Spindlefish and Stars

by Christiane M. Andrews

In which a story is spun.
And unspun.

Clothilde has lived her whole life in the shadows with her (sometimes) thieving and (always) ailing father. But when he fails to meet her one morning, sending her instead a mysterious ticket of half-paffage, Clo finds herself journeying across the sea to reunite with him. The ticket, however, leaves her on a sunless island inhabited only by creaking fishermen, a rumpled old woman, a piggish cat, and a moon-cheeked boy named Cary.

Clo is quickly locked away and made to spend her days in unnerving chores with the island's extraordinary fish, while the old woman sits nearby weaving an endless gray tapestry. Frustrated and aching with the loss of her father, Clo must unravel the mysteries of the island and all that's hidden in the vast tapestry's threads -- secrets both exquisite and terrible. And she must decide how much of herself to give up in order to save those she thought she'd lost forever.

Inspired by Greek mythology.

Genres: Fantasy, Middle Grade, Mythology, Fiction, Juvenile, Retellings, Childrens

390 pages, Hardcover

First published September 22, 2020

About the author

Christiane Andrews grew up in rural New Hampshire, Vermont, and Maine, on the edges of mountains and woods and fields and sometimes even the sea. A writing and literature instructor, she lives with her husband and son and a small clutch of animals on an old New Hampshire hilltop farm. Spindlefish and Stars is her first novel.

Reviews

[Athena (OneReadingNurse) · Rating 4 out of 5]

So this is a cool book for middle graders, and I enjoyed it despite some slightly convoluted story threads and leaps of imagination

A girl who spins fish into the old woman's (I guess a fate, or the fate's) tapestry, in a half world between Earth and the underworld. Icarus is there, for centuries after he fell into the sea

There is a different language that when read, it's obvious, but when spoken I would imagine it sounded like total mumbo jumbo 😂

Themes, sometimes dark, of parental sacrifice, loss, fate, and a piggish cat that creates mischief in the world. It's name is Mischief and I was there for him!

But.... I don't know how well some of the targeted age range will grasp all the story threads when it starts pulling together. Content is clean though, no language or romance or anything untoward. Love friendship and fate. I could recommend it for a strong MG reader or YA!

[Spencer Orey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Slow and mysterious, and very slow to get started. My kid couldn’t always follow it, but thought some of the tricks were fun. I think we’ll try it again later and see if it goes over better.

[Tasha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Clo has grown up on the road with her father. They move from village to village, taking small things every time but also repairing and fixing paintings too. When her father doesn’t return one morning, Clo puts their regular leaving plan in action, waiting for him in the woods. But her father doesn’t come, instead sending a boy with a strange ticket and a garbled written message to head to the harbor. There Clo finds she has a half passage aboard a strange ship. They take her to a strange gray island where there are no seasons, no day or night. Clo must wait there for her father to join her. She makes one friend, Cary, on the island where she can’t understand what anyone else is saying except for him. Her grandmother has taken her in, trying to force her to eat a strangely cold and fishy stew that Clo refuses to even try. Her grandmother wants Clo to work, but Clo is busy trying to watch for her father and to figure out the mysteries of the island itself. Clo steadily figures out the mysteries of the island, but it may not be enough to save herself and her father.

Based on Greek mythology, this children’s novel is a marvel of a book. It steadily reveals itself, a puzzle started by an ink-blotched note, a strange transport via ship, and then an even more odd island. One knows there is more going on, but the book holds it back, revealing it to the reader just before Clo herself begins to figure things out. The ties to mythology are dazzling, offering the Fates and Icarus as major characters, though not obvious at first. The pacing here is just right, never losing itself in the grayness of the island nor moving too quickly to resolution.

Clo is a great heroine, braver than many would be in her situation. She is opinionated and stubborn, two qualities that serve her well as she figures out the mysteries of the island and does not bow down to the pressure to conform. Her connection with others serves as a beacon for her to find a way forward, even as it threatens her own existence.

Tantalizing, puzzling and very satisfying, this Greek myth fantasy dazzles. Appropriate for ages 9-12.

