This is not an actual review. I didn't finish the book but somehow I am not allowed to say that so to get it off my shelf I need to put in a review. Never happened before -- sorry!

Beautiful. Haunting. Young Lottie leads such a misunderstood life. Like a bubble about to burst, all the sadness and grief that encompasses her reaches a crossroads and finds that just by communicating her thoughts makes all the difference to her future. I often worry about books that are labeled YA whose lead characters are very young. I’ve found most teens aren’t interested. However, the content is very mature and lyrical and hopefully the cover will entice them. Adults will devour this.

A quick and interesting read, full of wonder. I loved how this book was set out and found it quick to read. The ending is really lovely as well.

An addictively quick read, written beautifully in verse. Both heartbreaking and uplifting, this story is brilliantly compelling.

I requested this book because I've loved most of the verse novels I've read so far, but this is a no from me.

The writing style is actually good, but the descriptions of dead and decaying animals really grossed me out (although I concede that that's a me thing). For most of this book, I was just kind of bored, and I found that it wasn't really for me. So nothing too amazing, but nothing too terrible either.

But then... Did this white author... really have to use the N word? Short answer: no, not at all, not ever. Yikes. And I've somehow not seen this mentioned in any of the reviews I've read? I actually stopped reading right after seeing this, because that's honestly all I need to know. (Page 170 btw, for reference.) This book is set to come out in August so I sincerely hope this will get rectified in the finished copy.

The Art Of Taxidermy.
It really lives up to its title.

I thought perhaps it was a metaphor for something in the book but oh no this girl finds dead animals and keeps them.

She hopes to find a way to preserve them and give them “life” again and the book describes her bedroom as smelling as death and decay.

Some of the descriptions for the dead animals was also gross so if you are kind of squeamish and live animals then this book may not be for you.

It is about a girl named Lottie from Australia who lives with her father and aunt. Her mother has passed away and I think Lottie discovers her passion for Taxidermy by her slight obsession with death. I think it is her way of coping.
She has a friend in the book named Annie who we later find out was her sister. I had a suspicion early on that Annie was a figment of Lottie’s imagination when I noticed people would totally ignore her and her presence. I am assuming it is in Lottie’s head and she was not seeing ghosts.

I gave this book only two stars because I did think the author is talented and I liked her writing style even though this book was not enjoyable for me. Maybe someone going through a loss of their own would connect with the story better. I would read something else by the author in the future and give her next book a chance.

Another reason I gave it two stars was that even though this was a short book I found it very boring and I had to push myself through it. I am not sure if it was boring for me because I could not really connect with it or because it was truly boring. Like I said I did like the writing style so I am guessing it because I had no connection to the characters.

Since the book was in Australia which we did not find out until more towards the end some better description would have been nice. As a reader I really like to picture the scenery in my mind as Im reading.

This was one of those books for me where the cover was stunning but the book inside did not live up to the hype of the cover for me.

If you enjoy YA and have time for a quick read then I would say to give it a try. Id love for you to let me your thoughts on this one!

The Art of Taxidermy is about a young girl struggling to deal with her mothers death. To help her deal with this she becomes obsessed with taxidermy - much to the distaste of her aunt.

The writing in this book was beautiful. The author managed to keep the story interesting but the writing lyrical without slowing the story down.

I connected easily with Lottie. I found myself able to connect to her feelings and to see everything through her eyes. However, I did feel somewhat indifferent and disconnected from every other character in the story. It didn't spoil the book for me but at times I found it difficult to fully immerse myself.

Another thing I struggled with was the frequent bouncing from one idea to the next, it left me confused and I struggled to follow on to the next focus. It was often hard to pick out what the actual plot is was and where it was going.

I admire the fact it was written in verse form. It must be so difficult to tell a story in this format - having to keep up with the story whilst also keeping in time with the rhythm and format.

Overall, even with the minor issues, I enjoyed the book, especially the writing. I look forward to reading more from this author in the future.

