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mari_escapeinabook's review against another edition
4.0
What's She Thief about?
In this novel we get to know two young thieves, Baz and Demi, they're living in a bad neighborhood in a South American city. Both of the children are orphans and they have been raised by a women named Fay. Fay has teached them how to be the best pickpockets in the city in order to survive. Everything Baz and Demi steal goes to Fay, in return she gives them shelter, food and money for clothing. The three of them have been together for what feels like forever, they're almost like family. But just almost, if anyone breaks Fay's rules they're gone!
My thoughts:
When I opened this book I didn't really know what to expect, and really that for me is a good thing. I tend to have so high expectations when it comes to books everyone seems to fall in love with. I often end up disappointed. She Thief started out a bit slow for me, I felt there were so many long sentences and the English slang/dialect being used kind of annoyed me. After 30 pages everything that bothered me was forgotten and I was sucked into the world of the two friendly thieves, Baz and Demi, their friends and a whole bunch of other more dangerous criminals.
Daniel Finn managed to keep me on the edge of my seat, almost throughout the entire book. I was never sure where he was taking his characters. never felt sure if all the people I came to love would have a happy ending, would end up dead in a ditch somewhere or locked up in the Castle forever(or worse working in the Mountain). I cried and cried when I read the last few pages last night and today the characters have been in the back of my mind all day.
I loved the dialog between Demi and Baz, they're friendly banter is guaranteed to make you smile. She Thief for me was a story about never letting go of your friends and family, sometimes bad things happen but you don't just close your eyes and move on with your own life like nothing ever happened. Even in the worst thinkable places there can be good people, you cannot live your life without trusting a single soul. That's no way to lead your life.
Daniel Finn writes about a corrupted system that sadly still exists in many countries. It really is a horrible thing to reflect about, how many people have been wronged by this kind of way to governing? We also get to see a way of life that's the only option for survival for many, many young children living in poor countries, stealing. The most heart wrenching for me was reading about the children and the families working on the Mountain(a recycling compound/dumpster), getting sick by all the filth and garbage they live and breathe every single day. Sadly this is also the way of life for many poor people in real life.
The story is a bit like a modern Oliver Twist, I haven't read the book myself but I know how the story goes.
She Thief is a great young adult thriller. I really loved reading it and it made me even more grateful for everything I got.
The cover:
I just noticed that some has made complaints about the cover since the two main characters is described as having dark skin. I can understand the complaints but for me it's highly unlikely that the girl on the cover is supposed to be 13-14 year old Baz. In the book she is described as a girl looking just like a boy, very unlikely that she wears any makeup. For me the girl on the cover is Fay, their leader, she's described as a girl with fair skin and red hair in her late twenties/early thirties.
In this novel we get to know two young thieves, Baz and Demi, they're living in a bad neighborhood in a South American city. Both of the children are orphans and they have been raised by a women named Fay. Fay has teached them how to be the best pickpockets in the city in order to survive. Everything Baz and Demi steal goes to Fay, in return she gives them shelter, food and money for clothing. The three of them have been together for what feels like forever, they're almost like family. But just almost, if anyone breaks Fay's rules they're gone!
My thoughts:
When I opened this book I didn't really know what to expect, and really that for me is a good thing. I tend to have so high expectations when it comes to books everyone seems to fall in love with. I often end up disappointed. She Thief started out a bit slow for me, I felt there were so many long sentences and the English slang/dialect being used kind of annoyed me. After 30 pages everything that bothered me was forgotten and I was sucked into the world of the two friendly thieves, Baz and Demi, their friends and a whole bunch of other more dangerous criminals.
Daniel Finn managed to keep me on the edge of my seat, almost throughout the entire book. I was never sure where he was taking his characters. never felt sure if all the people I came to love would have a happy ending, would end up dead in a ditch somewhere or locked up in the Castle forever(or worse working in the Mountain). I cried and cried when I read the last few pages last night and today the characters have been in the back of my mind all day.