[Molly Cluff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Huh--I'm super perplexed on how to rate this one. The writing was really lush and immersive, and Clo was interesting as the main character. The plot was incredibly literary, incorporating in Icarus and the greek Fates, etc, with lots of deep themes of sorrow being necessary to find joy, etc--and a bunch more symbolism I'm sure I could unpack if I took the time to sit with it. This book felt like something I would discuss in a college English class and not something read purely for entertainment value, so it will take a very specific kind of child reader to appreciate it. Definitely reads like something that's award-worthy, though!

[Lindsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lyrical, engrossing, I could taste the salt air and see the gray island as I went on this adventure with Clo and Cary.

A wonderful reimagining of Greek mythology selections ( I won't be specific as it was a delight as things started to become familiar) for middle grade readers. Even as an adult I found my mind wandering with thoughts of "what if" and what path to take.

The story and characters were wonderful, but the writing also impressed and kept me engaged. Beautiful.

[Kurt · Rating 5 out of 5]

SPINDLEFISH AND STARS is one of those rare and wonderful middle grade novels that both fully embraces the beauty of language, and also doesn't underestimate the intelligence of young readers. Lyrical and gorgeous.

[Rebecca Raeske-Grinch · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charlotte's favorite character? The cat. She also liked identifying the different parts of myths woven (see what she did there?) into the story.

[Lydia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a fun and adventurous book and I loved every bit of it!

[Sylvia H. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spindlefish and Stars is a middle grade fantasy unlike any I have read in a long while; it reminds me of books I fell in love with as a child. It has a rich and layered style and a story architecture, filled with echoes, that reward careful reading. The book gives as much attention to language as it does plot and character. It’s both accessible to a child’s reading level and cadence and yet is peppered here and there with vivid, sometimes archaic, words. And there is a visual, almost cinematic richness to the description of the equal parts bleak and gorgeous setting. The prose itself is like the tapestry that features so prominently in the plot.


On a basic level, this is a fantasy about a resilient girl, Clo, who loses her way and in finding it again gains a deeper wisdom about the world, about daughters and fathers, and about the bonds of family and friendship. Clo’s companion, Cary, makes for a delightfully sensitive partner. On a higher level, it is about the nature of fate, sacrifice, and even art, woven (hint!) into the plot. I think this book will serve well readers in upper elementary and middle school classrooms looking for a bigger literary challenge. I have some students in mind already for this! I also thoroughly enjoyed it as an adult read; it has a mythic quality to it which puts it within reach of any age.

[Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was tough to rate. The writing was beautiful. I’m not usually a good enough reader to notice these things but it made it possible to keep reading. I have never liked the Greek Mythology idea of fate and someone is just weaving our lives and we don’t have a choice. I don’t like the idea of detached gods who don’t have an emotional interest in their people. I really felt abandoned for most of the book.

However, the descriptions were beautiful without being florid. The story was told with just enough detail without being overly drawn out or too brief.

[Kerensa · Rating 4 out of 5]

A whimsical, bittersweet, dark, but ultimately hopeful middle grade fantasy about a girl seeking answers when her father, who has never abandoned her before, disappears.

I really enjoyed this book. There were one or two things I found a bit gimmicky, (mainly, reading the backwards dialogue sometimes distracted me from the story) but overall I thought Clo's journey was really well done. The atmosphere on the island she travels to reminded me of Piranesi, interestingly enough - it is somewhere that seems like a place, but exists outside of and perhaps between places.It's not exactly the same, but if you liked Piranesi and enjoy middle grade books, this one could be fun to try.

I also enjoyed the mythological connections. I happened to see in another review that Icarus would be a character, which allowed me to guess that reveal, but I still enjoyed the reveal itself. It goes to show that sometimes a good reveal isn't just about being surprised! I quickly became attached to both Clo and Cary. I enjoyed their friendship and I thought it was well-written. Finding out more about Clo's father was also very interesting.

I think if you're a fan of the movies Spirited Away or Coraline, you would also enjoy this book.

And as a final note, the cover and the chapter pages were really pretty!