I really enjoyed this little book out of Australia, told in verse, about a topic that I have absolutely no interest in. However, the author had a beautiful way with words, making taxidermy seem almost poetic, a lovely way of managing grief. The story unfolded, page by page, getting deeper and more intricate as it slowly revealed the deeper underlying themes. I found myself repeatedly highlighting phrases, delighting in way the author played with words (“we ate dinner at right angles” and “a clatter of cockatoos, a racket, a rattle, a jangle, a clank, a clash, a bangle, a mangle of flapping wings, flared Sulphur crests” for example).

I loved Lottie, the main character, and her eccentricities. I found her obsession with taxidermy curious,but understood it as the story developed. Since finishing the book, I find myself continuing to think about the story, so though it was a quick read, it’s staying power is long lasting.

My thanks to NetGalley for an Advanced Readers Copy of this book. All opinions are my own and not biased in any way.

I genuinely thought my Kindle had done something weird to the format when I started reading The Art of Taxidermy. I had no idea what was going on until it dawned on me – this book was written in verse.

And I hated that.

This is a story about grief. A story about a little Australian girl, Lottie, who has experienced far too much death for someone so young and it’s slooowly transformed into a fascination with all things dead. Her father indulges her and encourages it with his Science Is The BEST hat on, whilst her aunt decides that it’s absolutely not the way a young lady should be behaving and punishes her at every god damn opportunity.

Let’s get one thing straight: her obsession isn’t about violence. It’s about understanding death and appreciating it. It does, however, come with a few social hangups.
Lottie’s obsession turns into taxidermy. Her taxidermy creeps people out. The creeping out of people turns her into a loner. The loner status means these dead things become her friends.

And that’s all I’ve got.

Although this book’s technically beautifully written, it’s just not my bag. I tried (oh, how I tried) to love it, but I was just painstakingly bored and wishing it was written a different way.

This is a Marmite book; loved by many, but not for me.

"It is not macabre or ghoulish to hold on, to resurrect, to re-imagine, to re-create. It is a way of honouring beauty. It is a way to hold on to life."

The Art of Taxidermy is a novel in verse about family, loss, dealing with the past--and, of course, taxidermy. Lottie, an Australian of German descent, has lost her mother and baby sibling in one fell swoop. She's not entirely over the death of her older sister, either. As Lottie navigates her grief, and her father tries to support her as best as he can through her own grief, she gravitates towards the body and bones of dead animals. For her, preserving and holding on to these bodies is a way to honor life, figuratively resurrect the dead, and cope with her grief. Even though this new hobby clashes with her aunt's idea of what healthy coping and teen-girl activities look like, she remains firm in her convictions and scientific inclinations.

This book has some great imagery, as well, and the parallels between taxidermy and processing sadness were really compelling without feeling contrived. There were a few twists and secrets in the book that I truly didn't see coming but that made me want to return to the book again just to catch the deeper layers. I really appreciated reading this book, and it'd be great for anyone processing loss in the family or coming to terms with difficult family history. My only major complaint was that my e-book format messed with the verse formatting.

[Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.]

I was drawn to The Art of Taxidermy by its beautiful cover and fascinating story line. However, I was not aware the book is written in verse. This is a first for me and I found it very hard to follow, even though I was very intrigued by the premise. I really wish this was written as a normal novel, I would have enjoyed it much more.

Lottie’s experience of grief and how it manifests afterwards in The Art of Taxidermy was a well-crafted and carefully versed. This was a beautifully told story that I think really found its true home in verse style. There was a uniqueness to the main characters experience with death that will stay with me. There was a certain hesitance to read this novel but I wanted it to change my mind and it did, in a clever and moving way.

The Art of Taxidermy by Sharon Kernot felt like it was written for me. While my emotional circumstances didn’t align with the narrator, Lottie, everything else in the story felt so familiar that it really resonated. I chose The Art of Taxidermy as my book for my May Reading Challenge, and for the theme, I chose a book depicting my country. Honestly, I couldn’t have picked a better one.