I loved the dialog between Demi and Baz, they're friendly banter is guaranteed to make you smile. She Thief for me was a story about never letting go of your friends and family, sometimes bad things happen but you don't just close your eyes and move on with your own life like nothing ever happened. Even in the worst thinkable places there can be good people, you cannot live your life without trusting a single soul. That's no way to lead your life.
Daniel Finn writes about a corrupted system that sadly still exists in many countries. It really is a horrible thing to reflect about, how many people have been wronged by this kind of way to governing? We also get to see a way of life that's the only option for survival for many, many young children living in poor countries, stealing. The most heart wrenching for me was reading about the children and the families working on the Mountain(a recycling compound/dumpster), getting sick by all the filth and garbage they live and breathe every single day. Sadly this is also the way of life for many poor people in real life.
The story is a bit like a modern Oliver Twist, I haven't read the book myself but I know how the story goes.
She Thief is a great young adult thriller. I really loved reading it and it made me even more grateful for everything I got.
The cover:
I just noticed that some has made complaints about the cover since the two main characters is described as having dark skin. I can understand the complaints but for me it's highly unlikely that the girl on the cover is supposed to be 13-14 year old Baz. In the book she is described as a girl looking just like a boy, very unlikely that she wears any makeup. For me the girl on the cover is Fay, their leader, she's described as a girl with fair skin and red hair in her late twenties/early thirties.
kaitrosereads's review against another edition
2.0
I hate writing negative reviews but I have to be honest and I honestly hated She Thief. There was nothing good about it and I can't say I recommend it to anyone.
My worst complaint about She Thief is the plot. I was bored out of my mind for pretty much the whole book. It picked up some at the end but I still had trouble getting through it. I hoped it would get better and it did but I still did not like the book.
Also, I was confused. I honestly could not tell if the book was set in the past, present, or future. The Barrio was a weird place and it wasn't like anything I have read about. I wanted to know the time period but I couldn't even guess it. It was odd and it just added to how much I didn't like the book.
Overall, She Thief was not a good book. Nothing about it was enjoyable and if you are interested in it at all definitely check it out at your library before spending any money on it.
My worst complaint about She Thief is the plot. I was bored out of my mind for pretty much the whole book. It picked up some at the end but I still had trouble getting through it. I hoped it would get better and it did but I still did not like the book.
Also, I was confused. I honestly could not tell if the book was set in the past, present, or future. The Barrio was a weird place and it wasn't like anything I have read about. I wanted to know the time period but I couldn't even guess it. It was odd and it just added to how much I didn't like the book.
Overall, She Thief was not a good book. Nothing about it was enjoyable and if you are interested in it at all definitely check it out at your library before spending any money on it.
pwbalto's review against another edition
5.0
"This is one of those rare items that is all action, full of narrow escapes and scenic chases, but also all heart. While also being a terrific, brainy suspense novel, all twists and strategy."
Full review on Pink Me: http://pinkme.typepad.com/pink-me/2010/05/she-thief-by-daniel-finn-review.html
Full review on Pink Me: http://pinkme.typepad.com/pink-me/2010/05/she-thief-by-daniel-finn-review.html
dtaylorbooks's review against another edition
3.0
While this book took me a little while to get through, and while it was pretty slow to get started, it had its moments that left me not wanting to put it down. There were moments where the fate of the kids was literally hanging in the balance and I wanted to find out what happened to them. There were also times where I wanted to say 'get the hell on with it.'
I think one of the reasons I found it so hard to really connect with any of the characters and the plot was the dialect the story is written in. I can handle dialect in short stories but an entire novel? It made for a slow read because my brain had a hard time getting around the choppy, clunky arrangement of words. The narration also flipped back and forth between "normal" and dialect and it kind of threw me off. It made it hard to determine whose head I was in, if anyone's. It was like the author couldn't decide whether to keep the point of view omniscient or limited and settled on the little bit of both.
The way those kids lived and were treated was terrible. And no matter what Fay's situation ended up being, she deserved everything she got. She never gave a damn about Demi or Baz beyond what they could provide for her. I guess she felt she deserved the position she was in. She worked her way for a while and then she got to settle and get others to do it for her. But the way she handed over kids basically to their deaths was atrocious. There were moments where I could half understand her situation and why she existed the way she did but most of the time I just didn't care. I couldn't stand her.
