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amerasuu's review
5.0
Absolutely understand why this is a prize winning book. I hope Cath Moore has a long career ahead of her. Incredible.
essjay1's review
5.0
Dylan is a charming narrator, most unreliable yet often wise. Really nicely written and engaging, this is a road trip/coming of age book that veers between hilarious & heartbreaking in a heartbeat. There is an element of magical thinking here too that fans of Trent Dalton will enjoy. Recommended.
kenjiscortland's review
1.0
i literally cannot put into words how utterly painful this book was to get through. thats two hours of my life i will never get back. its times like this when i really wish goodreads had a 0 stars option.
nina_reads_books's review
3.0
Metal Fish, Falling Snow is the only YA novel longlisted for @thestellaprize this year and is a debut by Cath Moore.
Dylan (aged fourteen) and her French mother live in a country town dreaming of travelling to Paris by boat. Dylan’s Guyanese father has not been around for years and she hopes that one day she won’t feel like her black skin is making her stand out.
One day Dylan’s mum dies in an accident that she believes is her fault and the only person left to care for Dylan is Pat, her mother’s boyfriend. Pat and Dylan go on a road trip across Australia to take her to live with her father’s family – people she has never met.
The book is written as though you are listening to Dylan’s thoughts. Her struggle with coming to terms with her racial identity at the same time as coming to terms with the grief over losing her mother was palpable. Her thinking is lyrical and symbolic and quite beautiful at times even though at the same time it demonstrates just how differently she sees the world. Her ability to see into other people’s memories was a surprising element of what I guess you would call magical realism.
But overall I just really struggled to connect with this book and I’m not entirely sure I understand why. Aspects of Dylan’s thinking make you think she is being portrayed as neuro-diverse and then suddenly there would be a scene where she has seen a memory of another person that she clearly could not have known about. Is it magic?
Maybe I was missing the point of the book? I feel like this is a “it’s not the book but me issue”.
Dylan (aged fourteen) and her French mother live in a country town dreaming of travelling to Paris by boat. Dylan’s Guyanese father has not been around for years and she hopes that one day she won’t feel like her black skin is making her stand out.
One day Dylan’s mum dies in an accident that she believes is her fault and the only person left to care for Dylan is Pat, her mother’s boyfriend. Pat and Dylan go on a road trip across Australia to take her to live with her father’s family – people she has never met.
The book is written as though you are listening to Dylan’s thoughts. Her struggle with coming to terms with her racial identity at the same time as coming to terms with the grief over losing her mother was palpable. Her thinking is lyrical and symbolic and quite beautiful at times even though at the same time it demonstrates just how differently she sees the world. Her ability to see into other people’s memories was a surprising element of what I guess you would call magical realism.
But overall I just really struggled to connect with this book and I’m not entirely sure I understand why. Aspects of Dylan’s thinking make you think she is being portrayed as neuro-diverse and then suddenly there would be a scene where she has seen a memory of another person that she clearly could not have known about. Is it magic?
Maybe I was missing the point of the book? I feel like this is a “it’s not the book but me issue”.
helterskelliter's review
4.0
“Everyone wants the dream world to be real and the real world to be a dream. If you don’t then you’re lying. But when the worlds collide everything all falls apart.” (150)
Dylan is grieving.
When Dylan’s mother, a French woman who moved to Australia, dies suddenly in a tragic accident, Dylan is left alone. Well, kind of. Her mother’s boyfriend, Pat, takes Dylan under his wing. Kind of.
Pat is grieving too. The woman he loved is dead and all he has left of her is her “oddball” daughter. Dylan doesn’t exactly make it easy to care for her.
She’s always wandering off, chasing visions and eavesdropping on other people’s thoughts, sharing secrets with the water. See, Dylan has this sixth sense for things. She can become unstuck in time and travel through memories. She can’t change what’s happened but she can always feel the pain.
It’s hard, being stuck in the past. Yearning for a different future.
But, Pat tries to care for Dylan. To do right by her, if only for her mother. Together, the two embark on a cross country road trip. The destination? Dylan’s father’s relatives — Guyanese immigrants to Australia. Along the way, Dylan and Pat learn that not all family is blood and that love can be like nature — cruel or kind.
This is such a peculiar and charming story. The narrative is often nonlinear and meandering with no clear trajectory. I feel just as lost and afloat as Dylan throughout as I try to navigate her grief — with losing her mother and with her biracial self.
At heart, this is a story about identity and about finding yourself and where you belong and with who.
It’s vivid and disorienting. It’s breathtaking and heartbreaking.
Definitely recommend!
Dylan is grieving.
When Dylan’s mother, a French woman who moved to Australia, dies suddenly in a tragic accident, Dylan is left alone. Well, kind of. Her mother’s boyfriend, Pat, takes Dylan under his wing. Kind of.
Pat is grieving too. The woman he loved is dead and all he has left of her is her “oddball” daughter. Dylan doesn’t exactly make it easy to care for her.
She’s always wandering off, chasing visions and eavesdropping on other people’s thoughts, sharing secrets with the water. See, Dylan has this sixth sense for things. She can become unstuck in time and travel through memories. She can’t change what’s happened but she can always feel the pain.
It’s hard, being stuck in the past. Yearning for a different future.
But, Pat tries to care for Dylan. To do right by her, if only for her mother. Together, the two embark on a cross country road trip. The destination? Dylan’s father’s relatives — Guyanese immigrants to Australia. Along the way, Dylan and Pat learn that not all family is blood and that love can be like nature — cruel or kind.
