Goblin Secrets (Zombay, #1)

Jun 17, 2013 Andrew rated it 3 of 5 stars

A charming fantasy novel that revels in the power of theatre.

Something a little peculiar: while reading it, I really felt like I was watching someone play through a fun fantasy videogame (another friend of mine had the same response). I think it's something about the story structure and elements of the fantasty world combined with the matter of fact, straightforward way in which things are described. The opening sequence of the novel felt very much like the character generation sequence at the...more

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Apr 03, 2013 Hannah Cobb rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: jf

In the town of Zombay, wearing a mask and acting like someone else is forbidden to everyone but the goblins. The people of Zombay come to watch the marvelous, magical goblin plays, but they hate and distrust the goblins themselves.
Rownie doesn't hate them. He thinks goblin plays are wonderful. But Rownie knows a lot about the illegal art of acting; his older brother was an actor before he disappeared several years ago, leaving Rownie in the care of Graba the witch. Graba is enormous and mean. Sh...more

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Mar 23, 2013 Sarah rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: tween, tween-adoption-foster, tween-boy, tween-fantasy, tween-scifi, tween-steampunk

After reading rave reviews about this 2012 National Book Award winner, I was stoked to read a title that was a little dark and twisted with a fantasy/steampunk twist. Due, perhaps, to such high expectations, I found it challenging to fully immerse myself in the tale. The numerous odd names introduced in the first chapters as I struggled to get my bearings in the strange land also lent an air of Tolkien confusion. Soon, however, the story morphed into a rather plot line of traditional orphaned wa...more

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Feb 23, 2013 Hilary rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, grades-5-6, orphans

In the town of Zombay acting is for anyone who is "unchanged", or not a Goblin. It is with great excitement that Rownie happens upon a group of goblins who are performing one evening and ask an unchanged child to wear a mask and become part of the performance. Fondly remembering his brother, Rowan, who loved to act, Rownie jumps at the chance even though it might mean his arrest.
What seems like a great premise on the book jacket falls flat in the actual telling of the story. Characters are only...more

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Jan 22, 2013 Chris rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: adventure, fantasy, guys-read, j, not-graphic

This was: good, but.

I really liked the world building and original setting with a lot of under-the-surface, unstated-but-implied history and culture and legends, but I felt like we barely scratched the surface of the potential.

I really liked the hints of atmosphere and Dickensian street urchin life, but wanted much more so that I really felt embraced by it instead of merely dipping my toes in it.

I thought the characters were interesting with decent personalities, motivations, and growth, but did...more

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Jan 15, 2013 Jennifer rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: yellow-chapter, fantasy, library-copy, 2013, reviewed

Fantasy is not usually my genre, and even those books I come to love - Graceling, Daughter of Smoke & Bone - have to woo me for a few chapters. As a reader, I remain overly conscious of the artifice in a fantasy world. Ironically enough, this book about artifice sucked me in within mere pages. It is not the fault of talented authors when I am not immersed right away, but it is certainly the skill of Alexander that this time I was. A potentially-cloying detail (a house periodically moved by i...more Fantasy is not usually my genre, and even those books I come to love - Graceling, Daughter of Smoke & Bone - have to woo me for a few chapters. As a reader, I remain overly conscious of the artifice in a fantasy world. Ironically enough, this book about artifice sucked me in within mere pages. It is not the fault of talented authors when I am not immersed right away, but it is certainly the skill of Alexander that this time I was. A potentially-cloying detail (a house periodically moved by its owner comes to rest with its front door blocked by a neighboring wall, so residents must jump in and out of a window) serves as exposition of the world's rules and of a character, as well as being fun to read, all without being overwritten.

Okay, he also won me over by omitting wings in favor of gears. I don't get to dust off my undergraduate education in the history of science and technology very often, so I doubly appreciate a good steampunk tale, imagining myself recommending the latest discovery to my good friend Ada Lovelace over a cup of tea. "And speaking of difference engines, My Lady, I read a very different sort of book the other day..."

In the end, Goblin Secrets is simply well written, and done so with a voice I particularly enjoy. There is a deftness to the word choice, a rhythm to the sentences, which pulls the reader forward on a flowing river. Halfway into the book, the goblins seem more familiar and human than the street urchins. Sentences just twist in interesting ways that stop my scanning and remind me to think a little bit more about what I am reading: "The monger cursed and paddled with a single oar, both furiously, but his curses were clumsy and unlikely to stick." In a moment when I am trying to make sense of the emotional nuance where a character must be afraid, and sad, and a little bit determined, Alexander tells us the character "breathed cold silence into his lungs" and understanding clicks into place.

