Trabajo, trabajo y más trabajo. Linus Baker podría ser una persona cualquiera, en un lugar cualquiera, viviendo una vida cualquiera. Él estaba convencido de esto, y si tú lo hubieras conocido, tampoco habrías dudado en asegurar que Linus pertenecía al montón, ni más, ni menos. Y así era, hasta el día en que este funcionario del Departamento de Jóvenes Mágicos es llamado por Altísima Dirección para supervisar un orfanato del que apenas hay registros.
Con esta nueva tarea entre manos, Linus viajará a la isla de Marsyas, donde deberá supervisar a seis huérfanos catalogados como peligrosos (hablamos del futuro Anticristo, entre otros) y a su enigmático cuidador. Ahí, deberá dejar de lado sus miedos y prejuicios, que no son pocos, para darse cuenta de que lo que realmente tiene que hacer no es aquello a lo que le han enviado. Porque en Marsyas, Linus descubrirá que el camino a …
Trabajo, trabajo y más trabajo. Linus Baker podría ser una persona cualquiera, en un lugar cualquiera, viviendo una vida cualquiera. Él estaba convencido de esto, y si tú lo hubieras conocido, tampoco habrías dudado en asegurar que Linus pertenecía al montón, ni más, ni menos. Y así era, hasta el día en que este funcionario del Departamento de Jóvenes Mágicos es llamado por Altísima Dirección para supervisar un orfanato del que apenas hay registros.
Con esta nueva tarea entre manos, Linus viajará a la isla de Marsyas, donde deberá supervisar a seis huérfanos catalogados como peligrosos (hablamos del futuro Anticristo, entre otros) y a su enigmático cuidador. Ahí, deberá dejar de lado sus miedos y prejuicios, que no son pocos, para darse cuenta de que lo que realmente tiene que hacer no es aquello a lo que le han enviado. Porque en Marsyas, Linus descubrirá que el camino a la felicidad es distinto para cada uno de nosotros, y, que si te atreves a recorrerlo, llegarás al lugar donde te encontrarás a ti mismo.
Review of 'The House in the Cerulean Sea' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Just lovely.
Highly recommend the audiobook - the narrator did a wide range of voices to accommodate all of the characters and it really helped bring them to life for me.
And now I'd like to go to a small island in the cerulean sea, please.
Just lovely.
Highly recommend the audiobook - the narrator did a wide range of voices to accommodate all of the characters and it really helped bring them to life for me.
And now I'd like to go to a small island in the cerulean sea, please.
Review of 'The House in the Cerulean Sea' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
"It's like being wrapped up in a big gay blanket.' it says on the cover of my copy and I couldn't agree more. This is such a wonderful read. I've been on an emotional rollercoaster this past 400 pages!
"It's like being wrapped up in a big gay blanket.' it says on the cover of my copy and I couldn't agree more. This is such a wonderful read. I've been on an emotional rollercoaster this past 400 pages!
Review of 'La casa sul mare celeste' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
Puoi trovare questa recensione anche sul mio blog, La siepe di more
So che la stragrande maggioranza dei pareri su questo romanzo verte sul fatto che sia molto tenero e dolce – e avendo già letto altro di Klune non ne sono sorpresa – ma l’aspetto che mi ha colpito di più è il fatto che La casa sul mare celeste mi è sembrato una critica al queerbaiting di J.K. Rowling e al modello piuttosto conservatore di famiglia che emerge dalla saga di Harry Potter. E se siete tra coloro che non nutrono simpatia per il comportamento di Silente nei confronti di Harry Potter, correte a procurarvi questo libro.
Klune non ha mai fatto mistero di ritenere che, se vuoi scrivere un personaggio gay, allora rendilo esplicitamente tale all’interno della storia, non uscirtene anni dopo la fine della saga con un Ah, comunque io Silente l’ho pensato gay. …
Puoi trovare questa recensione anche sul mio blog, La siepe di more
So che la stragrande maggioranza dei pareri su questo romanzo verte sul fatto che sia molto tenero e dolce – e avendo già letto altro di Klune non ne sono sorpresa – ma l’aspetto che mi ha colpito di più è il fatto che La casa sul mare celeste mi è sembrato una critica al queerbaiting di J.K. Rowling e al modello piuttosto conservatore di famiglia che emerge dalla saga di Harry Potter. E se siete tra coloro che non nutrono simpatia per il comportamento di Silente nei confronti di Harry Potter, correte a procurarvi questo libro.