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very beautifully written book that I regret to say I did not enjoy reading very much. Not enough interesting characters, not enough plot. I think slice of life, low stakes books can be really good but the slices of life need to have some appeal to them! If there’s no plot in sight but also the slices of life are about how boring it is to be stuck on the worst island in the world doing chores all the time … I really had to force myself to push through this. I liked Icarus but I wish he and the protagonist had done more things together so we could see and appreciate their friendship in motion. I LOVED the scene where he was sneaking her around by covering her with fishnets and carrying the bundle different places, but I expected there to be more moments like that and not that be the entire scope of their friendship until they decided to go out to the world together. Everything that I liked about this book was done better in The Book of Boy; I wish I’d just read that again instead.

[Alyson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I felt like I conquered something in finishing this book. It was very complicated and hard to tell what was happening but slowly (very slowly) the pieces all started to come together. Figuring out the language spoken on the island was my first obstacle, then finding out why Clo is suppose to spin, how Cary came to the island, what happened to Clo's parents and why a cat/pig like animal named Mischief is important were all part of the mystery. It showed the purpose of life and tried to answer the question if life is worth the joy and pain or if immortality is better.

2021 Popsugar reading challenge #36 A book that has fewer than 1,000 reviews on Amazon or Goodreads.

[James Biser · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the story of Clothilde. She is unaware of her history and genealogy, but when she is sent on a journey by her father, she finds a new destiny for herself. She learns to weave. What she weaves is the lives of people that she can see in the cloth. She is fate.

[Lizzy · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5

[claresgotbooksagain · Rating 3 out of 5]

It really started to drag towards the end but I liked it.

[Detective M · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was incredible I loved the message about how you have to have dark for there to be light. Truly genius especially the language which I didn’t get till the author revealed it!!!! Makes me want to go back and read the whole thing. Definitely go read!

[Amanda B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Fishwool”’s a fun word.
A bit less fun: mischief wrought
In life’s tapestry.

[Welzen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Terminado. Esta novela es bastante peculiar, se define como novela juvenil pero por el estilo de Andrews y la historia no creo que sean aptos para un público muy juvenil porque seguramente no podrán entender que es lo que ocurre, si es que logran superar el primer capítulo.
Si tuviera que definir este libro me basará en Circe, porque ambos tienen un estilo muy florido -las clases de escritura creativa son muy útiles- y se basan en una adaptación muy libre de la mitología griega. Y ambas tienen una historia que se basa en la sencillez absoluta. Aquí si lees la sinopsis y luego le añades lo que desea la protagonista y un final feliz para todos, ya tienes todo el libro resumido. A veces esto es bueno pero a veces no lo es. Depende de lector. Personalmente me gustan las novelas de fantasía, y más si son juveniles, con un algo grado de emoción, que simplemente tengan algo que me haga parar la respiración : porque el protagonista está en peligro, porque se desarrollan sentimientos profundos..., no sé tiene que pasar algo. Y aquí no pasa nada. Salvo que todo es muy gris, como el libro.
Si fuera por la historia le pondría dos estrellas, y porque me gusta mucho la mitología griega. Por la forma de escribir de Andrews le añado una estrella más, porque se ve que la mujer se ha esforzado en crear algo que sea bonito de leer. Pero no es un libro que recomendaría salvo si te ha gustado la mencionada Circe, que personalmente dejé a medias porque me pareció un aburrimiento total.

[Tandava Graham · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m putting this in my “weird-3s” category because I have a pretty split mind about it. Much of the book, especially the first half, is somewhat vague and rather tedious. The backwards talking is annoying to read, raises all kinds of logistical questions, and doesn’t seem actually important to the plot or anything. (Luckily, this goes away after a bit.) It’s also hard to have a gripping story when the main character spends most of her time stuck in a place that is explicitly apart from the dualities of the world that make for good stories. On the plus side, though, there are some absolutely lovely images—I particularly liked exploring the tapestry of fate and seeing how great artists have their own effects on it. And seeing Clo and her father rediscover each other, not knowing who they are, practically brought me to tears. It’s an interesting and unique book, and I appreciate what the author was trying to do, even if it doesn’t come out in the most ideally readable way. I may still want to get a copy for the middle school library.

[Peter · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't expect this to be so disappointing.

So many problems, so many missed opportunities. Only reason I didn't give one star is because the prose is quite decent-but that becomes it's own problem too.

1. Instead of a sharply realized world, we are given a vague and unsatisfying surrealism, confused and incoherent. I can't say more without spoiling, but basically, very little of the world makes any sense. I never felt that understood where I was. More importantly, the book never sold me on it's premise, which is tied into setting in an important but unexplained way.

