Hazel Wood (The Hazel Wood, 1)

Warning: rambles ahead!So I think it's ridiculous when people get so wrapped up in the fan-fervor of finding a piece of art, literature, etc. that moves them, that they jump down the back of anyone who dares to dislike said thing.We're people. Pernicious consumers of media. Fickle too, something we might love may one day become hated and vice versa.And yet, if you don't like what I like, it's clear: you are an a-hole.Wait, you're not an a-hole? You just have a mind of your own? Logic? The ability to suss out what does and does not appeal to you? Congratulations, we two may be a-holes, but that's neither here nor there and certainly nothing to do with whether or not you loved "The Hazel Wood" by Melissa Albert.But here's the rub, I LOVED it. And even though I think it's RIDICULOUS part of me wants to call you an a-hole if you didn't.That same part of me (the one that thinks she's always right, wants someone to invent chocolate that causes weight-loss, and deep down wishes she had the gumption to let her inner biatch out to rage when people are particularly stupid) wants to pick apart any criticisms of this book, blowing razzberries and flicking boogers at the naysayers who so CLEARLY didn't "GET IT."And here's why: This book was amazing. I loved every bit of this dark twisty fairytale that manages to combine so many elements into a truly unique and interesting story.And not everyone who reads a book comes into it with the same background or the same influences or even the same taste. There's a reason your mileage may vary. As a lover of fairytales and folklore this book was a little bit Grimm Brothers and a little bit "Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark." It was a little bit Portal story and a little bit Jasper Fforde. It's a little "Alice in Wonderland," a lot "Nightmare Before Christmas" and at the end of the day it's a story about finding yourself.It's about seeing beneath your own skin to the motivations you may not even want to admit to. And then seeing others the same way. And it's all wrapped in a frayed and bloody ribbon of magic and fairytale, of wandering lost so that you might be found.I truly loved this book. And even though it's ridiculous and I normally get REALLY ANNOYED at people who turn all rabid-fan........ If you don't like "The Hazel Wood" I'm blowing a razzberry at you. And I'm judging you.(And in that same vein for PETE'S SAKE when reading a story about fairytales don't bring up deus ex machina. There is no true logic to fairytales. Why would HORSES have a shot at putting Humpty Dumpty together again?! Do we REALLY think a Huntsman with an ax could cut through a wolf and free two people from inside its belly?! Or that a witch could have a functioning oven in her functioning house of freaking gingerbread?!? Just, ugh. In a fairytale it's reasonable that a kiss dislodges a bit of poisoned apple, that a glass slipper can be danced on without cracking. Leave the critical logic at home and accept fairytales for the lovely and horrifying nonsense they are.Ooh, ooh, last one: To every review that claimed that this book is just an "Alice in Wonderland" knockoff. You. Seriously. Wound. Me. (And genuinely piss me off.)It's like comparing a pineapple and an apple because they're both fruits with "apple" in their names. Honestly the comparison tells me more about what you probably haven't read than it does anything else.There is a longstanding tradition of people going into other worlds in fantasy. Some might fall down a hole or go through the back of a cupboard. Some people travel in boats on the river Styx. Some get swept away by a tornado.... I think it's highly unfair to judge this book, which holds many threads of other tales even as it weaves its own pattern, by reducing it to a tepid comparison.Alice from "Alice in Wonderland" is a girl who finds herself in an odd-ball and terrifying place where logic holds little to no sway; Luckily she's a child and it gives her resiliency.The main character in "The Hazel Wood" is also named Alice. She seeks out a terrifying and oddball place where logic is tied to story and story is a cold and relentless taskmaster. She is too old and broken to be resilient but she's on a quest, darn it.So don't sweat the comparisons. This story is not a re-write but can very much stand on its own bloody two feet. And now I'm off the soapbox and staying in my lane and all that jazz.If you love fairytales read this story. And read it for itself, because it's an amazing book and shouldn't suffer at the hands of reviewers who are comparison happy.Everyone's opinion is valid and holds that reader's truth.But everyone's truth differs and some people are just unreliable narrators. 😂So while I can't offer you a lifetime garrantee that you'll love this book as I do, I can offer you a years supply of turtlewax and the promise that this book has magic.(Just kidding about the turtlewax.)