Last year's National Book Award winner, Inside Out & Back Again, played with form in service to the story: the verse novel showed the protagonist's fluency in storytelling without demanding fluency in grammar. More subtly, this year's winner substitutes acts and scenes for chapters, and the book's designer separates the acts with a drawing of a stage curtain (pun intended). The cover art also furthers the theme of artifice with a glowing translucence artist Alexander Jansson seems to layer between scene and viewer. I may grumble that the text's pigeons have been replaced by the more immediately readable symbolism of crows, and that the interesting gearworks of Horace the mule are hidden in shadow, but choice after choice has been made well, conspiring to give me faith in the makers of this book, and in turn, faith in the story itself.(less)

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Jan 14, 2013 Phoebe rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, juv, juv-fantasy, steampunk, goblins

A juvenile steampunk fantasy that takes just the right tone; ominous but never terrifying; odd but never incomprehensible for the age group. Alexander pulls threads from a variety of fantastical/folkloric traditions to make his tale an intriguing blend: the witch Baba Yaga ("Graba")and her chicken legs (but in this case, they are clockwork and gears); goblins; a bit of Greek theater complete with masks; and a murky, rundown city with clockwork police. Rownie is one of Graba's "grandchildren," st...more

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Jan 06, 2013 Isabel rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult, fantasy

Like many other reviewers, I picked up this book after it was given the National Book Award and was eager to get started with it. However, I was met with a very disappointing read. The plot has some interesting promise -- a steampunk world, goblins, theater and beautifully described masks, as well as a Baba Yaga-esque villain -- the story, setting, and characters all fell flat. While some elements of the story were compelling, including the use of interesting machinery and the imminent danger of...more Like many other reviewers, I picked up this book after it was given the National Book Award and was eager to get started with it. However, I was met with a very disappointing read. The plot has some interesting promise -- a steampunk world, goblins, theater and beautifully described masks, as well as a Baba Yaga-esque villain -- the story, setting, and characters all fell flat. While some elements of the story were compelling, including the use of interesting machinery and the imminent danger of the flooding river, many of the books story arcs felt rushed and underdeveloped.

Most disappointing of all is the protagonist, Rownie, whose search for his missing brother and efforts to gain self-confidence are brought to an abrupt and unsatisfying conclusion. Although the plot moves with Rownie's attempts and desires to stand up to his adversaries through skills learned on the stage, Rownie never truly comes alive as a character and his role in the goblin's theater troupe seems minimal. Similarly, the goblins, who play a large role, feel one dimensional and never seem to emerge as distinct or memorable characters.

The multiple story lines and lack of exposition also make this a somewhat confusing read. The characters jump from place to place, but never make any lasting interpretations of difficult themes. Likewise, many questions, including the use of human hearts as coal, the social divisions and conflicts between Zombay's Northside and Southside, or the importance of the Changed versus the unChanged, are left frustratingly unanswered. And despite the time spent on different set pieces within the story, many of the events don't seem to have a lasting impression on the characters or tie back into the story later. The tropes and devices used in this book often lack a cohesion that would allow them to benefit the story or characters as a whole.

Overall, this book starts with the potential of a fantasy adventure, but the underdevelopment of key characters and themes, as well as an ill-paced plot lead Goblin Secrets to be an unsatisfying read.

If you are looking for a more effective book in this genre, I would suggest Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book.(less)

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Dec 19, 2012 Barbara rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: abusive-relationships, bullies, community, death, families, fantasy, friendship, ncbla2013, travel

Along with a cast of other abandoned or orphaned children, Rownie lives with Graba, a witch who rules the household and her part of the town with an iron grip. Drawn to a traveling troupe of maskers who also are goblins, Rownie defies the witch in order to watch their performance and to look for whereabouts of his older brother Rowan. In the town where Rownie lives no one is allowed to wear a mask or to perform, and once Rownie volunteers to help during the performance, he becomes even more dete...more

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Dec 08, 2012 Melanie rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: middle-readers

Rownie, a young orphan boy cannot seem to find his brother anywhere. The mystery is, why are so many people looking for him? Rownie's "Grandmother" Grabba, with her robotic chicken legs has housed Rownie and other orphan kids so long as the run errands for her. She is the town witch, and seems to actually posses her children on some of their errands. (um yeah, that's creepy) not only that, but there are performing Goblins who skate around the town's laws forbidding mask wearing and performing be...more

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Dec 05, 2012 Barb Middleton rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: science-fiction, steampunk, national-book-award-winner

