Book Review: Forest Born by Shannon Hale

Forest Bornis all Rin ever thought she'd be. She feels at home in the forest, among the trees. Until she does something that makes the trees reject her. Can she leave behind her home in the forest and travel with three powerful women in order to find the goodness she's lost? Or will her wrong deeds follow her wherever she goes?

Things I Liked:
I absolutely love Shannon Hale's writing. Her words encircle you in the story and you forget you don't belong there. This book seemed just a little different from the other Bayern books. Rin was a different kind of main character. I loved her, despite her doubts about herself and her lack of self-confidence. I thought she felt real. I also just love all the characters from her previous stories. Here are some samples of that fabulous writing:

"If it had been a color, it might have been green. If it had touched her ears, it might have sounded rhythmic, like the creak of a rocking chair or drone of a bee. If it had a scent, it might have been sweet and drowsy, like fresh pine on the fire." p.8

"Rin thought that she too could bloom away from home, but passing beneath that tree, under a foreign sky, she felt even tinier than before, a mote of dust that could be lost in the merest huff of wind." p.165

Things I Didn't Like:
I wish we could have learned more about why Rin mirrored other people's personalities and her connection to the trees. I wanted more about tree-speaking.

Read-alikes:
First three books of Bayern give background on the characters, but aren't vital to enjoyment of this book: The Goose Girl, Enna Burning, and River Secrets
Also loved Book of a Thousand Days also by Shannon Hale
A bit like Princess Ben by Catherine Gilbert Murdock

BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: none

mrg-factor: none

v-factor: ->
mild fighting

Overall rating: ****

Do you love fairy tales with happy endings or those that are more complex?

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