Over the Woodward Wall

Well that was beautiful! I love Seanan McGuire so much, her books always have that quality where I just want to keep reading because the words sound so nice. It took a friend mentioning Middlegame for me to actually remember why I know this title-before that, I'd assumed she just decided to play with another pseudonym.

This deserves to be an instant classic of children's literature. The story is so fun, the scenes full of an Alice in Wonderland like surreal beauty, and the characters so fully realized. On top of that, it layers subtle things that are so important to learn—messages of understanding and honoring our emotions, of identity being more than what people see, of inequality and unfairness being something to fight against. I love how deep and meaningful everything is. I can't wait for the sequel!

Thank you to Netgalley and Tor.com for providing me with a copy of this in exchange for my open and honest review.

Over The Woodward Wall by A. Deborah Baker is a complicated book to review. A. Deborah Baker is the newest pseudonym of prolific author Seanan McGuire and goes hand in hand with one of her other works, Middlegame. It is meta, Over the Woodward Wall was mentioned in Middlegame, and now we have the full children's book to go with it.
Honestly, I wasn't even aware of the connection until I had an a-ha moment about halfway through the story. You don't need to have read Middlegame to appreciate Over The Woodward Wall. Still, I think readers will have a fuller appreciation and understanding of the story if they have read Middlegame.

“Humans always look the same to me once they're old enough to leave the nest. Hatchling humans are one thing, but the rest of you? Pssh.”

The story is about two children who are polar opposites of each other in almost every way. Avery, who is calm, collected, systematic, and rule-abiding, is half the duo. While Zib, who is loud, frizzy, wild, and free-spirited, is the other half of the pair. Together they balance each other and cancel each others strongest tendencies. The only thing Zib and Avery have in common is their age. That is... until a chance meeting while on a wall to the Up and Under intertwined their destinies. Now, in a land completely different than our own, the two of them have to work together because they will never escape otherwise.

Seanan McGuire is a master storyteller. If you haven't had a chance to check out the myriad of her novels, series, and short stories, you should. She has a way about writing that is lyrical enough to dance across the pages, but substantial enough that a reader does not get lost in the words. All that being said, I don't think this is her best work. That is a relative thing. Even on McGuire's worst days, she still is a fabulous writer.

But, Over the Woodward Wall was missing something.

The story has a lot of good. The worldbuilding is well done. There are giant talking blue owls, waterfalls made of mud, a crow girl, and so many other fantastical things. It is reminiscent of Alice in Wonderland and McGuire's Wayward Children series. The world is an elaborate creation, and it is believable and whimsical at the same time. I can see two children getting lost in all this.

“Neither of them could see the cliff they fell past, but if they had, they would have understood the mud a little better, for the stone was banded in pink and blue and purple, stripes of one color sitting atop the next, like something from a storybook.”

Avery and Zib are fun lead characters that balance each other well but learn to adapt to the situations as they arise. It is a good lesson for kids because, technically, this is written for children. But I think the lessons were too heavy-handed; every character Avery and Zib crossed had something to teach them, some lesson. That is generally important in a fable; it seems too much. Even fables and children's stories have subtleties. Because it was apparent what each of the characters was doing, I could not get engaged in it as much as I would have liked to.

On the flip side, the story did not seem long enough. It felt incomplete. I wanted more. Maybe that will be realized in future books, but I ended this story slightly dissatisfied. It was a weird combination of too much info in one part of the story and not enough in another.

“A piece can represent the whole,” said Meadowsweet. “If the human child wants to hold up a branch and say it means the entire tree, I don't see where it's another human child's place to stop it. Representative symbols are an essential piece of making so many things. Without them, we wouldn't have maps, or books, or paintings. Peace, human child. Let your fellow be.”

Of course, even with slight criticism of the plot, this is a fun story. The children's voices are engaging, and its meandering manner is thematic. You are meandering with the kids as they make their way through the world. And, even though this isn't McGuire's best work, it is still a fun read. Besides, I loved Middlegame. It was one of the best books I read last year, and the meta quality of Over the Woodward Wall adds another layer to the story and makes me appreciate Middlegame all the more.

If you are a fan of McGuire's work, you will undoubtedly appreciate this. And, even though it wasn't as engaging as I had hoped, this is still a very good story and worth the time it takes to read it.

3.5/5 stars rounded to 4

A well written story about two very different children who find themselves in a strange magical world and have to learn the importance of friendship and to value their differences as they walk the Improbable Road to find their way home. I really enjoyed this little book, which reminded me in places of [b:Narnia 100915 The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (Chronicles of Narnia, #1) C.S. Lewis https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1353029077l/100915.SY75.jpg 4790821], [b:The Phantom Tollbooth 378 The Phantom Tollbooth Norton Juster https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1558858485l/378.SX50.jpg 1782584] and, of course, [b:Alice's Adventures in Wonderland 24213 Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass Lewis Carroll https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1327872220l/24213.SY75.jpg 2375385].Clearly written with adults in mind (as is the Phantom Tollbooth), I feel that this would also be appropriate for younger readers.I understand that this is a sort-of spinoff of the book [b:Middlegame 35965482 Middlegame (Middlegame, #1) Seanan McGuire https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1537297437l/35965482.SX50.jpg 57524946] and I've seen some discussion about whether this book works as a stand-alone. I've never read Middlegame and not once did I feel like I was missing out.This did absolutely feel like a side tale from the utterly wonderful [b:Wayward Children 25526296 Every Heart a Doorway (Wayward Children, #1) Seanan McGuire https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1431438555l/25526296.SX50.jpg 45313140] series, which can only be a good thing.My one complaint is that this book ended on a cliff-hanger and I was not aware that this was part of a series. To phrase that differently - Ms Baker / McGuire had better continue the tale and not leave those children stuck over the wall! I want to find out what happens next!

This is another novella by the same author as the author of the Wayward Children series (Seanan McGuire), but she used the pen name Deborah A. Baker. I didn't enjoy this one nearly as much as I love the Wayward Children books, but it wasn't horrible. I may eventually read the rest in the series, but probably not until I get through my already long list of “to-read” books.

I loved the Over the Woodward Wall excerpts in [b:Middlegame 35965482 Middlegame (Middlegame, #1) Seanan McGuire https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1537297437l/35965482.SX50.jpg 57524946]Middlegame, but I'm not sure I knew what to expect when I picked up Over the Woodward Wall to read in its entirety. It reads like a middle grade adventure novel. It reminded me, several times, of The Wizard of Oz. That said, I think I kept reading for clues or hints about the science of Middlegame and then feeling a bit lost because they either are not there or I missed them. To be fair, it's been over a year since I read Middlegame. At the same time, I sat in my back yard on a beautiful October day, with my coffee and my feet up and just enjoyed this sweet tale of two kids on a very dangerous mission to find The Impossible Road. I even laughed a few times. I should have taken notes so I can remember what's going on for the sequel.