Review by avictoriansoul -- The Ordinary Doll
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avictoriansoul
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- Latest Review: The Ordinary Doll by Mario Kiefer
Review by avictoriansoul -- The Ordinary Doll
[Following is a volunteer review of "The Ordinary Doll" by Mario Kiefer.]
2 out of 4 stars
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Set in the 1950s, the book tells us the story of Jesus and Fabia’s daughter called Luciana, who comes from a Mexican migrant family. There were plenty of troubles and difficulties for migrants during that time and we learn more about the political affairs. Poverty, lack of resources and hard work were common to those unfortunate families. Luciana is a very relatable character, a girl full of hopes and dreams who wishes for a better life. As a young girl, she believes in the folklore, tries to be a good girl and is constantly reflecting on her thoughts and behaviours. Her life changes drastically when an unfortunate event takes place and she ends up paralysed. Can love and magic help her walk and dance again? Will she lead a life full of adventures? That is for you to find out.
What I liked most about this book was the brilliant storyline and the shocking unexpected ending. It left me speechless yet pleasantly surprised. The book explores Luciana’s story however we find out more about her family too, which I enjoyed reading about. The author writes it in a way that tries to connect with the Latin community. Throughout the book you will find that Mario Kiefer uses a lot of Spanish words or at times sentences. As much as I understand the reasons behind it, I found that most times this was unnecessary. Moreover, it became an utter annoyance to be fair. Luckily I speak a bit of Spanish and I understood the words or phrases used in Spanish. Alternatively, the translations can be found on the last page of the book which can put someone off if you read it as an e-book as they are used frequently.
One of the things that I disliked most is the way that the story has been told. The author tried to combine in one book so many different genres: from horror to fantasy to historical fiction. As much as I enjoyed finding out about the Mexican legends at points I found Luciana’s dreams to be very repetitive.
In addition, there are so many themes explored which made the storytelling far less enjoyable. Whilst reading, it became clear that Kiefer wanted to discuss too many subjects such as: history, religion, sexuality, art, traditions, domestic abuse, human psychology etc. Luciana has a disability from an early age and I rather wished the author would have given more insight on it instead which we only get towards the end of the book.
The ordinary doll can be recommended to everyone however in particular to those who love historical fiction. We get to learn the realities of so many migrant families. Nevertheless I found that the book was poorly edited with quite a few spelling mistakes. If that sort of thing bugs you whilst reading then I would say it is not for you. Even though I enjoyed the storyline very much, I have to rate The ordinary doll 2 out of 4 stars mainly because of the way it was written. The storyline itself is fascinating and I found myself easily wanting to know what happens to the characters and that doll.
To conclude, my take from the The ordinary doll by Mario Kiefer is a reminder of how much we as humans can take for granted when there are people out there who perhaps were not born as lucky as some of us were.
******
The Ordinary Doll
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
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2 out of 4 stars
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Set in the 1950s, the book tells us the story of Jesus and Fabia’s daughter called Luciana, who comes from a Mexican migrant family. There were plenty of troubles and difficulties for migrants during that time and we learn more about the political affairs. Poverty, lack of resources and hard work were common to those unfortunate families. Luciana is a very relatable character, a girl full of hopes and dreams who wishes for a better life. As a young girl, she believes in the folklore, tries to be a good girl and is constantly reflecting on her thoughts and behaviours. Her life changes drastically when an unfortunate event takes place and she ends up paralysed. Can love and magic help her walk and dance again? Will she lead a life full of adventures? That is for you to find out.
What I liked most about this book was the brilliant storyline and the shocking unexpected ending. It left me speechless yet pleasantly surprised. The book explores Luciana’s story however we find out more about her family too, which I enjoyed reading about. The author writes it in a way that tries to connect with the Latin community. Throughout the book you will find that Mario Kiefer uses a lot of Spanish words or at times sentences. As much as I understand the reasons behind it, I found that most times this was unnecessary. Moreover, it became an utter annoyance to be fair. Luckily I speak a bit of Spanish and I understood the words or phrases used in Spanish. Alternatively, the translations can be found on the last page of the book which can put someone off if you read it as an e-book as they are used frequently.
One of the things that I disliked most is the way that the story has been told. The author tried to combine in one book so many different genres: from horror to fantasy to historical fiction. As much as I enjoyed finding out about the Mexican legends at points I found Luciana’s dreams to be very repetitive.
In addition, there are so many themes explored which made the storytelling far less enjoyable. Whilst reading, it became clear that Kiefer wanted to discuss too many subjects such as: history, religion, sexuality, art, traditions, domestic abuse, human psychology etc. Luciana has a disability from an early age and I rather wished the author would have given more insight on it instead which we only get towards the end of the book.
The ordinary doll can be recommended to everyone however in particular to those who love historical fiction. We get to learn the realities of so many migrant families. Nevertheless I found that the book was poorly edited with quite a few spelling mistakes. If that sort of thing bugs you whilst reading then I would say it is not for you. Even though I enjoyed the storyline very much, I have to rate The ordinary doll 2 out of 4 stars mainly because of the way it was written. The storyline itself is fascinating and I found myself easily wanting to know what happens to the characters and that doll.
To conclude, my take from the The ordinary doll by Mario Kiefer is a reminder of how much we as humans can take for granted when there are people out there who perhaps were not born as lucky as some of us were.
******
The Ordinary Doll
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
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Latest Review: The Ordinary Doll by Mario Kiefer