I struggled with this National Book Award winner. Not because it lacks originality. The creepy steampunk setting with gear-transformed people, witches, and goblins was well done. Not because it lacked character development. The weird witch, river spirit, goblins, and orphans with a plucky protagonist were engaging enough. And not because of a plot that plods. The 200 page book is concise and clues are slowly revealed. It was unpredictable and imaginative. So why couldn't I immerse myself in the...more I struggled with this National Book Award winner. Not because it lacks originality. The creepy steampunk setting with gear-transformed people, witches, and goblins was well done. Not because it lacked character development. The weird witch, river spirit, goblins, and orphans with a plucky protagonist were engaging enough. And not because of a plot that plods. The 200 page book is concise and clues are slowly revealed. It was unpredictable and imaginative. So why couldn't I immerse myself in the story?

It wasn't a complete loss - I loved the witch Graba, patterned after the fairy tale witch Baba Yaga in Russian folklore with her unpredictable temperament and dangerous ways. In this tale, it is not the house, but the witch herself who lunges around on giant chicken legs made of gears and metal using monstrous talons to grab wayward children. What a great twist on the original! Speaking of twists... Graba gives Rownie a home with food but he is mistreated like the other orphans she takes into her home that echos characteristics found in Oliver Twist's Fagin. Machinery has replaced human parts in the city of Zombay; the police have glass eyes with gears for irises and the animals have coal hearts. Graba has taken in Rownie and his brother, Rowan, but Rowan has disappeared. Rownie joins the goblin theater troupe because they are searching for Rowan. The goblins need Rowan to speak to the river and prevent the flood that threatens the city of Zombay; however, the goblins are not welcome in the city and it is illegal to put on their show which results in all sorts of trouble for the troupe. Rownie combines forces with them only to get caught up in a bigger struggle for power between the goblins, mayor, and witch Graba.

The story is filled with terrific themes from the magic or imagination that comes from within when assuming the identity of a mask to the magic or power that comes from without as symbolized in the witches, mayor, and river spirit; to the social commentary of the goblins being prejudiced by the townspeople; to the humans who can't wear masks to act in plays because it changes them, and more. While there are so many social commentaries, the storyline never stops long enough to explore them. I wanted more of an explanation about the goblin play where the witch uses her reflection to create a bunch of mini-me's who become her slaves; followed by her cooking the heart of one and causing a rebellion. Was this play a suggestion that the witch Graba and Semele were like the rebellious slaves? What is their background? And what about Rowan. Is he with his mother? Why can he wear a mask? How do humans change into goblins? In the end I felt dissatisfied with the overall book and the lack of answers.

The lack of exposition resulted in me going back and rereading passages often and being confused in spots. You really had to figure out the plot as you read along and be patient as the clues unfolded. I kept thinking I missed something but my question would be answered later. As mentioned earlier, not that all questions are answered; you have to come up with your own analysis. I sort of twitched and sputtered through the narrative which never came alive for me. Some spots were jarring or awkward, such as when the characters put on masks and adopted its qualities or when Rownie would think to himself. While not something I noticed all the time, I ended with a disjointed feeling like my gears were malfunctioning. This is a book that I should really reread. I read that the author has a sequel. Most likely some of my questions will be answered. An interesting read.

Reading level 4.3(less)

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Nov 27, 2012 Vincent Ripley rated it 4 of 5 stars

Rownie, the youngest in Graba the witchworker's household of stray children, escapes and goes looking for his missing brother. Along the way he falls in with a troupe of theatrical goblins and learns the secret origins of masks. Now Graba's birds are hunting him in the Southside of Zombay, the Lord Mayor's guards are searching for him in Northside, and the River between them is getting angry. The city needs saving — and only the goblins know how.

I bought this book purely on the book cover as you...more Rownie, the youngest in Graba the witchworker's household of stray children, escapes and goes looking for his missing brother. Along the way he falls in with a troupe of theatrical goblins and learns the secret origins of masks. Now Graba's birds are hunting him in the Southside of Zombay, the Lord Mayor's guards are searching for him in Northside, and the River between them is getting angry. The city needs saving — and only the goblins know how.

I bought this book purely on the book cover as you probably know that I'm a sucker for a good front cover. In fact I was drawn in purely on this alone - it has been illustrated brilliantly by Alexander Jansson. Perhaps a question that might be asked is did the cover live up to the story within? I have to say that it did ...

I didn't know anything about the author or the book before I started reading. Therefore, I was very interested to see how it would read. The first thing that I noticed from the start was its cast of colourful characters that leapt off the page. They were very interesting to read and intriguing to follow.

