Review of We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies
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Aubrey Farnsworth
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- Latest Review: We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies by Matthew Tysz
Review of We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies
[Following is a volunteer review of "We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies" by Matthew Tysz.]
What an utterly delightful read! If I was an English professor, I would make this a required reading, but since I'm not, I will just be recommending it to friends and family. Even those who don't consider themselves fans of fantasy will be intrigued. Each chapter could be a stand-alone story, but eventually, they end up weaving together a most beautiful tapestry of a grander story as each character finds their individual journey being part of a much larger picture, even bigger than the country of Voulhire or the world as they knew it.
It's not unique for fantasy books to change perspective chapter by chapter, but the way this format is executed in We are Voulhire is refreshing! A common complaint about the fantasy genre, especially among those who don't care for fantasy, is that the paracosms can be too vast and too complex. Fear not! The world of Voulhire is laid out in easy-to-digest anecdotes, led by incredibly likable characters, in ways that don't feel like info dumps -- nor do the gentle lore reminders feel repetitive. It may seem like there is no overarching narrative at first, like a war refugee from far away learning a new trade in one chapter and a king celebrating a national holiday in the next, eventually, the pieces start to fall into place. The connections start out small, such as the town one chapter took place in being mentioned in another, but with each chapter the story slowly zooms out to finally reveal an epic tale. In this way, the book is a wonderful illustration of how everyone matters, even the smallest individual impacts the biggest issues.
Even if you read this book from an analytical viewpoint to break down writing or storytelling methods, one can't help but get engrossed in the story itself. The writing feels more like you're listening and watching instead of reading and visualizing. This style creates a flow so you'll be sailing through the chapters before you know it! It's not just the writing style itself, but as mentioned before, these characters are some of the most real characters I've ever read in any fiction or non-fiction. They aren't just stock figures with characteristics pulled from the shelves to make a person. I couldn't help but hope for the best for everyone, as their hopes and wishes felt very real and heartfelt.
I initially wanted to give this book a 4/5 rating instead of 5/5. I don't get jazzed about fantasy, but this book did get me downright giddy! However, it remains to be seen if this book will have a lasting effect. It's simply too soon to tell! I may keep it at 4/5 or in a few weeks I might change it to a full 5/5. This book did have so much heart in it, that it felt more like what literature aspires to be than what I'm used to getting from fantasy, which to me always falls short and simply tries to have heart. Some of the simplest parts of this book had the largest impact on me. I can easily see this book sliding into a 5/5 and staying there, so that's the score I'm giving it. Through those simple moments, this book truly embodied one of its lines, "Keep your head low but your eyes ahead. Keep your mind on earth, but your heart among the stars."
The one disclaimer I would put on this book is that I wouldn't recommend it to children unless you have a very open parenting style. I think teenagers and up would be pretty safe but read it first before you decide if it's suitable for your kids. After all, I'm sure you'll find yourself becoming a part of Voulhire after just a couple chapters.
******
We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
What an utterly delightful read! If I was an English professor, I would make this a required reading, but since I'm not, I will just be recommending it to friends and family. Even those who don't consider themselves fans of fantasy will be intrigued. Each chapter could be a stand-alone story, but eventually, they end up weaving together a most beautiful tapestry of a grander story as each character finds their individual journey being part of a much larger picture, even bigger than the country of Voulhire or the world as they knew it.
It's not unique for fantasy books to change perspective chapter by chapter, but the way this format is executed in We are Voulhire is refreshing! A common complaint about the fantasy genre, especially among those who don't care for fantasy, is that the paracosms can be too vast and too complex. Fear not! The world of Voulhire is laid out in easy-to-digest anecdotes, led by incredibly likable characters, in ways that don't feel like info dumps -- nor do the gentle lore reminders feel repetitive. It may seem like there is no overarching narrative at first, like a war refugee from far away learning a new trade in one chapter and a king celebrating a national holiday in the next, eventually, the pieces start to fall into place. The connections start out small, such as the town one chapter took place in being mentioned in another, but with each chapter the story slowly zooms out to finally reveal an epic tale. In this way, the book is a wonderful illustration of how everyone matters, even the smallest individual impacts the biggest issues.
Even if you read this book from an analytical viewpoint to break down writing or storytelling methods, one can't help but get engrossed in the story itself. The writing feels more like you're listening and watching instead of reading and visualizing. This style creates a flow so you'll be sailing through the chapters before you know it! It's not just the writing style itself, but as mentioned before, these characters are some of the most real characters I've ever read in any fiction or non-fiction. They aren't just stock figures with characteristics pulled from the shelves to make a person. I couldn't help but hope for the best for everyone, as their hopes and wishes felt very real and heartfelt.
I initially wanted to give this book a 4/5 rating instead of 5/5. I don't get jazzed about fantasy, but this book did get me downright giddy! However, it remains to be seen if this book will have a lasting effect. It's simply too soon to tell! I may keep it at 4/5 or in a few weeks I might change it to a full 5/5. This book did have so much heart in it, that it felt more like what literature aspires to be than what I'm used to getting from fantasy, which to me always falls short and simply tries to have heart. Some of the simplest parts of this book had the largest impact on me. I can easily see this book sliding into a 5/5 and staying there, so that's the score I'm giving it. Through those simple moments, this book truly embodied one of its lines, "Keep your head low but your eyes ahead. Keep your mind on earth, but your heart among the stars."
The one disclaimer I would put on this book is that I wouldn't recommend it to children unless you have a very open parenting style. I think teenagers and up would be pretty safe but read it first before you decide if it's suitable for your kids. After all, I'm sure you'll find yourself becoming a part of Voulhire after just a couple chapters.
******
We are Voulhire: A New Arrival under Great Skies
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
