by Hana Tooke
Libby audiobook 9 hours
read by: Fiona Hardingham
Published: 2020
Genre: YA historical fiction, mystery
What an unusual book! Five children are left at the Little Tulip Orphanage in Amsterdam in the 1880s under strange circumstances (one in a tin toolbox, one in a coal bucket, one in a picnic hamper, one in a wheat sack, and one in a coffin-shaped basket). The matron in charge of the orphanage (Elinora Gassbeek) is cruel and tells the children as they are turning 12 that they are "unadoptable." When she tries to sell them as laborers to a merciless shipper, Milou, Lotta, Egg, Fenna, and Sem decide to strike out on their own.
There are lots of dark themes, but Tooke is such an effective storyteller that I was drawn in and really enjoyed the story. The puppet show and the climax of the story - wow. It definitely makes me want to read more by this author. The vocal work was also fantastic.
No comments:
Post a Comment