All of the “real world” stories felt a lot tighter than the fantastic fairy tale that begins and bookends the novel. Maybe because those stories were rooted in very real oppression on marginalized individuals and groups, and the fairy tale just felt like much lower stakes?

The production of the audiobook was absolutely amazing. There’s multiple voice actors, all giving great performances. Then there’s the addition of all the music, too—which are frequent and similarly well done. The audiobook hightens the book substantially.