Klune non ha mai fatto mistero di ritenere che, se vuoi scrivere un personaggio gay, allora rendilo esplicitamente tale all’interno della storia, non uscirtene anni dopo la fine della saga con un Ah, comunque io Silente l’ho pensato gay. È vero che fino a tempi molto recenti scrivere un libro per ragazzз con un personaggio apertamente gay sarebbe stato impensabile – e quindi nessuna CE avrebbe approvato una scelta simile da parte di un’autrice sconosciuta – ma è anche vero che il potere contrattuale di Rowling nel tempo è cresciuto abbastanza da portarmi a pensare che avrebbe potuto fare qualcosa se la questione le fosse davvero stata a cuore (I doni della morte è del 2007, proprio il periodo in cui le cose inziavano a cambiare in questo senso).
Ho appprezzato molto che per fare questo Klune non abbia scritto una specie di anti-Harry Potter, ma una storia originale con alcuni riferimenti alla saga di Rowling (dettagli che potremmo chiamare fan service, se si trattasse di omaggi): uno in particolare mi è sembrato così sfacciato che sono portata a chiedermi se non sono io ad avere le traveggole, visto che mi sento molto sola in questa mia interpretazione.
Per quanto riguarda il difetto più grande de La casa sul mare celeste, che moltз hanno identificato con un eccesso di zuccherosità, secondo me, sta nel fatto che Klune lo ha scritto in un tempo ridicolmente breve – se non ricordo male, appena tre mesi – e, se se la fosse presa con più calma, magari si sarebbe reso conto che il suo coinvolgimento per le tematiche che affronta ha preso il sopravvento sul suo talento di scrittore e molti dei discorsi appassionati dei personaggi risultano grezzi e piuttosto ingenui anche per una storia di questo tipo. Un gran peccato, per me che l’ho trovato un romanzo così interessante.
Review of 'The House in the Cerulean Sea' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
5/5
What a wonderful story that had me fall in love right from the start. Set in a magical world where anything is possible and so misunderstood, it was a beautiful story about accepting others despite their differences. Yes it was very obvious in its message but it certainly did not detract from the beauty of it all. I just love all the children and Linus and Arthur, and despite me not being one for romances in general I couldn’t help but really root for them. Absolutely lovely book! (Also my favorite character was definitely Talia and her little shovel.)
Review of 'The House in the Cerulean Sea' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
First quarter so slow I nearly quit. Half way, annoyed at belabouring a point. 3/4 interested but still this is not a subtle book and repeats itself too much. The ending ohhh that ending so sweet and nice it nearly made up for everything else.
Review of 'The House in the Cerulean Sea' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Heartwarming and heartfelt- fell in love with (nearly) each and every character. Highly recommend the audiobook, it's read beautifully by Daniel Henning.
Heartwarming and heartfelt- fell in love with (nearly) each and every character. Highly recommend the audiobook, it's read beautifully by Daniel Henning.
Review of 'The House in the Cerulean Sea' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Sooo charming, I wasn't sure I'd like this book but ended up finishing it in a couple days, it was a ray of sunshine. What an adorable cast of characters.
Sooo charming, I wasn't sure I'd like this book but ended up finishing it in a couple days, it was a ray of sunshine. What an adorable cast of characters.
Review of 'House in the Cerulean Sea' on 'Storygraph'
4 stars
I wanted to like this more than I did. The characters and world building were fantastic, but I was sometimes distracted by the message being told by the story, which pulled me out. And I resent that. Still...I totally ship Arthur and Linus.
I wanted to like this more than I did. The characters and world building were fantastic, but I was sometimes distracted by the message being told by the story, which pulled me out. And I resent that. Still...I totally ship Arthur and Linus.
Review of 'The House in the Cerulean Sea' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Best book I've read in a while. Broke my heart to pieces and put it back together again. So very beautiful, so achingly true. Every moment is so vivid, seared into my brain. I can't wait until I reread it, and next time I'll be marking my favorite passages and maybe making some art based on them, because - god I need more of this world and these characters in my life.
Best book I've read in a while. Broke my heart to pieces and put it back together again. So very beautiful, so achingly true. Every moment is so vivid, seared into my brain. I can't wait until I reread it, and next time I'll be marking my favorite passages and maybe making some art based on them, because - god I need more of this world and these characters in my life.
Review of 'The House in the Cerulean Sea' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
It is the sign of a talented and creative author when they can take the subject of child abuse, the other and prejudice and wraps it in a charming, positive and heart-warming package. In a nutshell, that's what The House in the Cerulean Sea is and it not only does it do it successfully, but with flying colours!