The author soon sets out his stall in building a great setting. I immediately became immersed and lost within it. I have not read many books this year that will come close to establishing such a great setting. The author has skilfully dreamt up a place of awe and one that I enjoyed visiting and being apart of very much.

Equally, I loved the unique and original ideas - these are becoming harder to find as so many books are now being published. However, they really worked within this story. The distinctive language had a style of its own that flowed through the pages. This perhaps holds similarities with the great writer, Catherynne M Valente, who also has a similar style of writing. Every page you read makes you think and evaluate the story. The heart of the book is very complex and at times I wasn't sure whether I was grasping what the author was intending. Therefore, I found myself revisiting certain parts of the book, but it was a good for me to do this as I did not want to miss anything by rushing through the pages.

I was really intrigued by the masks coming to life - this section was fascinating to read as it gave the story a real fantasy element. The idea of the inhabitants of Zombay running around with clock work parts, gears and sprockets to fix the human body was a particularly cool concept. It injected the story with a slight steampunk theme, and one that I really loved reading.

There is a lot going on within so few pages. In fact once the story comes to an end, you will want to start the book all over again. This book is like a clockwork automaton as it runs on its very own magic right up to the end. This is a book for the reader who enjoys the power of words and a great story. A recommended book for definite.(less)

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Nov 19, 2012 Samantha rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, juv-fiction, goblins, theater, national-book-award

Rownie is an orphan who lives with his "grandmother" Graba and her other "grandchildren." It is a hard life of running errands and little food. When a goblin troupe posts flyers about an upcoming performance Rownie is intrigued. The Mayor has outlawed all theatrical performances.

Seizing a chance to free himself from Graba's control, Rownie runs away with the goblin troupe. He worries about being changed, but is relieved to find out that the goblins do not change people against their will. He is...more

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Jan 13, 2013 Kathy Martin rated it 4 of 5 stars

When I was looking over the hundreds of books on my YA TBR mountain, Goblin Secrets jumped out at me. It is a 2012 National Book Award Winner in the Young People's Literature category. You can read an interview with William Alexander here. Goblin Secrets is his debut novel. Will also has a Minnesota connection since he is an Adjunct Professor at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. I was also looking for a Middle Grade book to read next.

Goblin Secrets is an enchanting fantasy is a richly...more

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Mar 09, 2013 Hollowspine rated it 4 of 5 stars

Rownie lives with Graba, a woman who calls herself his grandmother, but isn't. She's a witch and everyone in Southside fears her. Rownie and the rest of the Grubs (other children Graba's taken in) do errands all over Zombay for Graba. When a group Goblin playactors come to Zombay, a place that has expressly forbidden acting or pretending of any type, Rownie goes off to see them, disobeying Graba's orders.

After that all things go wrong for Rownie. He's chased by the birds of the city, and Grubs t...more

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Jan 17, 2013 Mary rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, folklore-fairy-tales, juvenile-fiction

Rownie has been left to fend for himself among the orphans housed by a witch named Graba. His older brother, Rowan, also had lived in Graba's house until the older boy disappeared somewhere in the city of Zombay. While seeking his brother, Rownie comes across a troupe of the feared goblins. Goblins are the only residents of Zombay who are allowed to perform in plays. The city's police guard pursue the goblins out of fear that the actors will kidnap children, change them into goblins, and recruit...more

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Mar 31, 2012 Shanshad Whelan rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: childrens, fantasy, mg, urban-fantasy, steampunk

I love it when a book makes me throw out my presuppositions and biases and actually yanks me by the shirt into the story before I know what's happening. So I picked this up after I put my last book down and thought "oh, a goblin book. I really don't like goblins . . . and goblin books tend to be full of comic scenes and gross stuff. Sigh."

It's so nice to be knocked on my proverbial butt for making a judgement based on a title. It restores my faith in books and writing.

Goblin Secrets takes place...more

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Jan 05, 2013 Jessica rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: children, fantasy

Wow. I can't believe that Goblin Secrets was the 2012 winner of the National Book Award (category-Young People's Literature). It just does not compare to previous winners like The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy, Holes, or The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian--brilliant books, all of them. It's not that the story was bad. In fact, it was mildly intriguing. It's the story of a young orphan named Rownie who lives in the land of Zombay,...more Wow. I can't believe that Goblin Secrets was the 2012 winner of the National Book Award (category-Young People's Literature). It just does not compare to previous winners like The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy, Holes, or The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian--brilliant books, all of them. It's not that the story was bad. In fact, it was mildly intriguing. It's the story of a young orphan named Rownie who lives in the land of Zombay, where acting is illegal. However, goblins, because they are "changed," are exempt from this law and may put on plays. Rownie's older brother disappeared a while ago while acting in an illegal play, and Rownie's "grandmother," a witch with gearworked chicken legs, is looking for him. One day, Rownie meets a troupe of goblin actors and gets to wear a mask and perform himself. He ends up joining them to learn more about their crafts, and, hopefully, his brother's whereabouts.

