Wood Angel in What's the Name of That Book???

Nov 15, 2012 Bryan457 rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, horror, juv-ya, animal-companions, ghosts, revenge, witches

I think they should do a chill inspiring cover that screams "HORROR." That way readers won't be mislead into thinking its a nice whimsical fantasy about a girl and her cat.

A pretty horrible witch hunt, witch's revenge, ghost horror story.

I liked Taggle the cat and Kate's carving skill, but it wasn't enough to make this an enjoyable read for me. ...more

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Mar 02, 2015 Emma rated it really liked it · review of another edition

A long time ago, in a market town by a looping river, there lived an orphan girl called Plain Kate. Plain Kate, Kate the Carver. No one's friend and no one's daughter. Little Kate might meet her fate whittling sticks till it's too late.

Kate's shadow is long and her talents with a knife are great. Taught by her father, Plain Kate can draw the truth out of any piece of wood with skill and her knife, not with magic.

But in a town looking for someone to blame for the bad times, a little skill can sta A long time ago, in a market town by a looping river, there lived an orphan girl called Plain Kate. Plain Kate, Kate the Carver. No one's friend and no one's daughter. Little Kate might meet her fate whittling sticks till it's too late.

Kate's shadow is long and her talents with a knife are great. Taught by her father, Plain Kate can draw the truth out of any piece of wood with skill and her knife, not with magic.

But in a town looking for someone to blame for the bad times, a little skill can start to look a lot like magic. And in a town where witches are feared and burned, working magic with a knife--even if that magic isn't really magic--can be a very dangerous thing.

As things go from bad to worse in her small market town, Kate knows she has to leave. But you need money and food to go anywhere. So Kate makes a deal with the mysterious stranger passing through town.

In exchange for her shadow he can give her what she needs, and grant her heart's wish. All Kate really wants is to get away, so she agrees. But as Kate sets out with her provisions and her cat, Taggle, she soon realizes she can't live without her shadow for long. But Kate isn't a witch and her only magic is a talent for carving. Will that be enough to help Kate change the course of things and get her shadow back in Plain Kate (2010) by Erin Bow?

Plain Kate is Erin Bow's first novel.

Bow blends element of traditional folk tales with her own lore to create a unique world for this dark fantasy. Kate is a carver through and through, a fact that the writing returns to again and again as Kate works on her carvings and views her surroundings through a carver's eyes.

The writing here is lyrical and evocative, making up for a story that became somewhat scattered in the second half of the book. Plain Kate will easily appeal to anyone looking for a traditional fantasy but be warned: this is a story that is very grim even in the midst of its flights of fancy.

I loved the book trailer for Plain Kate but I hesitate to mention it because I think it's misleading in terms of how very, very dark this book really is. Now might also be a good time to mention that I really enjoyed the cover art for this title by Juliana Kolesova even though it (again) suggested a much more whimsical story than this really was.

This dichotomy between the cover/trailer and the actual story also makes it hard to determine my own feelings about the book. I can see the merits of the writing and the premise. The world Bow created is wonderfully developed. All the same, I found the contrast between the story I was expecting and the story I got to be so jarring that I cannot love it as wholeheartedly as I thought I would.

I see great things in this book's future, but part of me still wishes it had been the lighter-toned, more whimsical book I had initially expected.

Possible Pairings: All the Truth That's in Me by Julie Berry, The Coldest Girl in Coldtown by Holly Black, Fire by Kristin Cashore, The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman, A Creature of Moonlight by Rebecca Hahn, Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones, Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier, The Bone Shaker by Kate Milford, Vicious by V. E. Schwab, The Ghosts of Heaven by Marcus Sedgwick, The Glass Casket by McCormick Templeman, The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner, A Well-Timed Enchantment by Vivian Vande Velde ...more

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Jun 29, 2010 Laura rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: mt-bookpile-pre-2010, old-reads

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Kate (just plain Kate) is the very talented daughter of a woodcarver; when sickness carries him off, a new guild-approved carver takes over his business, leaving her with nothing but her tools and her father's abandoned stall. Deciding to live in the stall, Plain Kate ekes out an existence carving good luck charms and a few other things. She even foster-mothers three cats (one, Taggle, will stay with her while the other two find new homes). Until one day a strange man, Linay, comes to town.

Linay ...more

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Sep 06, 2010 Sharon rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: ya

Plain Kate suffers hard from the reading streak I've been on, because there was much lovely and charming about this book, and it's definitely 3.5 stars, but I can't just give them all four stars. This was a good book, but not a great one. It was a little meandering, a little vague in parts, and a little confusing. BUT, there were so many good bits.

It sounds like damning it with faint praise to say that the talking cat was the best part, but the talking cat was AMAZING. It's not just that Taggle ...more

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Apr 12, 2011 Susie rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

early middle dragged, but by the end I was racing against dawn - may need a nap later. The cat . . . well it's clear why we all love our familiars ...more

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Apr 02, 2011 Laurie rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011

Beautiful, enthralling and heartbreaking. This is a true old-school fairy tale with no modern pretensions. And I mean old-school in the style of the Brothers Grimm -- it is dark and there is violence and some sad things. While feeling very traditional and familiar, the story is also at the same time completely unique. Highly recommended.

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Oct 06, 2010 Carrie rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, ya

I have to be honest - this was so much better, creepier, smarter and more original than I expected it to be. The over doesn't do it justice at all. When I got it from Interlibrary Loan I really thought it would be just the same old same old YA novel, and I was wrong. By the end I was invested in the characters and the story. ...more

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Jun 06, 2013 katayoun Masoodi rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, fantasy, ebook

4 1/2 myabe, not perfect and could be better, but i really, really liked this book so five it is. really liked kate and taggle and everyone else, though all were flawed and some really flawed, loved the story. and would not recommend this to anyone unless they were in a really good mood and could stand to cry really hard.

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Oct 15, 2010 Jessie rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: readaloud

This book suffers from bad cover-itis. This is a malady that makes you think the book is going to be a lighthearted romp when in actuality it is dark and grim and sad. Great writing, slow pace, not at all what I expected. The cat character is one of the best written cats in all of fantasy literature in my opinion.

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Jun 04, 2017 Jess rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: juv, fantasy

This took a ridiculously long time to read since I only read it on my afternoon breaks, and that meant I never got much momentum going. I can't tell if it really did drag a little in the middle, or if that was just because of the way I read it. Either way, the characters were great and the ending touching. ...more

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