Book Review- Bones to the Wind by Tatiana Obey
Bones to the Wind was a high staked, action adventure set in a fantastically vivid world.
Each year adolescence of age must throw their bones to the wind and undertake the forging, a dangerous competition aiming to cull the weak from current populations and determine the rations for society during the coming year.
Rasia is determined to beat her old man’s record in the forging this year. She has mere days to find and slay a gonda in order to be victorious in her quest. Rasia is taking no prisoners; you are either with her or you are out. This boisterous, opinionated, and determined young thing will stop at nothing to come out on top. Her plans are foiled pretty quickly when she is teamed up with nemesis Nico as part of her Kull. Nico cares naught for Rasia’s dreams of glory, preferring to keep all safe, find her deathly sick brother and help him with his last chance at surviving the test. Kai is weak, and worthless, or so he thinks, giving up before he begins. As he resigns himself to death, he comes across the firecracker that Rasia has turned out to be. Before he knows it, he is off with her to find a dragon, realising maybe, just maybe, he has something worth fighting for after all.
Hot headed teenagers battle desert dangers, fight off starvation and give in to hormonal urges in this inclusive, action packed and often humorous adventure.
The execution of this book was phenomenal in my opinion. The author has not only captured just how annoying, egocentric, horny, and scared adolescents can be, but has input a great deal of thematics into the pages which are oh so important for developing brains. This book deals with some big topics and writes them in a way that is accessible but can also be taken at face value if those lessons are not something you are looking to learn right now. Bones to the Wind talks about classism, generational trauma, belief in oneself, the importance of listening and reflecting on bias, working with those of strongly opposing opinions, sexual expression and so much more. As an adult I was incredibly impressed with the sheer scope of topics Obey has portrayed in these pages. This book is just as if not more important as Hunger Games was to my generation and in my humble opinion should be offered in high schools as suggested reading.
These themes are made even more powerful by the characters driving them home. Rasia feels like she has lost everyone, no one stays, so she has needed to sharpen her skin to the point that it is almost impenetrable. She wants to be left alone, more people mean more disappointment and opens her up to more hurt. She is unrelenting in her taunts to others, declaring herself the best, and she shows her skill numerous times. I am not going to lie, she annoyed me, as a bully, and someone unforgiving of other shortcomings and failures, but I was so captivated by her growth in this book. Nico, growing up needing to be the best, needing to always think of others, how her actions affect the world. It is a heavy weight to put on a kid, yet so many children in our own world feel the constant pressure of success. It was clear Nico’s childhood was filled with constant worry and she was very much an adult too early. Kai was told he was weak, he was worthless and would amount to nothing. He believes he is better off dead, and wants to be left alone, there is no flame inside this young man, until he is told over and over, he could be something more. These lessons are hard to learn, if we are not willing to listen, but sometimes you just need a friend with the gall to get through your thick skull. The personal lessons coupled with the life lessons of the world inspired me a very great deal.
For those less focused on the thematic messages of your books, this world was one of the most vivid I have had the pleasure of reading. Fierce and dangerous creatures traversed the desert lands, providing sources of food, shelter, and entertainment. The Grankull was vivid and divided by the tents and those who lived in the cities and the characters were documented with extraordinary details, and it felt like you were there looking at them. The action-adventure aspects meant a fast pace with high stakes, I’m talking windships, crew fights, have I mentioned dragons yet? An entire building made from dragon bones, which is also guarded by another dragon. This book was wild.
I really love and admire what Obey has achieved here, even though this isn’t a book I would necessarily gravitate towards. I wish I had read it when I was 15-16, this is an author to watch, I know I will be.
