Words, Worlds, Whorls

Before anyone chalks this rating up to me being prejudiced against kids' books, I would like to preface this by saying I started this book with a really open mind. And apparently I'm not the only one who found this book tedious. The action was slow, the characters bordered on outright cliche and sexism, and it was a little more violent than I had expected. But there were several aspects that I genuinely enjoyed, too. I liked the talking animals and the imagery and the idea that this place is right over the river from where I used to live. I love the fact that this book is so distinctly Portland. Maybe if it hadn't been quite so long I would've enjoyed it more.