Well-written story about Gwyn, a girl who is Not Like Other Girls, and normally that is a trope that I disdain, but the story here isn't exactly what you'd call triumphal. The happy ending is happy enough for Gwyn, but she's still living in a crapsack world, essentially, albeit one stocked with people who are far more than ciphers, which I appreciate. Voigt is careful not to let even her supporting characters fall into stereotype, and her largely sympathetic, if still realistic portrayal of a community in trouble is really what makes this book as enjoyable as it is. Small acts of resistance can - and do - help some individuals in that community, but others are beyond help, and the enormity of social inequality, of poverty and the risk of starvation, remains.

If anything, it's a thoughtful response to the idea of the hero in disguise. They can't help everyone, and sometimes the help fails, but sometimes the trying is enough.