Cybils 2018 Finalists: Sweep and Stone Girl [Review]

Yup, I’m finally clearing this post out of my drafts…

Sweep by Jonathan Auxier

For nearly a century, Victorian London relied on “climbing boys”–orphans owned by chimney sweeps–to clean flues and protect homes from fire. The work was hard, thankless and brutally dangerous. Eleven-year-old Nan Sparrow is quite possibly the best climber who ever lived–and a girl. With her wits and will, she’s managed to beat the deadly odds time and time again. But when Nan gets stuck in a deadly chimney fire, she fears her time has come. Instead, she wakes to find herself in an abandoned attic. And she is not alone. Huddled in the corner is a mysterious creature–a golem–made from ash and coal. This is the creature that saved her from the fire. Sweep is the story of a girl and her monster. Together, these two outcasts carve out a life together–saving one another in the process.

Goodreads description

★★★

CW: Antisemitism, child abuse, death of a caregiver (off page)

• Sweep takes a slow start. After 100 pages, I wondered if anything was going to happen. I found it a bit dull going as Nan and Charlie (the golem) get to know each other. The narrative felt almost ‘slice of life’, which is not something I’ve ever wanted to read in a middle grade novel. Nothing much happens until one character’s accident around page 275 spurs the story onto its climax. These comments reveal my personal bias: I prefer a compelling story line with some action (rather than just quiet character development) that keeps my interest for the entire book, not just at the end.
• It probably didn’t help that I didn’t connect with Charlie. Compared to Inkling (Inkling) or Mingus (Thisby Thestoop and the Black Mountain) (both non-human sidekicks that play large roles in their respective stories), I found Charlie less compelling.
• I appreciated the exploration of friendship and what it means to care for and protect the ones you love, as well as the commentary on the experience of Jews in England during the time period. However, I would have appreciated a bit more explanation about Miss Blooms’ background. I guessed she came from an Orthodox family. but if a reader isn’t already familiar with Jewish communities/practices, they might find her attitude towards her heritage a bit perplexing.
• I read this book because it was a finalist for the Cybils in the middle grade speculative fiction category. However, I would hand this book to a fan of historical fiction before I would give it to a fan of speculative fiction.

The Stone Girl’s Story by Sarah Beth Durst

Mayka and her stone family were brought to life by the stories etched into their bodies. Now time is eroding these vital marks, and Mayka must find a stonemason to recarve them. But the search is more complex than she had imagined, and Mayka uncovers a scheme endangering all stone creatures. Only someone who casts stories into stone can help—but whom can Mayka trust? Where is the stonemason who will save them? Action and insight combine in this magical coming-of-age novel.

Goodreads Description

★★★½

CW: Death of a caregiver (off page)

• I found The Stone Girl’s Story largely peaceful and positive. It was a pleasant read with little stress, though the story wasn’t without conflict.
• I particularly enjoyed the characters and the world building. Durst skillfully reveals the greater society’s view of stone creatures bit by bit, expanding the reader’s understanding beyond Mayka and company’s initially limited perspective. My main issue with the overall narrative is that it leans a bit heavy on allegory.
• The resolution with Master Siorn and the stone monster was clever, but I thought the story was building towards ‘flesh and blood’ people having a revelation that stone creatures are as independent and human as they are (as Mayka explains to Garit on page 215). It seemed odd to me that it was still considered acceptable to require stone creatures to have keepers at all. I think this concern was addressed in one brief line about how stone creatures work for keepers to pay for their carving and to have their marks recarved, but that seemed out of step with the rest of the narrative to me (i.e. humans don’t have to work to pay for being born but the creatures need to continue working for keepers if they want to keep on existing).
• I loved all the elements of the fairytale-esque ending, which gives a brief but satisfying overview of the characters over the following years.