2017 IPPY Book Awards Winner! A “remarkable” (Booklist Magazine) reimagining of Peter Pan. After World War II, orphaned Kettle faces prejudice as a Japanese American but manages to scrape by and care for his makeshift family of homeless children. When he crosses paths with the privileged but traumatized Nora, both of their lives are forever changed…Lauren Nicolle Taylor’s Nora & Kettle is a … Taylor’s Nora & Kettle is a heart-wrenching historical fiction novel that will appeal to fans of books by John Green and Ned Vizzini, novels such as The Perks of Being a Wallflower, The Beginning of Everything, Eleanor & Park, The Book Thief, and classics like The Great Gatsby and The Catcher in the Rye.
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Nora & Kettle is a beautiful novel and demonstrates in intense, sometimes lyrical prose, the sheer power and majesty of the human spirit.
The terror behind the walls of Nora’s home echoes what was happening in a major city in post-war America in the early 1950s. Kettle and his “brother” Kin are just as much victims as she is. Like Nora, they must find a way to survive in a world that doesn’t want them.
As a young adult novel, this story is pretty dark. But the lessons it teaches to a new generation are well worth repeating and make Nora & Kettle a book worth reading.
Well, even the characters that aren’t wonderful in their actions are developed well and you feel like you know them personally.
This is such a gripping story. There is so much emotion held inside. This is one of those kinds of stories that you have to read- you just have to! You know that it will tear at your insides, but you read it anyway and you are better for it. You gain so much more from reading this than an engrossing story. You get perspective, you get raw truth, and you get to feel your heart working overtime. This story makes you feel something real.
What I liked
I loved these characters. You really get to know them through the way they think, the way they live, and through flashbacks from their pasts. There are so many layers to these characters. It makes me think of the movie Shrek when Shrek is talking to Donkey about onions, how they have layers, and how he has layers like an onion. These characters definitely have a lot going on- in their heads and otherwise. They are compelling, and as you read you just feel for them. Their situations in life are horrible, but they trudge on. You can’t help but to admire them.
I liked how everything was historically accurate. The setting for the story is the 1950s. In the story there are numerous people that knew about the way that Christopher, Nora’s father, was treating her, and they did nothing to help her. They all looked the other way, which was normal for that era. While I was reading I kept thinking about how different it could have been for Nora and her sister if it would have taken place in the present. Another aspect of the historical accuracy is in terms of the Japanese Americans and how they were treated by the rest of American society. It was so saddening, the discrimination. I like how Taylor portrayed it in the book.
This story is a reimagining, if you will, of Peter Pan. It is a very quasi portrayal, but you can pick up on the Peter Pan references while reading the story. I rather enjoyed the retelling. I’ve always loved the character Peter Pan and the story of Peter and Wendy.
I liked the fact that we got to know each main character before they met in the book. We got a chance to see them as they were without each other’s influence on the other. We got to glimpse into their worlds, so that when they finally meet the story dramatically blossoms.
I think that the thing I liked the most about the book is the sensitive issues that are touched upon. Child abuse, domestic violence, alcohol abuse, and discrimination are portrayed so brilliantly. And the portrayal was so in sync with the era that the book is set in. These are issues that are overlooked and ignored, but Taylor pushes them to the forfront and makes us take notice of them. And although these issues are some of the main focuses in the book, it isn’t written in a boring manner. The story is compelling while still being about these delicate issues. It really is brilliantly written.
What I didn’t like
Nora and Kettle don’t meet until halfway through the book. I kept reading and hoping that the next page they would come together. I kept anticipating that seemed to never come. I would have liked to see Nora and Kettle together more in the book. The time that they spent together was magical, but there didn’t seem to be enough of it for my liking.
The ending was kind of meh for me. It was glorious at the beginning of the end, but it petered out in my opinion. I needed more closure than what I got handed. I felt gypped. I honestly would have rated higher if the ending had turned out differently. Because the
This is a good book. Easy to read. The characters are well developed. It is one of the few “book 1’s” that make me feel I want to read the others in the series. I recommend reading this book
Wow! This is a story that haunts me. It deals with domestic abuse as well as racial bias. The characters are survivors whose stories are tragic. An excellent read. Well written.
It was a great book.
Great read!
Quite a unique book! A great read!
Excellent book, did not want to put it down.
A great read!!!
A great realistic twist on Peter Pan with tying in historical fiction. Awesome
Loved this book! Each page was holding me down, strapping me in I just couldn’t put it down! Dramatic and informational, I enjoyed this book to the very last page! Can’t wait to read the next one…
Imaginative retelling of Peter Pan. Good read.
The characters and storyline are hauntingly tragic and endearing. It’s a beautiful story, that keeps you on the edge of your seat, hoping against hope for happiness for the characters.
Nora & Kettle is an enjoyable read, nothing amazing, but worth the time. I’d recommend it for middle and upper teens.
A book every age should read.
Wow loved it
A great way for teens to learn some history while enjoying the characters that make the story come alive
Great read, I had to read the next one in the series to see how it resolves! A great redemption story.
I read to get AWAY from tragedies such as this that occur in the world I do not want to read about them. I was mislead by the synopsis.