So... somewhat interesting, right? But I was almost in disbelief at how poorly this story was paced. The general plot of the book doesn't really emerge until about halfway through, and the climax played out in the last 20 pages. Also, just as I was surprised that The Diviners was a part of a series (because it could really stand alone), I was surprised that Goblin Secrets wasn't a part of a series. All the characters could and should have been developed A LOT more, and there's just so much back story that needed, in my opinion, to be told. Edited: Ok, so I just found out that Goblin Secrets IS part of a series, but the second book is about a different character entirely. Consider the previous couple of sentences redacted. Although I still think that so much more of Rownie and his brother's story should've been told. So I REALLY don't understand why the book is only 220 pages, and the font is pretty large, too. I guess my only explanation is that it's supposed to be like a play (the chapters are actually in play format--Act II, Scene II, that sort of thing), so that's why it's short, but it could still have been so much better. Disappointing first book of the New Year, but hopefully my reading choices will improve. :)

Ages 9-11(less)

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Apr 25, 2013 Heidi rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book didn't end up being exactly the way I pictured it, but I did enjoy it quite a bit. The world building was fantastic. I could easily picture the city built in the ravine with the large river running through the center of it and the bridge that seemed to function like a sanctuary. The clock tower was a fascinating addition, I loved the idea of a clock that showed what time of day it was with a moon and sun rising and setting. I also really appreciated the mask mythology and how wearing a...more This book didn't end up being exactly the way I pictured it, but I did enjoy it quite a bit. The world building was fantastic. I could easily picture the city built in the ravine with the large river running through the center of it and the bridge that seemed to function like a sanctuary. The clock tower was a fascinating addition, I loved the idea of a clock that showed what time of day it was with a moon and sun rising and setting. I also really appreciated the mask mythology and how wearing a mask could almost turn you into whatever the mask portrayed.

Character-wise, Alexander created some interesting ones both good and bad, although there wasn't a whole lot of depth to them. I would have liked them to be a little more three dimensional. But Rownie was a likeable protagonist kind of finding himself through the story. Graba made a great contrast with her bulk and chicken-shaped, gear legs. The goblins or Tamlin's as the call themselves were great secondary characters, each other unique in their characteristics. Thomas, the loud, easily annoyed seemed like the leader, but Semele, the really old and experienced goblin really led the group. It was fun seeing Rownie get to know them and find a place where he felt like he belonged. Rownie's brother, Rowan was an interesting side character and a bit of mystery since he is talked about a lot but is an enigma for most of the book.

One aspect of the storyline bothered me a tad because it was a bit gruesome. The taking of hearts and using them as 'coal' made me a little sick but provides a powerful twist in the plot. The plot moves along nicely from Rownie's discovery and involvement with the goblins to the conflict with Graba and the sudden confrontation with the town mayor who has banned all acting within the city, a law which Rownie violates. The possible flooding of the river though is the main conflict that Rownie finds himself confronting with the goblins due to their history with masks. I enjoyed how all the plotlines came together at the end in somewhat surprising ways.

Overall, an enjoyable book with fun characters, a unique plot, and a fabulous setting. The length is perfect for middle grade readers who aren't yet ready to tackle longer fantasies such as Harry Potter.(less)

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Oct 18, 2012 TheBookSmugglers rated it 2 of 5 stars

In the land of Zombay, clockwork and magic walk side by side and real hearts are turned into the coal that fuels automata. There is a witch with clockwork legs called Graba who collects orphaned children to do her bidding and whose youngest charge is a boy named Rownie. Rownie has no name of his own, having inherited the diminutive form of his older brother’s name, Rowan, who disappeared without a trace.

In the land of Zombay, you can’t pretend to be what you aren’t so theatre and acting are outl...more In the land of Zombay, clockwork and magic walk side by side and real hearts are turned into the coal that fuels automata. There is a witch with clockwork legs called Graba who collects orphaned children to do her bidding and whose youngest charge is a boy named Rownie. Rownie has no name of his own, having inherited the diminutive form of his older brother’s name, Rowan, who disappeared without a trace.