Baz and Demi had great ying and yang personalities. They complimented each other nicely and they really looked out for each other. The lengths they went to to protect and help each other was truly touching. Especially as the chapters wound down, I found myself rooting for them and plowing through the chapters faster than before because I wanted to see just what happened to them.
While the plot was very slow moving (the moment with the ring doesn't come until quite a few chapters in) and hard to get involved with because of the dialect barrier, Finn had an excellent way of projecting the dirt of the Barrio onto the reader. The grime and mange was both subtle and prominent in the story. It was every day lives for Baz and Demi and really had no effect on them. Washing in water that'll give you the shits? Not a problem so long as they didn't drink it. Traipsing around in mud and sewage? Whatever. They could wash it off. The image of the Barrio was so clear in my mind. The smells and the feel of the ward was right there and it was unnerving. That was probably the best part of the novel; just how engulfing the Barrio was, like you're actually standing in the middle of it.
Overall the story was a little slow but really compelling towards the end, Baz and Demi are pretty irresistible and Fay's a bitch. By the end of it you'll want to shower to get the Barrio grime off of your skin and you'll thank the gods you don't live in one.
I think one of the reasons I found it so hard to really connect with any of the characters and the plot was the dialect the story is written in. I can handle dialect in short stories but an entire novel? It made for a slow read because my brain had a hard time getting around the choppy, clunky arrangement of words. The narration also flipped back and forth between "normal" and dialect and it kind of threw me off. It made it hard to determine whose head I was in, if anyone's. It was like the author couldn't decide whether to keep the point of view omniscient or limited and settled on the little bit of both.
The way those kids lived and were treated was terrible. And no matter what Fay's situation ended up being, she deserved everything she got. She never gave a damn about Demi or Baz beyond what they could provide for her. I guess she felt she deserved the position she was in. She worked her way for a while and then she got to settle and get others to do it for her. But the way she handed over kids basically to their deaths was atrocious. There were moments where I could half understand her situation and why she existed the way she did but most of the time I just didn't care. I couldn't stand her.
Baz and Demi had great ying and yang personalities. They complimented each other nicely and they really looked out for each other. The lengths they went to to protect and help each other was truly touching. Especially as the chapters wound down, I found myself rooting for them and plowing through the chapters faster than before because I wanted to see just what happened to them.
While the plot was very slow moving (the moment with the ring doesn't come until quite a few chapters in) and hard to get involved with because of the dialect barrier, Finn had an excellent way of projecting the dirt of the Barrio onto the reader. The grime and mange was both subtle and prominent in the story. It was every day lives for Baz and Demi and really had no effect on them. Washing in water that'll give you the shits? Not a problem so long as they didn't drink it. Traipsing around in mud and sewage? Whatever. They could wash it off. The image of the Barrio was so clear in my mind. The smells and the feel of the ward was right there and it was unnerving. That was probably the best part of the novel; just how engulfing the Barrio was, like you're actually standing in the middle of it.
Overall the story was a little slow but really compelling towards the end, Baz and Demi are pretty irresistible and Fay's a bitch. By the end of it you'll want to shower to get the Barrio grime off of your skin and you'll thank the gods you don't live in one.
conspicuouscarrot's review against another edition
This book had so much awesome potential, but fell so flat.
The writing is really bad. It's awkward and messy.
The story is actually pretty boring. You just want it to get exciting, but it never does.
The characters aren't likeable or relatable.
Let's just say, I could definitely tell it was the author's first book.
The writing is really bad. It's awkward and messy.
The story is actually pretty boring. You just want it to get exciting, but it never does.
The characters aren't likeable or relatable.
Let's just say, I could definitely tell it was the author's first book.
maxinehood's review against another edition
READ THE FOLLOWING:
This is a pre-advanced copy, the book that is made before the actual book. It DOES NOT have the same cover but is in paper back. Everything is the same compaired to the real book.
This is a pre-advanced copy, the book that is made before the actual book. It DOES NOT have the same cover but is in paper back. Everything is the same compaired to the real book.
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