At the highest level, it is the story of a downtrodden government worker that excels at being objective being sent to spy and judge a group of magical children and their caretaker in the country. From the beginning it gives similar vibes as to the Series of Unfortunate Events series. It has a charm and a wit that contradicts scenes and themes that are generally negative and fairly serious.
The story follows the worker as he goes through a journey of self discovery, realising that the strict guidelines he has adhered to …
It is the sign of a talented and creative author when they can take the subject of child abuse, the other and prejudice and wraps it in a charming, positive and heart-warming package. In a nutshell, that's what The House in the Cerulean Sea is and it not only does it do it successfully, but with flying colours!
At the highest level, it is the story of a downtrodden government worker that excels at being objective being sent to spy and judge a group of magical children and their caretaker in the country. From the beginning it gives similar vibes as to the Series of Unfortunate Events series. It has a charm and a wit that contradicts scenes and themes that are generally negative and fairly serious.
The story follows the worker as he goes through a journey of self discovery, realising that the strict guidelines he has adhered to have limited him and he begins to grow while learning about the children, their special abilities and their caretaker. It shows how prejudice can grow, how on an individual and societal level we can get locked into bubbles of assumptions and preconceived notions.
The story never loses its positive charm throughout even when handling delicate and disturbing situations, it works to bring it all together in a way that makes you resonate and sympathize with each of the characters in the book.
From beginning to end I enjoyed it, it is wistful and creates a world that is vague in details but filled to the brim with questions and relevance. The relentless positivity that is baked into the core concepts of the story never falter and every page reveals something new and thought provoking!
Review of 'The House in the Cerulean Sea' on 'Storygraph'
1 star
I originally gave this a 4.5 but I updated it to a 1 upon learning that this was based on (or at least partially inspired by) the Sixties Scoop, an decades-spanning event in which thousands of Indigenous children in Canada were forcibly removed from their homes and adopted elsewhere. That real-world context makes the "these orphans have powers" marginalization plot into a fantasy version of a real-world genocide. I'd waffled on whether to even bring up implications about race in the original review since the book seemed like it was trying to be about queerness rather than ethnicity, but it's horrible that it is actually about a major series of events in a racially/ethnically motivated genocide that hasn't really stopped in the present day. It also perpetuates a long-standing and racist tradition of depicting Indigenous people as magical or otherworldly, in this case many of the kids are literally inhuman. …
I originally gave this a 4.5 but I updated it to a 1 upon learning that this was based on (or at least partially inspired by) the Sixties Scoop, an decades-spanning event in which thousands of Indigenous children in Canada were forcibly removed from their homes and adopted elsewhere. That real-world context makes the "these orphans have powers" marginalization plot into a fantasy version of a real-world genocide. I'd waffled on whether to even bring up implications about race in the original review since the book seemed like it was trying to be about queerness rather than ethnicity, but it's horrible that it is actually about a major series of events in a racially/ethnically motivated genocide that hasn't really stopped in the present day. It also perpetuates a long-standing and racist tradition of depicting Indigenous people as magical or otherworldly, in this case many of the kids are literally inhuman. My original review is left intact below.
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The House in the Cerulean Sea is lovely and perfect and amazing; a fantastic found-family story about how things can be okay even when people are terrible and awful people don’t like the idea of marginalized people being happy.
The marginalization in question is specifically that of being a magical creature of some kind. It's set at an orphanage and deals with the evils and prejudices in the kind of system which creates orphanages for magical children but never tries to get them adopted, which may be triggering for some readers. The traumas are mostly handled as backstory, and most of them aren't fully described but rather hinted at, but there are depictions of characters being triggered by events in the present. This book has so much care and was really cathartic to read.
Woven throughout the story is an awareness of other kinds of marginalization and identities which are discriminated against, in a way that subtly nudges to say that these particular kids have lost their homes for turning into a small dog or being the literal son of Satan, but the way that this happens and the hate that their existence engenders due to bigotry and ignorance is coded as an analogue for queerphobia, specifically. It depicts internalized fatphobia/body shaming, as well as homophobic micoraggressions (the kind which pretend to be nice but still hurt).
The characters are excellent, I love everyone on the island and I'm so happy without how this book handles their stories and gives them space to be happy even though things aren't perfect. The setting is lovely, the contrast between the island and the city is cartoonishly stark because it conveys how it feels to the MC to be in each of those places. The people at the agency are well-written and terribly bureaucratic, the secondary characters at each location fit their spaces well while also informing the setting.
It's about learning how to relax, to enjoy things and have fun, to be okay and be yourself, but without pretending that bad things don't happen.
