Across the Great Barrier by Patricia Wrede

Across the Great Barrier by Patricia C. Wrede

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a rather strange book in many ways. One of the heroine's main interests is animals and two of her jobs involved cataloging plants and animals and taking care of captured animals, both magical and non-magical. All of the action, as it were, takes place in a rather strange alternate reality version of the wild American west. These elements don't seem destined for an interesting book, and yet, I found myself reading the whole thing and eager to keep reading - a marked contrast to most of the other YA books I have been trying to read lately. Perhaps it is because I am interested in both science and science fiction.

Yes, there is a coming of age story, too. But it is much more subtly handled that many of its ilk.

I feel odd saying that I really enjoyed this book, because, to me, the plot is rather meandering and there are quite a few characters that just don't seem that compelling. But the ones that do interest me have a lot that really intrigues me.

Maybe in a few days, I will have a better idea why this book appealed to me so much.

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