Review of Malino: The Orphan Road

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Bertha Jackson
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Review of Malino: The Orphan Road

Post by Bertha Jackson »

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Malino: The Orphan Road" by Joseph R. Barry.]
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3 out of 4 stars
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A blind, evil-eyed baby would bring a curse to the village, so when Malino was born, he was taken into the mountains by Grillo, a one-eyed woodcutter, to be abandoned. He stops by a brook and washes the baby, and the cold water makes the infant open his eyes. Grillo gives the baby the name Malino and tells him he has the right to live. He takes him to a nunnery that served as a boarding house for girls and orphaned boys until puberty. After reaching puberty, they sold the children to woodcutters or miners to serve as quasi-indentured labor. Grillo agrees to pay the nunnery 20 lire and a load of wood per month until he comes back to get Malino when he reaches the age of seven. What is to become of Malino? Will he be a slave? Will he survive into adulthood? Malino: The Orphan Road by Joseph R. Barry is Malino's journey in a life of discrimination, slavery, political oppression, and economic oppression.

Joseph R. Barry has done an excellent job with character development. I could visualize Malino's cat-eyes and his vast size. The political and economic oppression is vividly detailed throughout the book. The monarchism and fascism ideologies portrayed in this book are hard to fathom; it would be horrible to live under those conditions. One of the many lessons I brought away from reading this book was that sometimes in order to survive, you have to do things that you would consider dishonorable under normal conditions.

The author did not define a few Italian words, but they did not distract from my reading pleasure. This book needs to be edited by a professional editor because it is full of errors that did distract from my reading pleasure, and this was the main aspect that I disliked about this book.

Overall, the book is an exciting and enjoyable read. The plot flowed smoothly, and the author made me emotional over the events that the main character had to survive. I am giving this book 3 out of 4 stars because it is an interesting book, and the only flaw that affected my reading enjoyment was the number of errors.

I recommend this book to adult fans of historical fiction. I do not recommend the book to younger readers because of the descriptive gory mutilations in the battle scenes, the sexual content, and the non-borderline profanity. Although the sexual content is not descriptive, it does contain intercourse, bestiality, and homosexuality, which is not appropriate for younger readers. Sensitive readers may want to avoid this book for these same reasons.

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Malino: The Orphan Road
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marta baglioni
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Post by marta baglioni »

Being Italian, I am very curious about this book. Thank you for the review!
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Post by Akinbo Olusola »

Amazing! Perhaps Everyone has the right to live.
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Post by Achoti »

Sounds good, I love history related books I'm eager to read it
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Post by Ekezie1998 »

I am interested in finding out what happens to Malibu. This seems like an intriguing book.
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Post by Margi zuu202 »

Back in the 1900, the place is rural Sicily when a rejected abandoned orphan escape from slavery and a vuse,he encounter unfamiliar an expected world despite having developed Hercules size strength from years of cruelty labour.milanos journey to find a place in society is terrifying and often brutal
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Post by Kelsey Roy »

Thank you for your honest review! I love historical fiction and I think the topic is unique and captivating. However I am usually hesitant to start a book with many errors, particularly if I have to pay for it. I will definitely read the sample and give Malino a chance!
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Post by María Andrea Fernández Sepúlveda »

It is particularly sad that people who are supposedly devoted to God and to kindness would treat orphaned boys like this. I know it's true but it's sad nonetheless. I wish the author would polish the edition because adding such a grim topic to a poor edition and foreign words makes me hesitate about reading this book.
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Post by Mosele 19 »

I'lld love to see what will happen to Malibu. This is nice fictional novel. I'll definitely go for this. Nice review.
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Post by Radhika Nair »

The few pages I read are written in an intriguing tone. Malino instantly captured my interest with his dramatic encounter with Grillo in the first few pages. I'm looking forward to reading this book, despite the errors. Thank you for the review!
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Post by Penny Ann Criswell Johnson »

I'm not interested in reading this book. I'm not a fan of brutal hostility, sexual content or other things you mentioned. The grammar errors would drive me insane while reading. However, it would be a good read for others who like historical fiction. Great detailed, honest review.
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Post by Chelsy Scherba »

I’m afraid this book touches on topics that are a little too intense for me. I think the overall plot is interesting though.
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Post by Abu_Aisha1 »

"Sometimes in order to survive, you have to do things that you would consider dishonorable under normal conditions" This statement cut through me. More so, the themes of this book are so strong and compelling. I think I would try my hands on this. Great review and congrats to the author on being the #BOTD!
Last edited by Abu_Aisha1 on 26 Aug 2022, 10:22, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by Eriikeoluwa Nimi »

Although I love this review, I'll pass this book on to those interested in reading it. I'm definitely not interested in this book. Congratulations on BOTD
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Post by Pandora10 »

After reading the sample, I agree with the reviewer on how someone could do something that would be seen as dishonorable in normal circumstances. Although the plot of the story does appear to be interesting, some of the content does not appeal to me. Thanks for an excellent review on this book.
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