V Mignon’s Reviews > Strange the Dreamer > Status Update

There's something wrong about the fact that it takes over 300 pages for our protagonists to meet.

This book tells you everything. If that wasn't annoying enough, it also tells you all the thoughts of every single character. I feel as though there are many good ideas in this book but it needed so much help on how it could have been written. If we didn't have to hear Sarai whine for 200 pages - what if we had only seen her in Lazlo's dreams? What could have been, etc.

Yes, please tell me every single feeling each character has. It's not like I could glean that out of the writing. This is particularly bad in Eril-Fane's case. I don't know who any of the characters are nor do I care about them . . . and you know that feeling when you're almost 200 pages through and you realize you have 300 left and all you can feel is "ugh"?

There is so much telling in this writing that it's ridiculous. Page 147 is especially bad. Also, you can tell how much I like a book by how many breaks I take from it to post updates. Good ideas in this book, just needed to be completely up hauled in the way it was written.

I'm so tired of these young adult books telling us about secondary characters who are attracted to s/o of their own gender rather than showing. It seems like checking off a list rather than character development. Calixte is the one character I like. Please show her being attracted to Tzara.

There is a frightening lack of description in this book. What do the creatures look like? What kind of terrain is Lazlo in now? I'm so confused by all of this. Also, how is everything like a dream or a story? Please inform me. Not by telling, though. Also I'm tired of seeing the word "dream."

I'm not so sure I like the writing in this so far - the prologue is written very well, as is the beginning of Lazlo's life, but it loses steam quickly. However, I liked the play on "azoth." The scholar looking for this "panacea" that was just another term for mercury which is anything but a panacea.