Shall we die? Or shall we live?
Jamrach's Menagerie
by Carol Birch
Genre: YA Historical Fiction
Mini Review
The story follows Jaffy. A boy from the slums who gets bitten by a tiger and becomes obsessed with the wild and wondrous. So when he hears of a sea voyage to hunt down a dragon, he quickly signs up. But the sea is a new kind of wilderness and Jaffy won't return the same boy.
This is a really interesting and original story. The blurb likens it to Treasure Island and Moby Dick and you definitely get those vibes, yet this still feels absolutely unique. The relationship between Jaffy and his best friend Tim was really fascinating to watch and the descriptions of the animals helped give the story it's unsettling, wild charm.
I will say the descriptions in general were given in huge chunks that slowed the pace quite a bit. Even with all the dangers the characters faced, the way the action was written was often very long winded and repetitive.
Overall, I loved the sense of adventure and there were some really complex, interesting characters here. But the pace was just a bit too slow.
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