2. The characters never come into their own. The heroine, Clo, is particularly boring and uninspired. She makes one big decision at the end of the book and I really didn't care.

3. The prose seems out of place for a middle grade book. It's often great, perhaps even too advanced and fragmentary for it's audience. Basically, I just can't imagine an elementary school student picking this up and enjoying it.

I can't recommend this to anyone. It felt amateur and unfinished.

[Emily Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

I tell you when I picked this book up years ago, I never even thought it might be a Greek myth retelling. Well, Greek inspired. I can never escape Greek retellings. They sneak into my books thieves in the night. But regardless, this book was still stellar. The visual description was done expertly, puts you right into that dreary, stagnant, yet still magical world. I enjoyed the two main characters and their personal growth (plus their tragic backstories!). My only real qualms would be the lack of information we receive in the narrative. Our MC makes plans and choice without telling us. Understandable, as the authors wants to leaves us begging to know. But my issue is we are reading from the POV of our MC, or even from an omnipotent POV, meaning we should really know exactly what she is thinking. It really isn't a big deal compared to the whole.

I suggest giving this a go if you enjoy darker fantasy, western European fantasy, sea/ocean vibes, Greek myth, and unique takes on the afterlife/purgatory. Probably best for kids 11+.

[Cathie (ClassyLibrarian) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Clo, the main character in this book was so frustrating. She takes off in search of her father with a message that has been given to her and of course it is smudged. She is told to go the sea, and it sounds as if she has never even heard of the sea? Once she arrives at the ocean, seeing it for the first time, there is little to no reaction. She basically is numb through most of the book. Is this because she can't find her dad? Is it because she has no personality? I just could not get emotional invested in her character. She just kind of goes along and the story is told around her rather than through her.

I am sure someone else will enjoy this one, just not my cup of tea.

[Dr. T Loves Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

What it's about: Clothilda and her father have always lived on the edges of society, both literally and metaphorically. This is by design, as Clo's father works as an itinerant cleaner of art for the wealthy family in a village, where he manages to steal small items to help Clo and himself survive. Eventually, he always ends up stealing something valuable that they can sell, which requires them to be ready to leave a village at a moment's notice.

Clo has gotten used to this life, and implements the pre-planned flight to the edge of the forest when her father doesn't appear home at his usual time. But as she waits, she realizes that this time, her father may not be coming.

When a young swineherd arrives with a package for Clo, her worst fears are confirmed. But her father has sent her a package and a message with instructions to go on ahead, with assurances he will meet up with her later.

Clo has never travelled without her father before. And she has never been to the sea, where her father has sent her to take a journey to a new land.

But the journey is strange, and the new land even stranger. And worst of all, Clo finds herself unable to return to try to track down her father.

With the help of a strange boy she calls Cary, Clo hopes to find a way to leave the island on which she finds herself trapped. But nothing is quite what it seems, and as Clo learns more about where she is, she also learns more about her past - knowledge that makes her question her future.

What I thought: I picked this book up as a recommendation. I found it to have a very confusing & rather slow start. It didn't follow the storytelling patterns I expected - that can be a good thing, but in this case, it just added to what was already a somewhat disjointed-feeling story.

I suppose it does a good job of capturing the feelings of confusion and displacement Clo feels as she tries to navigate a very strange world on her own, something she's never had to do before.

One particular element of description is used repeatedly that felt rather babyish - a triple repetition of onomatopoeia. The words changed, but the triplet repetition didn't work for me, especially when it was repeated multiple times within a single page.

And the repetition didn't stop there. The middle of the story, particularly, felt extremely slow and repetitious. I feel like this book could be about half as long.

From the beginning, the name "Clothilda" sort of rang a bell, but I couldn't quite pull it up. Later, when the story becomes a version of the myth of the Fates, it made sense. That I rather liked - the unusual take on the story of the Fates.

I also liked the reveal of who Cary is, and how he came to be in the weird, gray place.

Why my chosen shelves: Clo has to deal with lots of challenges as she travels, and as she tries to get back to her father. Clo's father is dying, and some other deaths get mentioned, one with a bit of detail. The story is set in medieval times. Clo manages to make a friend during her time in the gray place. The story very sneakily works in some mythology and magic and references to the supernatural world.

