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Sophia (Bookwyrming Thoughts) (530 KP) rated The Dragon Warrior in Books
Jan 23, 2020
<b><i>The author/publisher provided a free copy of the book for review purposes - thank you! Receiving a review copy does not guarantee a positive review and therefore do not affect the opinion or content of the review.</i></b>
<h2><strong><em>The Dragon Warrior</em> is such a fun and delightful read</strong></h2>
<strong>I'm 1000% sure the middle school me who got swallowed by </strong><em><strong>Percy Jackson & the Olympians</strong></em><strong> would devour this book</strong> as quickly as she inhales all the dumplings, stuffed buns and dim sum. (Look, they're comfort food.) <em>The Dragon Warrior</em> really brings back the nostalgia of those times. <strong>Katie Zhao wrote a beautiful novel that promises fun and adventure featuring Chinese mythology.</strong>
Zhao's debut novel follows twelve-year-old Faryn Liu as she is revealed to be the Heaven Breaker after she crosses paths with a demon during Lunar New Year Festivities. She and her companions set off on a quest across various Chinatowns to find the island of immortals so she can prove she is worthy to take on the role.
But both she and her brother are outcasts in the Jade Society and have been treated as such for years. To the members in her local Jade Society, she's not worthy of such an important role and it's not something she plans for either (does any twelve-year-old though?). But despite frequently thinking about ròu bāo zi (I don't blame her; meat dumplings are delicious), Faryn readily steps into the role even if she might know what she's doing or feel ready to potentially command an army.
<h2><strong>Full of adventure and humor</strong></h2>
<strong><em>The Dragon Warrior</em> is a huge nod to my childhood, featuring various deities and other well-known figures from Chinese mythology.</strong> They're full of wit and sass that brought a constant smile to my face as they aided or deterred Faryn and her companions in the quest. The novel brings in aspects of family, tradition and honor, all of which are important parts of Chinese culture. It's clear throughout the novel Faryn has a strong bond with not just her brother, but also her Ye Ye.
<strong>Zhao's debut novel is a fast-paced, page-turning adventure that is chock full of humor</strong>; it's easy to forget this is a debut as this is extremely well-written, and I loved every second of it. Honestly, the only thing I'm disappointed is there probably won't be any sequels. (Someone please tell me there will be one???) <strong><em>The Dragon Warrior</em> is an engrossing story featuring Chinese mythology and tying in various aspects of the culture; </strong>I highly recommend this to Chinese American readers who want to see themselves in a world where Chinese mythology clashes into the modern world.
<a href="https://bookwyrmingthoughts.com/the-dragon-warrior-by-katie-zhao/"; target="_blank">This review was originally posted on Bookwyrming Thoughts</a>
<h2><strong><em>The Dragon Warrior</em> is such a fun and delightful read</strong></h2>
<strong>I'm 1000% sure the middle school me who got swallowed by </strong><em><strong>Percy Jackson & the Olympians</strong></em><strong> would devour this book</strong> as quickly as she inhales all the dumplings, stuffed buns and dim sum. (Look, they're comfort food.) <em>The Dragon Warrior</em> really brings back the nostalgia of those times. <strong>Katie Zhao wrote a beautiful novel that promises fun and adventure featuring Chinese mythology.</strong>
Zhao's debut novel follows twelve-year-old Faryn Liu as she is revealed to be the Heaven Breaker after she crosses paths with a demon during Lunar New Year Festivities. She and her companions set off on a quest across various Chinatowns to find the island of immortals so she can prove she is worthy to take on the role.
But both she and her brother are outcasts in the Jade Society and have been treated as such for years. To the members in her local Jade Society, she's not worthy of such an important role and it's not something she plans for either (does any twelve-year-old though?). But despite frequently thinking about ròu bāo zi (I don't blame her; meat dumplings are delicious), Faryn readily steps into the role even if she might know what she's doing or feel ready to potentially command an army.
<h2><strong>Full of adventure and humor</strong></h2>
<strong><em>The Dragon Warrior</em> is a huge nod to my childhood, featuring various deities and other well-known figures from Chinese mythology.</strong> They're full of wit and sass that brought a constant smile to my face as they aided or deterred Faryn and her companions in the quest. The novel brings in aspects of family, tradition and honor, all of which are important parts of Chinese culture. It's clear throughout the novel Faryn has a strong bond with not just her brother, but also her Ye Ye.
<strong>Zhao's debut novel is a fast-paced, page-turning adventure that is chock full of humor</strong>; it's easy to forget this is a debut as this is extremely well-written, and I loved every second of it. Honestly, the only thing I'm disappointed is there probably won't be any sequels. (Someone please tell me there will be one???) <strong><em>The Dragon Warrior</em> is an engrossing story featuring Chinese mythology and tying in various aspects of the culture; </strong>I highly recommend this to Chinese American readers who want to see themselves in a world where Chinese mythology clashes into the modern world.