This is such a peculiar and charming story. The narrative is often nonlinear and meandering with no clear trajectory. I feel just as lost and afloat as Dylan throughout as I try to navigate her grief — with losing her mother and with her biracial self.
At heart, this is a story about identity and about finding yourself and where you belong and with who.
It’s vivid and disorienting. It’s breathtaking and heartbreaking.
Definitely recommend!
textpublishing's review
The following reviews are shared by Text Publishing – publisher of Metal Fish, Falling Snow
‘A breathtaking debut with such an assured, original voice—one page and I was all in. I wanted to remember every line but it felt like trying to catch handfuls of stars—in the end every piece fell into place so beautifully and I sat there in gobsmacked silence…you know the feeling that hits after you’ve read an extraordinary book? Metal Fish, Falling Snow is one of the most moving books I’ve read in ages and I’ll be thinking about it for a long time.’
Vikki Wakefield
‘Astonishingly original, heartfelt and funny.’
Books+Publishing
'Guyanese-Australian writer Cath Moore’s debut novel, Metal Fish, Falling Snow (Text), is a lyrical and moving road trip across regional Australia with a fascinating young protagonist.’
Maxine Beneba Clarke, Age
'A sometimes funny, often profound story that will reward the effort of reading Dylan's own voice narrative.’
ReadPlus
‘This wonderful Australian debut paints a whirling, raging, intense portrait of a teen who experiences the world in ways that she struggles to communicate to others. The reader is taken deep into Dylan’s mind and heart and senses, in ways that are sometimes deeply humorous, and at other times deeply painful. Layers of ideas about race, identity, grief and family run through this book, but the focus never wavers from Dylan’s funny and profound voice. This is a really moving, original and thought-provoking novel.’
Leanne Hall
‘Full of spark and humour, and each page is imbued with striking and unforgettable imagery...This is a novel for both young and old; a brilliant and heartfelt work of Australian fiction.’
Stella Prize Judges’ Report
‘Emotional and raw... debut author Moore uses spare, pointed and poetic language to evoke Dylan’s search for magic in everything, including herself.’
Booklist
'This beautifully written novel is a confident and creative YA debut that explores the themes of grief, family and identity with wonderful imagery and genuine humour. The language used is awe-inspiring and unique.’
CBCA judges's comments
'Metal Fish, Falling Snow is concrete and lace, a multi-layered, poetic work which delves hard and often surgically into the hearts of its characters and allows readers significant insight into the interplay of despair and hope that characterises being human.’
Judges’ comments, 2021 Prime Minister’s Literary Awards
‘A breathtaking debut with such an assured, original voice—one page and I was all in. I wanted to remember every line but it felt like trying to catch handfuls of stars—in the end every piece fell into place so beautifully and I sat there in gobsmacked silence…you know the feeling that hits after you’ve read an extraordinary book? Metal Fish, Falling Snow is one of the most moving books I’ve read in ages and I’ll be thinking about it for a long time.’
Vikki Wakefield
‘Astonishingly original, heartfelt and funny.’
Books+Publishing
'Guyanese-Australian writer Cath Moore’s debut novel, Metal Fish, Falling Snow (Text), is a lyrical and moving road trip across regional Australia with a fascinating young protagonist.’
Maxine Beneba Clarke, Age
'A sometimes funny, often profound story that will reward the effort of reading Dylan's own voice narrative.’
ReadPlus
‘This wonderful Australian debut paints a whirling, raging, intense portrait of a teen who experiences the world in ways that she struggles to communicate to others. The reader is taken deep into Dylan’s mind and heart and senses, in ways that are sometimes deeply humorous, and at other times deeply painful. Layers of ideas about race, identity, grief and family run through this book, but the focus never wavers from Dylan’s funny and profound voice. This is a really moving, original and thought-provoking novel.’
Leanne Hall
‘Full of spark and humour, and each page is imbued with striking and unforgettable imagery...This is a novel for both young and old; a brilliant and heartfelt work of Australian fiction.’
Stella Prize Judges’ Report
‘Emotional and raw... debut author Moore uses spare, pointed and poetic language to evoke Dylan’s search for magic in everything, including herself.’
Booklist
'This beautifully written novel is a confident and creative YA debut that explores the themes of grief, family and identity with wonderful imagery and genuine humour. The language used is awe-inspiring and unique.’
CBCA judges's comments
'Metal Fish, Falling Snow is concrete and lace, a multi-layered, poetic work which delves hard and often surgically into the hearts of its characters and allows readers significant insight into the interplay of despair and hope that characterises being human.’
Judges’ comments, 2021 Prime Minister’s Literary Awards
suspiciouspinecone's review
5.0
I just finished this and I'm in such a state of joy I don't know if I can really express it, but I'll do my best. I really, really loved this book. More than a lot of books I have ever read. Dylan's internal narration was an absolute joy to see, I honestly got such a strong sense of her that it feels like I really know her now.
She is not neurotypical, okay? I'm not sure what her neurotype is, but it is not neurotypical, and it was an incredibly honest depiction.
The characters were brilliant, the style was brilliant, the plot was grounded and magic at the same time somehow, I just really loved it.
CW: Death, racism, internalised racism, ableism, bad language, attempted sexual assault, addiction, mention of sexual assault, animal cruelty, comas
She is not neurotypical, okay? I'm not sure what her neurotype is, but it is not neurotypical, and it was an incredibly honest depiction.
The characters were brilliant, the style was brilliant, the plot was grounded and magic at the same time somehow, I just really loved it.
CW: Death, racism, internalised racism, ableism, bad language, attempted sexual assault, addiction, mention of sexual assault, animal cruelty, comas
ashrocc's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
justapileofrats's review
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0