Why I rated it like I did: The story did end up including some nice messages - we all get to choose how we react to what comes our way; dark times give us the chance to react with kindness; there can't be joy without sadness. But the book is LONG and definitely felt like it dragged in the middle, with scenes that seemed endlessly repetitious to me.

[S Long · Rating 2 out of 5]

I sometimes feel like middle grade books fall into two categories: those that are meant for kids to read and love, and those that are meant for adults to read and write up reviews about how smart this MG book is.
Spindlefish and Stars felt like the second one.
Obviously, Andrews wrote this book for kids, not adults, and wants kids to enjoy reading it. But the way it is written, I feel this book appeals to a very niche, advanced middle-grade reader - or an adult.
First, the prose. It is beautiful and very intricate writing that reminds me of a classic children's book. But at the same time, most middle grade readers are not picking up classics as their go-to story. The intricate writing and somewhat-detached narrator feels less accessible than the simple (but not simplistic), direct and in-the-head style of most MG books coming out now.
Second, the pacing. The story is slow. I'm fine with a slower-paced story, but there needs to be something interesting happening. Slow-burn romances or a dark terror slowly closing in are not terribly fast-paced, but they create tension. There was no tension throughout most of this story, no deadline for something to be done, nothing urgent. If the main character wanted to do nothing, it wouldn't have mattered.
Third, the plot. I love high-flying, action-filled fantasy, but many stories work just fine without a lot of action. But, coming back to pacing, something interesting has to be happening. And doing chores with weird, dead fish is just...boring. I'm not interested in watching a character be forced to do chores - and not even cool ones (like looking after a magical beast) or ones that have a sense of danger. Just shearing and spinning fish. Eventually, Clothilde the MC discovers a tapestry, which I don't blame her for having an interest in, it's the most interesting thing on this grey island she's stuck on. But in an age of such great MG fantasy, I find it hard to think most kids will choose a book about fish chores and a tapestry over some of the other books we've been seeing.
And finally, the themes. Spindlefish and Stars talks about the power of art, about living life, about sacrifice, and about how grief is needed for joy. While those are themes kids certainly can digest, I don't think they're a great selling point for a MG book. It's these themes that make me feel its audience is more adult despite being an MG book - because if I were a kid and saw these themes as the selling point beside books like the Marvellers (global magic school), Amari (finding missing brother in supernatural school) or the Rick Riordan Presents books, I wouldn't be picking it up.
That being said, Spindlefish and Stars does have great writing, themes that are worth talking about, some interesting ties to Greek myths and an ending that made me smile, and I'm sure there are MG readers in that niche area that will enjoy it. I just feel the readers who might enjoy it the most are not the same as its intended audience.

[Liaken · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the opening part of the book. The opening characterization and setting were solid and intriguing.

But, spoilers ahead (lots of them), as the main character gets on a boat with her half passage, the book seems to lose its footing. Chapter after chapter of very little action and mostly the protagonist being acted upon, rather than taking any action herself, made for a frustrating read. It was hard to feel like the main character had any kind of solid personality.

When she reaches the island, there is again a lot of waiting and slowness to the point that the book in some ways seems more of a meditation on lack of meaning and abandonment, purposelessness and uncertainty.

The reverse language element was interesting, but it also went on for too long in a way that was frustrating. Watching the main character not figure out how to communicate with those around her while she was also simultaneously pushing away anyone who was trying to help her, especially the one character who was making a great effort to communicate with her in a way that she could understand, tried my patience as a reader. Sometimes I felt like I understood the motivations of the main character, but a lot of the time, I also felt frustrated with her, like the story had painted her into a corner without giving her enough personality to really do anything.

Once the main character sees the tapestry things start moving faster. And once she finds out who the boy is, I finally felt my interest pick up quite a bit. This is quite the spoiler, but the boy is Icarus who fell from the sky.

There is a lot of discussion of fate and death and so forth, that brought up a tremendous amount of existential issues in ways that were never satisfyingly explored. The story felt like it was trying to have its cake and eat it, too, in a way that made me feel cheated as a reader for having stayed with the very, very slow progression of the story.

