East

By: Edith Pattou

Narrated by: Various

Rose is the youngest of seven children, meant to replace her dead sister. Maybe because of that, she’s never really fit in. She’s always felt different, out of place, a restless wanderer in a family of homebodies. So when an enormous white bear mysteriously shows up and asks her to come away with it—in exchange for health and prosperity for her ailing family—she readily agrees.
            Rose travels on the bear’s broad back to a distant and empty castle, where she is nightly joined by a mysterious stranger. In discovering his identity, she loses her heart-and finds her purpose—and realizes her journey has just begun.
            As familiar and moving as Beauty and the Beast, yet as fresh and original as only the best fantasy can be, East is a bold retelling of the classic tale “East of the Sun and West of the Moon,” a sweeping story of grand proportions.

Exactly what a novel should be.

The only bad thing I can say about Pattou's East is that it had to end. The rhythmic and vividly descriptive writing through multiple characters' perspectives was absolutely phenomenal. And the story itself was a seamless blend of history, fantasy and folklore. This is a beautiful book and one I will look forward to enjoying again and again.

One day read!

I loved this book so much I finished the whole thing in one day. I read this a long time ago when it first came out and I remember loving it then, so on a whim I got the audiobook even though I remembered next to nothing about the plot. I was absolutely not disappointed - especially when I found out that the sequel is being released tomorrow!

Great Tale Which I Didn't Want to End!

Wonderful fairytale which should be added to the classics. Since my, now adult, daughter has even recently read this multiple times, I decided it was time for me to try a listen. Wonderfully written tale of a brave and slightly outcast girl coming to adult; taking on inspiring challenges. Performed well with different narrators, making this thoroughly enjoyable for several ages.

Delightful - Almost forgot I was listening

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes; I love the many different voices - not only from the writing, but from the array of voice actors/actresses that contributed to this work.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I like Rose. She was determined to help others and her struggles felt so real.

Have you listened to any of the narrators’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I haven't - but I would love more books read like this (with a full cast).

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes; though, of course, I could not.

Had a lot of potential...

there were certain aspects of this book that I really enjoyed. I loved that Rose the main character was a strong female lead and I also thought the birth direction superstition was really interesting but wow this story fell flat more often then not. I know it's meant for young adults but I felt that the author tried to stuff way too much into one novel and a lot of the dialogue or explications were too simplistic. the over all feel of the book was nice but I kept wanting and waiting for something that never quite made it. If I was like 10 I think it would have been a great hit.