer was not going to become a hardened warrior in a few weeks. And we’ve had plenty of literary battle scenes already and I didn’t feel the need to add another one. A scene where someone really listens and tries to reassure someone else…could I do that? Would that work? Would the readers feel cheated or baffled or lost?

So, in some ways, I get it... PTSD isn't a typical kid topic, nor does a typical middle grade heroine end up reassuring the bad guy rather than fighting them.. But in other ways, even with all the way she inverts some of the tropes, it still just feels like an average quality middle grade book.

I'm glad you posted that. It definitely seemed like a straight forward MG novel. And plenty of MG novels deal with dark themes -- like Fairyland by Valente -- which, admittedly, is at a higher reading level. But how about the Where the Mountain Meets the Moon series that we've read? I think it has similar themes of anti-violence and non-heroes who are really heroes. I actually think it's kinda insulting to think that kids wouldn't understand the themes.

It's also odd because my least favorite aspect of the book was how perfect Summer was. I like flawed characters, and she had no flaws. It's a little boring.

I also thought it felt too episodic. It could've been trimmed down a lot. Did we need all those companions? I did like the weasel. The wolf was cool too, but then, was his story needed in the plot? And Reginald was annoying, I agree, Weasel.

However, the book gave me a new writing idea!

Any recommendations for Baba Yaga stories? I've read many already: Baba Yaga's Assistant (reced by Kelsey, I believe), Vassa in the Night, a Patricia McKillip novel (I can't remember which). I own Baba Yaga Laid an Egg but I haven't read it yet. Any others?