The Returning

This is one of those books that is deceptively simple on the surface, but is actually quite complex when it comes time to describe or classify it. I put it on the "historical" and "fantasy" shelf, though it doesn't really fit on either of those shelves. It doesn't fit on any of my genre shelves, actually, and it reminds me quite strongly of Meg Rosoff's How I Live Now in many ways; not in its language, of course, but in its themes of war, loss, and family, as well as its timelessness. Rosoff's book takes place in the real world, but the rural farmhouse in England could almost be anywhere, and the war described could be any war (we don't even find out who the invading army is or why they're invading), and that's the point; so it is with show more this book, which takes place in a non-magical agrarian world that isn't our world, but at least to me, strongly evokes its past. They both resonant on the same frequency and make me think about and feel the same things, and they both have sadness and hope in the way the war's survivors are portrayed; of course the extremely different ways they are written mean that people who love one won't necessarily be enamored of the other, but I think they make for an extremely rich comparison.

Once I am not so buried, I will try to write a longer review, and maybe I will go reread How I Live Now when I do so, but in the meantime, I don't think this slow-moving, odd but beautiful book will appeal to a wide audience (especially among teens), but those who have the patience for it to unfold will find a lot to think about. I'm glad I didn't give up after the first 70-some pages but I can't fault anyone who did; it's a niche book, but a good one. show less

This is one of those books that is deceptively simple on the surface, but is actually quite complex when it comes time to describe or classify it. I put it on the "historical" and "fantasy" shelf, though it doesn't really fit on either of those shelves. It doesn't fit on any of my genre shelves, actually, and it reminds me quite strongly of Meg Rosoff's How I Live Now in many ways; not in its language, of course, but in its themes of war, loss, and family, as well as its timelessness. Rosoff's book takes place in the real world, but the rural farmhouse in England could almost be anywhere, and the war described could be any war (we don't even find out who the invading army is or why they're invading), and that's the point; so it is with show more this book, which takes place in a non-magical agrarian world that isn't our world, but at least to me, strongly evokes its past. They both resonant on the same frequency and make me think about and feel the same things, and they both have sadness and hope in the way the war's survivors are portrayed; of course the extremely different ways they are written mean that people who love one won't necessarily be enamored of the other, but I think they make for an extremely rich comparison.

Once I am not so buried, I will try to write a longer review, and maybe I will go reread How I Live Now when I do so, but in the meantime, I don't think this slow-moving, odd but beautiful book will appeal to a wide audience (especially among teens), but those who have the patience for it to unfold will find a lot to think about. I'm glad I didn't give up after the first 70-some pages but I can't fault anyone who did; it's a niche book, but a good one. show less

I wanted to like this more than I did, what with its lovely cover, Printz Honor, and blurbs from some of my favorite authors. However, while the writing is unarguably gorgeous, I found it difficult for me to connect emotionally with the characters, regardless of all the hardships they went through. This was partially because of the multiple POVs, which shifted to another character's POV before I had a chance to fully invest in the previous character, and partially because the characters themselves do not "invite" readers into their confidences the way characters in a more traditionally written story often do. THE RETURNING is truly a "slice of life" look into the aftermath of war on a varied community, with the result that the readerly show more reactions reflect the writing style and characters' lives: scattered, just living their own lives, and it doesn't matter to them whether you love them or not, they'll exist just as they will. show less

A world adjusting to the aftermath of a war, with family members lost, homes uprooted, and physical and mental damage endured. This book did a beautiful job of intertwining many stories that made up this world and how a ward can impact so many in very different ways. A great read.

This story took me a while to get into but all in all the writing was very good though I'm not sure I loved the story.

This was another one it took me a much longer time to get through then I thought it would. Initially I didn't want to read this title at all b/c I thought it was strictly a war title and wasn't up for the blood and gore. Then I realized it was more of an after the war title and it seemed like the focus would be the whole town. After reading it I feel like the book was about the whole town (and beyond) in relation to Cam, but that was okay b/c I found Cam pretty interesting. This was a book all about people and I like seeing how people tick so it worked for me. I wish I had been able to read it more together b/c then I would have enjoyed it more.

This was another one it took me a much longer time to get through then I thought it would. Initially I didn't want to read this title at all b/c I thought it was strictly a war title and wasn't up for the blood and gore. Then I realized it was more of an after the war title and it seemed like the focus would be the whole town. After reading it I feel like the book was about the whole town (and beyond) in relation to Cam, but that was okay b/c I found Cam pretty interesting. This was a book all about people and I like seeing how people tick so it worked for me. I wish I had been able to read it more together b/c then I would have enjoyed it more.