Once the main character decides what she is going to do to take her life back and decide her own purpose, the story got heavy-handed and almost preachy about the nature of joy. Ultimately, I found the ending of the book simplistic and unsatisfying.

The writing has a lot of sensory lushness that was often beautiful in a way that doesn't usually happen in books written for younger readers. It sometimes felt like poetry.

Overall, I think I'll probably think about this book and the way that it used different pieces of mythology, even if I will not go back and reread the book.

I really miss the character from the opening pages. She was poised for something, for some adventure, for a coming of self. Instead she ended up with a story that happened to her until she had to unravel her little bit of self to move forward. Maybe this story is a tragedy?

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this! Christiane M Andrews now owns a piece of my heart, and will probably always will.

Her writing style was utterly entrancing for me, and even though the first part of the book moved a little slow, I felt that the pacing actually did suit the story (and me, as a reader), because it served the purpose of the story very well. This book isn't some action-adventure story that moves at break-neck speed where our forelorn and abandoned waif finds a gaggle of quirky kids to be her found family.

It's about family, and love, and finding yourself, but it's also about fate and free will and the ethics of big picture vs missing the forest for the trees, and all the ways you can control your life in between. I cried, once because I was heart-broken, and the second time because the message at the end spoke to me.

I think the other reason why I would recommend this so highly is because a lot of coming-of-age stories geared at middle grade and, honestly, YA readers as well, follow similar story structures, just with different characters, varying magic systems, and different settings. However, this story is structured differently, and for me, it worked very well. I absolutely love the flow of this book. It had presence and atmosphere reading it, and I am so excited to read Andrews' next book.

[January Htoo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clo has lived her whole life in the shadows with her father who has been in and out of clo life because her father would always go far away and left clo with her grandmother as I read and read I started loving this book as it became more unique and how clo was a strong girl, there’s so many mystery in this book finding missing and a hiding things and this one magic island with her father I really like this book it gives me such a tend feeling where I could feel how clo felt what I thought of the authors writing in this book was very amazed Clo must unravel the mysteries of the island and all that’s hidden in the vast tapestry threads this book was a 4 star for me I think if comparisons this book I would say both are the book I’ve had read is the same but slightly different but both of the books are amazing and are this book is totally worth reading in the begging of this book was pretty sad as she was always alone with no mother and her father tends to always go far but as in the middle it tend to get more interesting and very mystery as her father left her a note before leaving once again and for towards end she had to choose between staying in the island or going home.

[Emilio-Jay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gets a little lost thematically in the middle. Addresses a theme of just needing to accept the way things are, the nature of death in life, but then by the end, Clo messed with fate, got absorbed in the details, essentially got her way with no repurcussions except losing memory, but that doesnt feel like a complete punishment/consequence as they work through it. By the end the lesson is something about life having both joy and sorrow which isnt completely relevant to the other lesson she had to learn. :/

Visual design was spectacular. The idea of the fates and the island also very cool. Some mechanics are a little confusing/not fully explained/thought out. Since the story is incumbent upon these mechanics, they deserve to have time explaining and illustrating how you can just add your life onto another without much consequence, why Clo's thread was somehow part of a cloak but also in the tapestry.

Beginning is very slow, a pretty good hook but then fizzles out. Takes a while for it to pick up.

Overall, almost there, just very average. Still interesting, but not exactly thought provoking /falls a bit short.

[Tess Jones-Orta · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5 stars

I received this ARC copy from NetGalley.

I mostly enjoyed this novel which is inspired by Greek mythology. I loved that aspect of the book as I have always loved the Greek myths. The writing is engaging, lyrical, and highly descriptive. The imagery is quite vibrant and I had no trouble imaging the story in detail.

The book is written for middle-grade readers but, in my opinion, the vocabulary is advanced and more suited for high school and up. Yet, the plot and the protagonist's ages are perfect for younger readers. The middle of the novel was slow for me. Clothilde's reluctance to understand the importance of the tapestry grew tedious to read. She gets a little whiney with her grandmother and, while appropriate for her age and circumstances, I disliked it.

I really liked the overall lesson - that without pain, there can be no joy. Instead of choosing an easy, pain-free existence on the island, Clothilde and Cary risk potential pain and suffering to experience the joy found in life in the world.