In the land of Zombay, you can’t pretend to be what you aren’t so theatre and acting are outlawed. Everybody looks down at Goblins too but that doesn’t stop Rownie from joining a theatre troupe of Goblins – perhaps they will help him find Rowan. Perhaps, he will become a great actor.

In the land of Zombay, there is a flood coming.

Goblin Secrets is a weird animal. It is not a bad book but it left me wholly underwhelmed. It has several aspects that commend it: competent writing, an endearing (if not completely original) main character and the premise itself.

In fact, at first glance, Goblin Secrets is a book filled with incredible ideas, all taking inspiration from different genres. There is the Steampunk-ish world of automata; the Fantasy world of witches and magic; masks that imbue whomever wears them with a sense of power and sometimes even with a different identity. There are fairytale elements and Graba definitely comes across as a Baba Yaga figure but in a way, reminiscent of Dickens’ Fagin as well. There is a prophecy (the one that predicts that the Flood is Coming) and also a Quest which our hero undertakes as he seeks for his brother. There is even social commentary as the Goblins are not considered citizens and as such officially don’t belong in Zombay even though it is their home.

But all of these ideas and commentary are kind of thrown in there and the end result is disjointed, as these things actually never mesh together to form a cohesive whole. The Steampunk elements are just…there without any real explanation or impact in the storyline beyond the cool imagery. Animal hearts are turned into coal to fuel things (Why? How? Is this…magic? Or science?). And so on and so forth.

The story progresses as a series of almost episodic events; the first half is slow-moving, the second half rushed toward a confusing, unpolished ending. Put simply, there is the skeleton of a good idea here but it needed more: more meat and blood and heart to make it really come alive for me.

At the end of the day, I am puzzled. Whilst there are definitely interesting things about Goblin Secrets, to be completely honest I don’t quite see why it has been nominated for the National Book Award. (less)

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Feb 17, 2013 Janet rated it 2 of 5 stars

SteamPunk! Think Mad Max of Thunderdome meets Old Mother Hubbard with a Grimm fairy tale or two thrown in for good measure and you have "Goblin Secrets." World building was well done: dust, dunes, deadly river, clockwork gears, rusty metal and people who are half machine.

Acting is banned in Zombay but is undertaken none-the-less by a troupe of gypsy goblins traveling in a gypsy wagon being pulled by an automaton mule.

A human boy Rownie escapes his witch like "adoptive" grandmother Graba (who too...more

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Jan 15, 2013 Brandy Painter rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: middle-grade, fantasy

Originally posted at Random Musings of a Bibliophile.

Goblin Secrets by William Alexander came on to my radar via Betsy Bird at Fuse 8. When it was named as a National Book Award Finalist I moved it up the TBR. When it actually won the NBA I figured it was time to get serious about reading it. Two months later...It took me longer to get to this than it should have. My experience reading it has some resemblance to this. I was intrigued by the beginning but found myself easily distracted and not ov...more Originally posted at Random Musings of a Bibliophile.

Goblin Secrets by William Alexander came on to my radar via Betsy Bird at Fuse 8. When it was named as a National Book Award Finalist I moved it up the TBR. When it actually won the NBA I figured it was time to get serious about reading it. Two months later...It took me longer to get to this than it should have. My experience reading it has some resemblance to this. I was intrigued by the beginning but found myself easily distracted and not overly interested so it took me longer than it should have to finish it too.

Goblin Secrets is a book with great atmosphere. The city of Zombay comes to life, sights, sounds, smells, and all. This is a world that the reader is dropped into, no explanation, no hand holding. As usual with well-constructed fantasy, I consider this to be a good thing. There is a steam punk element added in as well that makes it slightly different than most fantasy settings in MG novels and gives it a slight edge.

I really enjoyed what Alexander did with the concept of theater and acting. Why putting on plays is forbidden in Zombay is one of the mysteries the reader must discover as the story unfolds, and it was the one I was most interested in. It's an odd thing to forbid when the city seems to have bigger problems. I also liked how the Goblins were not a separate race but "changed" humans. Humans who had chosen or been forced to undergo a transformation into something other. I was a little annoyed when the hows and whys of this were not fully divulged by the end of the book. The title is a little misleading. I also felt the ending was a bit rushed.

The book has many of the elements I usually love, an interesting world, twists on old standards, fascinating themes, and a mystery. Yet I found myself not caring at all. I think it is because Rownie didn't do much for me as a character. He was sort of flat, always carried along by what was happening, reacting instead of acting himself. This is not a bad thing in and of itself, but I like to see some change or growth when a character does this and I didn't. Rownie was pretty forgettable and as a result so is the book. Graba never really inspired any great fear in me either. I never thought she was an actual threat to Rownie. He felt she was. The author was telling me she was. But I wasn't feeling it. Maybe it is because she is a pale reflection of the legendary witch she derives from.

