Author: Rainbow Rowell
Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books
Publishing Date: March 3, 2016
Pages/Format: 62, Paperback
Add on Goodreads!
'Everybody likes everything these days. The whole world is a nerd.'
'Are you mad because other people like Star Wars? Are you mad because people like me like Star Wars?'
'Maybe.'
If you broke Elena's heart, Star Wars would spill out. So when she decides to queue outside her local cinema to see the new movie, she's expecting a celebration with crowds of people who love Han, Luke and Leia just as much as she does. What she's not expecting is to be last in a line of only three people; to have to pee into a collectible Star Wars soda cup behind a dumpster or to meet that unlikely someone who just might truly understand the way she feels. Kindred Spirits is an engaging short story by Rainbow Rowell, author of the bestselling Eleanor & Park, Fangirl and Carry On, and is part of a handful of selected short reads specially produced for World Book Day.
Add on Goodreads!
'Everybody likes everything these days. The whole world is a nerd.'
'Are you mad because other people like Star Wars? Are you mad because people like me like Star Wars?'
'Maybe.'
If you broke Elena's heart, Star Wars would spill out. So when she decides to queue outside her local cinema to see the new movie, she's expecting a celebration with crowds of people who love Han, Luke and Leia just as much as she does. What she's not expecting is to be last in a line of only three people; to have to pee into a collectible Star Wars soda cup behind a dumpster or to meet that unlikely someone who just might truly understand the way she feels. Kindred Spirits is an engaging short story by Rainbow Rowell, author of the bestselling Eleanor & Park, Fangirl and Carry On, and is part of a handful of selected short reads specially produced for World Book Day.
Book in One Word: Shooooooort
I originally had no clue what Kindred Spirits really was, and I wasn't the only one who saw it and was like, "Umm, what is this?" But as a big fan of Eleanor & Park and Fangirl, I was curious. Turns out Kindred Spirits is a (super super) short story by Rainbow Rowell about geekdom and nerdiness and Star Wars and maybe even a little bit of romance. I picked it up one night because I knew I could finish it faster than a pie would bake, and I was in the mood for something quick and fun (and that would be very helpful toward my Goodreads goal). So I read it. And, well...I'm not as kindred with Kindred Spirits as I am with the other Rowell books I've read.
Aside from the fact that Kindred Spirits didn't feel like it was a story written by Rainbow Rowell, its one and only problem (I think?) was that it was too damn short (and perhaps that's why it didn't feel like a Rowell novel). The idea is great: people camping out days before the premiere of a new Star Wars movie and getting to know each other and their inner fangirl/boy, nerdy awesomeness. It's fun and it's something that actually happens and it makes for a stellar fun and quirky and fluffy book. But Kindred Spirits was too short to flesh out certain aspects of the story--e.g., the romance--and really bring this gathering of geeks and believers of the force together. If it would've been a full length novel it could have rocked. But as is it's just a nice little story instead of a fantastic novel.
This review will be short because Kindred Spirits is short, but know that this story is brimming with potential--it just needs to be longer. It's not only that I want it longer; this isn't a case of me just wanting more of a story. It needs to be longer in order to fully accomplish what it's trying to accomplish and to properly paint the picture in its entirety. Kindred Spirits is the outline of a painting waiting to be filled in with texture and color and shades and tones and feel. Just make it longer! For at the moment the force isn't quite with this one. And that's a bit of a bummer.
Did I like it? Yes.
Did I love it? No.
Would I reread it? Eh.
Would I purchase it? I already have it, but if I didn't I wouldn't be needing to get it anytime soon.
Who would I recommend it to? Fans of Rainbow Rowell, Star Wars, and super short and fun stories.
It really WAS too short ... I felt like a lot of things went unsaid, which works in some stories but not this one :(
ReplyDelete