Vivienne To

Full review

Remains me of Redwall with the fighting warriors. Tales of Despereaux because it about a little mouse trying to be breve in a big world. Its kind of like The Rats of NIMH where its the only other book I have read where the rats and mice are not at odds with each other and both are quite intelligent.

The ‘chosen one’ trope is play around with. It not at the center of the story. Hopper is supposedly the ‘chosen one’ but, his sister wants to be the ‘chosen one’. Little bit of a twist.… (mehr)

Hopper's life started in a Brooklyn pet store, and it looks like it's going to end there. When Hopper and his siblings overhear that the pet store owner is about to sell them as snake food, they know they must do something drastic right away. The ensuing escape results in Hopper and his siblings being split up. Hopper finds himself in the sewers, where he meets up with a friendly, streetwise young rat named Zucker, who also happens to be the prince of the underground rat kingdom of Atlantia. This kingdom seems like a paradise to Hopper, especially since, as a friend of the prince, he is given a lavish royal welcome. However, all is not as it seems in the kingdom, and revolutionaries threaten to bring it down from the outside. All Hopper wants to do is to be reunited with his lost siblings -- but does he have a larger role to play?

This animal fantasy was, for me, just an okay read. I thought it was a little predictable, and Hopper's extreme naivete, though believable, was irritating to me. I'll recommend this to kids who can't get enough of this sort of story, but everyone else can probably pass on this one.… (mehr)

Seemingly for children, this book fits all ages. I loved it. It was a brilliantly imagined story around the rats and mice and other underlings of the New York Subway. Fiedler's talent was not depicted only in the imaginative plot and details, but in the intricacies of it all. Her writing style was great- easily understood by the younger readers but not too basic for the more experienced ones. Rats and mice and cats really come alive in this tale of courage, bravery, cruelty and the hardships of life. We see the various personalities of several characters, shaped by their circumstances. Really this book was surprisingly nuanced for a children's novel. I would definitely recommend it to all.… (mehr)