It is a good entertaining book that will delight any young person who loves fantasy, particularly if they are looking for steampunk elements. (less)

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May 13, 2013 Amy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Sometimes, a book just screams, “AMY! PICK ME UP AND READ ME!”

This was one of those books. YA fantasy! Theater people! A fairy-tale aspect! Award-winning! Magic!

Sometimes, the books that have a long pedigree and sound absolutely perfect just leave me cold. It is a sad fact of life. Like pretty shoes that pinch, or cute puppies that bite your fingers.

Goblin Secrets (which won the National Book Award, so maybe it’s me that’s broken, I don’t know) is about an orphan named Rownie. He lives with a wi...more Sometimes, a book just screams, “AMY! PICK ME UP AND READ ME!”

This was one of those books. YA fantasy! Theater people! A fairy-tale aspect! Award-winning! Magic!

Sometimes, the books that have a long pedigree and sound absolutely perfect just leave me cold. It is a sad fact of life. Like pretty shoes that pinch, or cute puppies that bite your fingers.

Goblin Secrets (which won the National Book Award, so maybe it’s me that’s broken, I don’t know) is about an orphan named Rownie. He lives with a witch named Graba, who takes in orphans and uses them for her own twisted schemes. Graba has clockwork chicken-legs and can pick up her house and move it elsewhere when the need arises. (I was so pleased to see a Baba Yaga homage, as I certainly do love Baba Yaga stories.) Rownie is constantly on the lookout for his older brother, Rowan (Rownie doesn’t know his own name – his name is a diminutive of his brother’s) who was an actor in their town, Zombay, and has gone missing. See, in Zombay, acting is forbidden. Pretending to be someone other than who you are is not allowed.

One day, a troupe of goblin actors come to town, and Rownie is completely charmed by them – so much so that he joins their troupe. Only there are, as the title implies, goblin secrets. The goblins know more about Zombay than they’re letting on, and acting is more than just the putting on of masks. Why else would it be forbidden? And how much do the goblins know about Rowan? And will Graba just let Rownie go?

Sounds kind of…I don’t know, good, right? Compelling? Interesting?

And it was. Kind of. But only kind of.

It never made the leap from kind of to all-the-way. It was teetering on the edge of being awesome, on the edge of being something great, and it never quite made it. And I’m an easy sell! I’m completely the target market for things like this! I should have eaten this up with a spoon and a scoop of whipped cream on top, Alexander, so what happened?

In steampunk terminology, because this book, like so many others lately, felt the need to jump on the steampunk bandwagon – this book was a clockwork man, strutting around, looking really good on the outside, but without a heart. And without a heart, a clockwork man is all hollow inside. It’s all style and substance and no soul. And that’s sad, because it COULD have been great. The BONES of greatness were there. It just didn’t make it. And that’s why it’s sad, because lost potential is always sad, right? Having the ability to get there and then not quite make it? Depressing.

This is the first in a series, and I have no interest in continuing with the series, award-winning or not. The world is full of good books that live up to their potential, and I’ll keep reading until I find those, thanks.

(Previously published at Snobbery)(less)

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Nov 22, 2012 Wendy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012-award-possibilities

Nothing at all wrong with this book, which barely managed to hold a shred of my interest because it isn't my kind of thing, but I didn't see a thing to distinguish it from many, many other good children's and YA books published this year and grant it a National Book Award. Say with The Penderwicks, I didn't think it was the best book of the year but at least I could identify some things it was doing that other books weren't doing, so I saw why it had come to the award's attention. This one, I ca...more

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Jan 05, 2013 Jean Brodahl rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, middle-grade, steampunk, 2012, order-for-school

When I read sentences out loud to my husband from a book, I know it's special. That said, I think this book's readers have to be ready to concentrate & if they are elementary readers, their skills probably need to be high. The sheer storytelling & imagination is wonderful. I love it when I think to myself, "How did he think to put those words together? Amazing!" I always remind my students that authors write stories, not just words, anyone can write down words, but to put the words toge...more

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Nov 27, 2012 Scott Fabel rated it 5 of 5 stars

