As a lover of old fairy tales, I adored this book - the storytelling felt familiar, with refreshingly modern meaning. The narration style won't be for everyone, it's very old-fashioned in some ways (ex, morals spoken as character dialogue), but I found it very charming and a good fit for the story being told. A parable about knowledge and kindness, with characters that stretched beyond the archetypes you might have anticipated. On the shortlist to add to my home library, so I can underline about a hundred key lines to take to heart - one of those stories whose world sticks with you long after the last page. ( )

I am surprised by how much I disliked this. I heard that the author wrote it in reaction to the 2016 election (see her Kirkus interview here: https://www.kirkusreviews.com/news-and-features/articles/kelly-barnhill-ogress-a... and maybe that's why. I don't want the pain of the Trump presidency in a children's book. I don't want a Trump-esque villain. I don't want platitudes about neighborliness, even if they are well-meaning. It was difficult for me to finish this book and I was not happy at the end. There was no joy in this book for me -- even when it seemed to be pandering to librarians and many of the things we stand for.

But this is a super personal reaction. Professionally, this is a book I would still suggest to young readers and families who want a fantasy story about good vs. evil and right vs. wrong. The best thing I can say about this book is that I appreciate what it's trying to do.

I listened to the audiobook, which was very well done. I liked the narrator. I usually listen at regular speed, but I sped this up to 1.5x and then 2x because I just wanted it to be over. ( )

Prettig te lezen kinderboek, voor de wat oudere jeugd en ook voor volwassenen. Het begint met een dorp waar de buren nog op elkaar letten en voor elkaar zorgen en over de draak in het bos rondom het dorp. Als er een man het dorp in komt die die draak weet te verslaan, wordt hij door de burgers tot burgemeester gekozen. Dan brandt de bibliotheek af en dan de school. Het gaat ook over de 15 kinderen in het weeshuis van het dorp waar Moeder en Myron de zorg over hebben. Terwijl de mensen in het weeshuis niet langer het geld voor de dagelijkse boodschappen en het onderhoud van het huis zelf krijgen, wordt de burgemeester steeds rijker. Dan ontdekken de kinderen net buiten het dorp het huis van de halfreus. Het loopt natuurlijk allemaal goed af. In wezen gaat het boek over trouw, vriendschap en hulp geven aan de mensen om je heen. ( )

Stone-in-the-Glen was once a happy place, but it isn't so much anymore. Everyone is suspicious and keeps to themselves. The fifteen orphans, headed up by the oldest three, Anthea, Bartleby, and Cass, know it isn't right or logical. And the Ogress who lives on the edge of the town watches all with her periscope and brings deliveries, with her friends the crows, by night to all the townspeople.

There is some charm to the old-fashioned feel of this fable, with a narrator who speaks directly to the reader with asides, a bunch of orphans, and an Ogress who is treated with suspicion while the Mayor - who the reader soon discovers we should be suspicious of - rules the roost and swindles the town. It was a little too on the nose and preachy for me, with too many characters and a writing style that kept them all at arm's length. ( )

I was expecting another fantastically whimsical story from Kelly Barnhill about an Ogress who became friends with a set of Orphans (obviously), and while we may have gotten that in spades, I was completely sidelined by the strong social commentary that underpinned the entire narrative. Barnhill has written a fable that builds around the shattered town of Stone-in-the-Glen, a place that may have fallen on hard times but still holds an intrinsic charm that we can’t help but root for. Populated by butchers, bakers, and a houseful of Orphans (probably a few candlestick makers too), it becomes clear from early on in the narrative that something went clearly wrong with the town when its library (my heart!) mysteriously burned down. Just on the outskirts of town lives an Ogress, who may seem rough on the outside, but who we soon discover has a heart of gold and plays perfectly into her role as secret benefactor of the town. But we wouldn’t have much of a story if the Ogress simply made friends with the townsfolk, and through her kind intervention managed to revitalise the place, so Barnhill adds a wily dragon into the mix. Hiding within plain (but well-disguised) view of the townsfolk, the dragon-mayor has quietly built himself an empire of wealth while letting the town suffer around him, all of which hinges on stoking unrest amongst the citizens and pitting them against outsiders. Is the mayor starting to sound familiar, yet? It is clear that Barnhill is drawing her themes and characters from the everyday news cycle, but she weaves them into such a well-drawn fable structure that the story becomes a lovely and entertaining allegory about the power of kindness. ( )