I was all kinds of crazy excited for Melissa Albert’s debut, The Hazel Wood! It screamed fairy tale book all over! The cover is just gorgeous and bespeaks of the fairy tale delights (or not so delights as real fairy tales run kind of dark) ahead! While I found the book to be interesting for sure, I wasn’t as swept away as I would’ve hoped for. I’m not sure how to describe what I mean, but I will do my best.Alice and her mother Ella have been moving from place to place ever since Alice could remember. They always seem to be running from bad luck of some kind that continues to chase them around. Just as Alice thinks things might be settling down when her mother marries a man and they move into his apartment suite, the bad luck comes back! Alice comes home to find her family gone and it’s not until her stepfather and stepsister return with a story of being taken and that Alice must go to the Hazel Wood if she wants to get her mother back that the crazy adventure truly begins!The Hazel Wood is the name of the estate where her mother grew up for a time and it’s where her grandmother lived and wrote the stories that became known as Tales from the Hinterland. This was a book of fairy tales, not the ones we all know and love, but a completely sort. Odd thing is, try as Alice might, she cannot find a copy of the book anywhere and she tried to find it once upon a time when she learned her grandmother wrote them. I would’ve thought it would be interesting to actually get to read these tales. It might have even helped with my reading if I had a better background on things, for this story sort of revolves around this elusive book.Alice starts a journey to get to the elusive Hazel Wood, for no one really knows where it’s at. There’s plenty of secrets in this book. Joining her in her journey is a fellow classmate, Ellery Finch. Ellery knows a lot about Tales from the Hinterland as he too was a bit obsessed with the book growing up and he had a copy long ago before it was stolen. It seems though that their journey will be anything but easy as they hit roadblocks at every turn!This book was a certain kind of weird. It’s almost an enjoyable sort of weird too! Again, I really feel like if I had known more about the Tales from the Hinterland, I would’ve been able to understand things better. I love fairy tales, so when I see certain elements from the variety of tales I’ve read, I’m able to get a better understanding of where this story is headed. Since Tales from the Hinterland is a fictional book from a fictional book there’s really no source for what they are made of. True, Ellery knows the tales backwards and forwards and will relate them to Alice at certain points, but there is the occasional interruption and truly, this drove me mad!!!If you’re expecting there to be a romance building between Alice and Ellery, well, you’d be sort of wrong. There may be some fleeting feelings and moments between them, but soon other things start to happen and well…there just really wasn’t any romance at all in this book. Which I thought was sort of odd since it was fairy tale like in essence. I mean, a good chunk of fairy tales revolve around a romantic kind of love. Not all of them, true, and in this one we do see those other kinds of love, so that was nice in a sense too.I truly think the thing that kept me from giving this one 5 stars was that I knew nothing of the Tales from the Hinterland, other than what Ellery knew. Maybe that was part of the point, as Alice never got to read them either, but it just made things a bit more confusing for me as a reader because I wasn’t sure what was really happening in a sense. Things definitely got muddled for me in more ways than one. Again, though, I did enjoy this story in some ways. The Hazel Wood was still fascinating and dark and beautifully told. I just feel like as a reader if I knew of the Tales of the Hinterland, I could’ve understood The Hazel Wood a bit more. Totally weird, right? Wanting to read a fake book in order to understand the book that mentions said fake book?The Hazel Wood is still remarkable storytelling though! It’s a dark, twisted tale that will keep you guessing at everyone’s intentions. For we already know not to trust the people within fairy tales, but in reality it’s harder to tell who’s trustworthy and who’s not. If Melissa were to ever do a bonus addition that let us read these mystical Tales from the Hinterland, I’d be all over that! And possibly even willing to do a re-read of this one! Which coming from me, as you know, is BIG!! This is most definitely a book all lovers of fairy tales should read! It contains the classic elements we know and love and it is a truly magical read in essence, if a little befuddling at times. I might just be overanalyzing things too much as I read.Overall Rating 4/5 stars

Um livro lindo esteticamente mas que acabe sendo só mais um livro adolescente e que mesmo assim apresenta elementos únicos e cativante. Recomendo. Em ralação a quem está comprando pra treinar o inglês, é um livro fácil para quem possui um bom nível de inglês.

I picked this up on Saturday morning and was sucked right into the story by the beautiful writing and interesting characters. I read for hours and finished the book on the Sunday afternoon. I haven't done that since I was a teenager! This is marketed as a YA book but adults will love it too. A fantastic reinvention of fairy tale storytelling. Such vivid description and flowing prose. I really enjoyed this book. If you liked The Night Circus, An Unkindness of Magicians, or Mythago Wood (an oldie but goodie), you'll really enjoy The Hazel Wood!

Físicamente el libro es precioso, con acabados de calidad. Lo compré para regalar y le encantó a la persona que lo recibió.El envío fue rápido.

The story drew me in from the get-go and even though I won't give anything of it away it's an amazing tale of magic, of love, of loss, of finding yourself.The one thing that really bugged me is that the ending seemed kind of aprupt. The last twenty percent of the book could have been their own part two and made the perfect tale into a saga that was, in itself, whole.Read this if you're looking to flee this world for a little while.Very well written, exceptional storytelling, a true joy to read.

Brilliant. Thats all that is coming to me right now thinking back to the book. I mean it is sort of Alice in wonderland and has all that craziness but at the same time it is much more than that. I do not know how to exactly explain this book but “crazy” is one word that comes to my mind. This is in all meaning a roller coaster book. The journey, and mind it there is an actual journey involved in the book, and it is exhilarating, crazy and absolutely page-turner. Hazel wood is a crazy roller coaster but a complete must readI had seen this book doing its round in all the book clubs, blogs and vlogs. So naturally i had a curiosity as to what the book was all about and had badly wanted to read it. Then of course the pretty cover didn’t hurt much too. I mean look at that cover. They are gorgeous. Both hardcover and paperback have different versions and both are equally eye catching.My advice to you apart from the obvious one to read it like right now, is to actually go for the book without reading its synopsis. Because what the book has to offer can’t be truly explained in bunch of lines because once you start reading the book, it totally takes on a different form.For me the book is divided into two phases. One before the ride to Hazelwood and the other before it where things are comparitively happening in the real world and still sane. But both the phases are absolutely amazing and the book just keeps getting better and better with each chapters. The second half is almost like an alice in wonderland experience. Totally insane. Totally weird but at the same time addictive.Funny that the book talks about a fairy tale when it itself felt nothing less to a mesmerising fairy tale story capable to pull one into its charm. The book is everything everyone is talking about and it is a must read. I think you are missing out on a gorgeous and a fantastic read if you are not reading this one.