Reviews

The Rain Heron by Robbie Arnott

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dre_'s review against another edition

3.0

This was fun, I haven’t read anything like it before. I’ve heard it called an “eco-fable” and that feels right to me! The end was a bit twee for me, but there’s something very satisfying and safe about tidy endings. The imagery of the rain heron was my favourite part.

jwtaljaard's review against another edition

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dark tense medium-paced

2.75

rrstarrs's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

rebeccazh's review against another edition

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4.0

I agree with the reviewer who called this an eco-fable. It's a rather short book, split into four parts. The first three parts feature seemingly unconnected characters, told in a myth/fable-like style. The last part zooms into the human characters in a journey/roadtrip of sorts. The atmosphere of the book is haunting and dystopian.

I thought this book did a fantastic job showing the relationship between man, communities, and nature. The animals in this book (the rain heron, the squid) are mystical, with a touch of the unknowable about them. The groups of humans who interact with the animals have various agendas and motivations; some live in a harmonious and interdependent way with the animals, while others are driven by greed and profit and see the animals only as objects, leading to cruel spillover effects on other humans.

Also, I thought the rain heron would feature more.

motherofladybirds's review against another edition

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2.0

A fable, about the devastating effects of climate change and the myths that desperate people are lead to chase to try to resolve it. Power over the elements is the ultimate power. the abuse of the natural world is reflected in the tale of the exploitation of the squid leading to death rather than the symbiotic relationships that existed before. I enjoyed the beautiful nature writing which was sublime, but I found the characters and their motivations difficult to comprehend.