I am not surprised that this book was a 2012 National Book Award Winner. It is incredibly well written, and its story seemed new and fresh to me. The story focuses on a young boy named Rownie who is an orphan in a town called Zombay. A law in Zombay prevent anyone from doing any kind of performance (on stage or otherwise) unless that person happens to be a goblin. In an effort to find his lost older brother, Rowan, Rownie joins a troupe of goblin performers (at great personal risk) to learn thei...more

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Nov 21, 2012 Rachael Stein rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: mock-newbery-2013

As you may have heard, Goblin Secrets just won the National Book Award for Young People's Literature. Honestly, the first I'd heard of it was when it made the shortlist. Which is vaguely frustrating. It feels like Sam and I have covered a lot of what's out there in terms of Newbery-eligible books this year, and then something like this comes along. PUBLISHERS: STOP PUBLISHING SO MANY GOOD BOOKS! Wait. Strike that; reverse it.

(Apologies in advance for the rambling, feverish nature of this review....more As you may have heard, Goblin Secrets just won the National Book Award for Young People's Literature. Honestly, the first I'd heard of it was when it made the shortlist. Which is vaguely frustrating. It feels like Sam and I have covered a lot of what's out there in terms of Newbery-eligible books this year, and then something like this comes along. PUBLISHERS: STOP PUBLISHING SO MANY GOOD BOOKS! Wait. Strike that; reverse it.

(Apologies in advance for the rambling, feverish nature of this review. I've been up the past three nights with a sick six-year-old.)

Anyway, back to Goblin Secrets. Two minute summary: orphan Rownie lives with a raggle-taggle group of children under the protection of a Baba-Yaga-esque witch who moves her house around at will. In their city of Zombay, where sinister automatons patrol the streets, acting has been outlawed by the mayor. Against this backdrop, Rownie finds himself drawn to a mysterious troupe of goblin performers who may hold the key to the mystery of his missing brother.

It's not a bad book. It's actually quite enjoyable, but when I start to zero in on the Newbery criteria, I don't see a lot of distinction. The characters, aside from Rownie, are not particularly well-developed. The setting is super cool, but again, I don't feel like it's described as precisely as it could be. The plotting is neatly accomplished, but not extraordinarily so.

And then there's the question of whether it stands alone. It's billed as the first in the Zombay series.We don't usually talk about the first books in series in terms of the standalone question, but I think it's relevant in this case. Alexander introduces a lot of elements (the coal-making, the automatons, the peculiar qualities of the masks) that he clearly means to develop further in later books. While that works to pique the reader's interest, it also gives Goblin Secrets a sort of foggy, incomplete quality.

Looking over the list of past NBA winners, it seems that there's been very little overlap with the Newbery Medal. I wonder how much that has to do with who's judging. The National Book Award judges are all authors, while the Newbery committee is primarily made up of librarians. Clearly, we're looking for different things in books. I wonder if a judging panel made up of authors (a panel that includes Susan Cooper and Gary Schmidt this year) gives more credit than we do for ambitious world building - which is where Goblin Secrets really shines - and for ambition and risk-taking in general. If so, good on them. As I've mentioned before, I don't think we're as good at recognizing those more nebulous elements of excellence. (less)

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Dec 16, 2012 Karen rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: adventure, coming-of-age, dystopia, folklore-fairytale-legend, middle-grade

My rating is actually 3.5 stars. It has excellent descriptions and themes, but the plot never grabbed me, never propelled me through the novel. And I'm a huge plot/structure gal. I'm not that visual. People who have a background in art and architecture might really adore this book. It's also a good book to introduce young people to the traditions of theatre.

I picked it up because it won an award, but I had a hard time connecting with it. I do acknowledge that it has fabulous descriptions that d...more

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Dec 10, 2012 Beth rated it 5 of 5 stars

I picked up Goblin Secrets when it won the National Book Award for young people’s literature, partly because of articles like this one from School Library Journal that pointed out how unusual it is for this award to go to a science fiction or fantasy title. As I always do, I read it with an eye to its appropriateness for my PreK-4 school library as well as its quality and child appeal.

Goblin Secrets tells the story of the orphan Rownie, who lives with the witch Graba in her movable house. Graba...more

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Feb 03, 2013 Lauredhel rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: children-s, fantasy

2.5 stars

I feel like I should have loved this book. The steampunky-fantasy world had a whole pile of potential, the "acting/masque is banned" premise intriguing, and the Quest engaging enough. So why did it fall so flat? I'm still not quite sure. I think perhaps characterisation took a distant back seat to world-building, and plot a closer one, and I need characterisation in my stories. I didn't find myself barracking for Rownie particularly much at all, or caring about any of the other characte...more

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Goblin Secrets (Zombay #1)

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