<a href="https://bookwyrmingthoughts.com/the-dragon-warrior-by-katie-zhao/"; target="_blank">This review was originally posted on Bookwyrming Thoughts</a>
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Lottie disney bookworm (1056 KP) rated Wendy, Darling in Books
Jun 17, 2021
Have you ever wondered what happened when Wendy, John and Michael returned from Neverland? Wendy, Darling by A. C Wise is about to reveal all, but let me warn you, it is far from a fairytale!
Life post-Neverland for the Darling children has been difficult to say the least. Upon their return Wendy was struck with a serious fever, their parents were casualties of the Titanic, Michael has recently returned from WWI with his own ghosts and John has financial struggles. However, from Wendy's perspective, these all pale in comparison: John and Michael have done the worst thing imaginable they have forgotten Neverland!
Wendy's refusal to let go of Neverland and her dogged determination to make her brothers remember their adventures causes great friction within the Darling family. Wendy finds herself labelled as a hysterical woman and is even confined to an asylum after raging at her siblings.
This is just one of the methods Wise uses to address the misogyny of the original Peter Pan story and it is a particularly harrowing one: the abuse Wendy faces at the hands of her "carers" is brutal and unforgiving in its detail. To everyone surrounding her, Neverland is Wendy's sickness, an imaginery world that she is hiding behind. However, several years after her release from St Bernadettes, Neverland still lives on in Wendy's memories and now it is catching up with her. Now Peter is flying out of her window again... with Wendy's daughter Jane in tow!
Wendy returns to a very different Neverland to that which she left. Although the island always seemed to play to Peter's every whim this time there is a dark, evil edge to it. Wise really plays on the fact that everyone idolised Peter in the original fairytale but this Peter has a barbaric, sinister personality along with a dangerous secret. Can Wendy rescue her daughter from the boy she used to worship? One thing is for sure, they're not playing a game anymore!
A. C Wise's writing almost hypnotises the reader, flitting between characters and time periods with ease without losing our interest. The undercurrent of a locked-away secret and the juxtaposition between Barrie/Disney's Neverland and Wise's makes this a real page turner.
Wendy herself is a flawed heroine but in my opinion that is the best kind. She has overcome so much loss and trauma and, although she still feels the pull of Neverland, she finds that motherhood has a much stronger claim on her heart and can provide her with so much more power than she ever imagined.
Wendy, Darling is an unflinching retelling of Peter Pan with a feminist edge. A. C Wise kidnaps and transports her readers to a dark and ominous Neverland which harbours a monstrous secret. Wendy and her daughter are on an adventure of fear, loss and grief. There is no make-believe in this fantasy land.
Thank you to Netgalley and Titan Books for the opportunity to read this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. Wendy, Darling comes with trigger warnings for kidnap, death, trauma and abuse.
Life post-Neverland for the Darling children has been difficult to say the least. Upon their return Wendy was struck with a serious fever, their parents were casualties of the Titanic, Michael has recently returned from WWI with his own ghosts and John has financial struggles. However, from Wendy's perspective, these all pale in comparison: John and Michael have done the worst thing imaginable they have forgotten Neverland!
Wendy's refusal to let go of Neverland and her dogged determination to make her brothers remember their adventures causes great friction within the Darling family. Wendy finds herself labelled as a hysterical woman and is even confined to an asylum after raging at her siblings.
This is just one of the methods Wise uses to address the misogyny of the original Peter Pan story and it is a particularly harrowing one: the abuse Wendy faces at the hands of her "carers" is brutal and unforgiving in its detail. To everyone surrounding her, Neverland is Wendy's sickness, an imaginery world that she is hiding behind. However, several years after her release from St Bernadettes, Neverland still lives on in Wendy's memories and now it is catching up with her. Now Peter is flying out of her window again... with Wendy's daughter Jane in tow!
Wendy returns to a very different Neverland to that which she left. Although the island always seemed to play to Peter's every whim this time there is a dark, evil edge to it. Wise really plays on the fact that everyone idolised Peter in the original fairytale but this Peter has a barbaric, sinister personality along with a dangerous secret. Can Wendy rescue her daughter from the boy she used to worship? One thing is for sure, they're not playing a game anymore!
A. C Wise's writing almost hypnotises the reader, flitting between characters and time periods with ease without losing our interest. The undercurrent of a locked-away secret and the juxtaposition between Barrie/Disney's Neverland and Wise's makes this a real page turner.
Wendy herself is a flawed heroine but in my opinion that is the best kind. She has overcome so much loss and trauma and, although she still feels the pull of Neverland, she finds that motherhood has a much stronger claim on her heart and can provide her with so much more power than she ever imagined.
Wendy, Darling is an unflinching retelling of Peter Pan with a feminist edge. A. C Wise kidnaps and transports her readers to a dark and ominous Neverland which harbours a monstrous secret. Wendy and her daughter are on an adventure of fear, loss and grief. There is no make-believe in this fantasy land.
Thank you to Netgalley and Titan Books for the opportunity to read this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. Wendy, Darling comes with trigger warnings for kidnap, death, trauma and abuse.
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