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All These Things I've Done by Gabrielle Zevin
The Arctic Marauder by Jacques Tardi
Babymouse: Monster Mash by Jennifer L. Holm and Matthew Holm
Born to Rule by Kathryn Lasky
Broken for You by Stephanie Kallos
City Dog, Country Frog by Mo Willems
The Conductor by Laëtitia Devernay
Fullmetal Alchemist 21 by Hiromu Arakawa
Fullmetal Alchemist 22 by Hiromu Arakawa
Fullmetal Alchemist 23 by Hiromu Arakawa
Funny How Things Change by Melissa Wyatt
Geektastic edited by Holly Black
Helen of Pasadena by Lian Dolan
The High Skies Adventures of Blue Jay the Pirate by Scott Nash
The Hole in the Wall by Lisa Rowe Fraustino
Images of Nature: The Photographs of Thomas D. Mangelsen by Charles Craighead
Just Like Bossy Bear by David Horvath
The Library by Sarah Stewart
The Lost Art of Reading by David L. Ulin
NERDS: National Espionage, Rescue, and Defense Society by Michael Buckley
Oh. My. Gods. by Tera Lynn Childs
Once in a Lifetime by Cathy Kelly
Page by Paige by Laura Lee Gulledge
The Pencil by Allan Ahlberg
Punished! by David Lubar
Seeds of Change by Jen Cullerton Johnson
Sticky Burr: Adventures in Burrwood Forest by John Lechner
Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle 06 by CLAMP
When Jessie Came Across the Sea by Amy Hest
The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken
xxxHolic Volume 12 by CLAMP

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Comments for The Wolves of Willoughby Chase

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase: 01/08/14

cover art

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken is the first book (excepting the prequel) in an eleven book series. In my usual scatterbrained way of reading series, I read book three, Nightbirds of Nantucket as a teen. Somehow I completely missed it was part of a series.

The book opens with Sir Willoughby and Lady Green leaving for a restorative cruise to warmer climes. They leave their daughter, Bonnie in the care of Miss Slighcarp. Meanwhile, Bonnie's cousin Sylvia comes to the home via a frightening train ride. Together the children discover that Miss Slighcarp is up to no good. Before they can do anything about it, though, they are shipped off to an orphanage / workhouse.

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase has many twists and abrupt changes in direction and tone. With the strange names and dark social commentary, it's clearly inspired by Dickens. Consider it Dickens-light. The book felt more like a series of connected short stories or Saturday serials than a coherent novel. Children though might get caught up in the numerous perils the characters go through.

Four stars

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