itch.io

I loveddd this book! Through the setting of a fantasy world, Goblin Girl explores racism, acceptance of oneself, and the obligatory power of friendship. I find that all these topics are commented on quite impactfully in Goblin Girl, and I found it was quite moving reading the dialogue. I personally really enjoyed the romantic side-plot, but I am also just a romantic so. While it does take a backseat to the greater story (rightfully so), I still thought the small moments in between were just sososo cute. The story itself is your classic save-the-world underdog story where the heroes go on a grand adventure to save the kingdom from collapse. While the story is trope-y, I found that the characters are all very nuanced, which is refreshing for a book for targeted at elementary schoolers. Their thoughts, motivations, and dialogue all feel very human (or goblin? the english language isn't very inclusive to other species), and you can tell that they aren't just caricatures of worn out tropes. They feel real. And the things that this book has to say is powerful; I found my stance on race and war being clarified and synthesized by the words in this book. Overall, I have nothing to complain about. Great message, excellent characters, emotional moments, humourous humour, romance, adventure, action, what else could you ask for? If you like fantasy even a little bit, I don't think you could go wrong with reading this (especially since it's free!)

Trigger warnings are in the description of this itch.io page for those who haven't located them, although all matters are handled tastefully and authentically. All subject matter is, in my opinion, perfectly within reason for the target audience.