Rate this book

Small Shen (2012)

by Kylie Chan(Favorite Author)

4.15 of 5 Votes: 3

ISBN

0732289831 (ISBN13: 9780732289836)

languge

English

genre

Fantasy

publisher

HarperCollinsPublishers Australia

review 1: This little book is a great introduction to Kylie Chan's world of Chinese Mythology based stories.The book is all about Gold who is a stone and using his intelligence and powers to get himself and others into all sorts of serious trouble. Spread over time from the early 1700's to the present day, the story uses real world events to reveal the world of the immortals, good and evil. This is a fast paced, enjoyable read. Kylie's characters are real and interesting. The city of Hong Kong is as important in the telling as the people that inhabit it. There is even a Small Shen soundtrack on the last page you can get using your Smartphone. The extra treat of some great manga style pictures by Queenie Chan was a lovely surprise. I enjoyed seeing the characters come alive in her ar... moret. These two ladies make a good team.
review 2: It wasn't too bad - certainly an interesting way to learn a little about (classical?) Chinese mythology, which I knew nothing about. I liked the casual, modern spin on it. The protagonist, a rock spirit named Gold, was also very likable despite the plot consisting mainly of his being an idiot, getting into trouble for it, being bound for centuries and then deciding to screw up again. I liked that Gold treated sex very casually, but managed to show a lot of genuine, if schmaltzy, affection and care for the guy he did sleep with during the "modern" sections (as opposed to the flashback, where he was a dickhead). It's a nice change from most YA lit, where relationships are treated as this massive life commitment/process of self-discovery/mandatory rite of passage that will change the protagonist's life forever.The comic-book pictures interspersed with the prose made this book far more enjoyable for me than it would otherwise have been, partly because this is the first book I've read in such a style, and second because it quickened the pace. Considering I think some bits were still too long, this can only be a good thing. I much preferred the pictorial narration to the story.The plot was... ehh. I liked the characters, particularly Wu Xuan and Gold, but there were too many flashbacks to previous times, and as such I think the main plot failed (essentially demons trying to hold Michelle and her child hostage). Two stories were told at once here; the flashbacks were amazing, but the main story wasn't dealt with as well.Michelle was a distinct character when she wasn't lapsing into bouts of damsel-in-distress sobbing and hysteria at every demon attack. I felt like Jade could've taken more of the spotlight, rather than just... being there. What we saw of her was good, but I wanted more! I love how great a dad Xuan Wu is, although, really, did everyone have to keep obsessing over Simone for so long? I understand that she needs protection, but I didn't want to see so much of her. Michelle's brother flirting with literally everyone was also really weird and unrealistic. Um, no, you don't try to get your father-in-law into bed. Holy squick, Batman. less

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