The Art of Taxidermy is a slow burn, and I must admit, it wasn’t at all what I was expecting. It’s described as a novel, but it’s more than that. Essentially, it’s a piece of narrative poetry, and as such, is a short read. But Kernot really does a lot in minimal space. Her prose is deliberate and tightly woven. Because of the style and structure, not a word is out of place. There wasn’t a deep plot, or any unexpected twists and turns, but what it did show was a very personal look at grief and the beauty that can be found in death.

Australian flora and fauna are an integral part of The Art of Taxidermy, and as such, I’m not sure how much a non-Australian would get from it. This novel resonated with me so deeply because I felt a familiarity with its people and setting. Lottie’s family are German, and the prose is speckled with German words which are not always translated. Coming from a bi-lingual Australian/German family, once again, this was something that really resonated with me, but made me question just how much a reader not immersed in that culture would really understand in the nuances.

There are some stunningly visceral descriptions of death, dying, and decay. While these may not be for everyone, I found them oddly beautiful. There is beauty in the fragility of life, and artistry in capturing those moments, and it was refreshing to see those things represented in a way that was more than merely violent and gruesome. It was a hopeful, loving novel, but still punctuated by an undercurrent of grief and loneliness. It was like the human condition was distilled into a few pages of prose, and I thought it was done masterfully.
There isn’t a great deal of world-building, nor particularly in-depth characterisation in The Art of Taxidermy, but that didn’t matter. It wasn’t that kind of book. Reading it is more about the experience of it, rather than the enjoyment – and for that, I was glad of its relatively short length. Had it been any longer I think it could have become boring, but any shorter and it would have felt lacking. It was a pretty much perfect showcase of unique style and subtle story without overstaying its welcome.

I don’t think The Art of Taxidermy will be everyone’s cup of tea. I think it will appeal to a particular audience. So, if you’re like me and you’re an Australian/German with nostalgia for your home who is bi-lingual and has a love for Natural History collections, then this book was written for you. Alternatively, if you like unique structure and beautiful prose that probes the subtleties of the human condition, then this book might also be for you. There’s no doubt about it, The Art of Taxidermy is an ‘artsy’ book that needs to be experienced rather than simply read. If that’s the kind of book you like, then this will be right up your street.

Somehow when I picked up THE ART OF TAXIDERMY I didn't realize it was a book told in verse, so I was pleasantly surprised after the first poem turned out to be the beginning of the story, not just part of a preface.

This is a beautiful story of a girl and her family torn with grief. Wrecked by the deaths of two people close to her, Lottie becomes enthralled with dead animals, and wants to take care of them and eventually wants to bring them back to life. Her stern aunt is horrified, but Lottie is not deterred.

This is a short book you read for its exquisite prose, and for the simplicity and generosity of the story, not because it's a thrill read, or a twisty tale with surprises in the corners. Instead, it brings you into the hearts of its characters through its slow beauty, wrapping you up in a coming of age story that will sit with you after you are long finished.

A heartfelt and beautifully written novel-in-verse; Sharon Kernot explores the life of Lottie, a young girl reeling from multiple family losses, particularly that of her mother. It's a story of how grief manifests in different ways, of the beauty in death, of nature and human nature.

I haven't read many verse novels, but TAXIDERMY was a perfect introduction, written in a gentle, poetic way that feels like the ebbing and flowing of a tide. I loved the deep emotion it toyed with, as well as the vivid imagery and sensory details. It gave me huge LOST FLOWERS OF ALICE HART vibe, from the focus on Australian flora/fauna to its exploration of trauma to its cover. If you liked either one of these books, I'd highly recommend checking out the other!

If I had any quibbles with the book, it would just be around clarity. Maybe I missed something, but it seemed to take a really long time to reveal Lottie's age, the time period, or for that matter, the true nature of Annie. I did love the latter twist, however, I wanted more hints woven in earlier. But these are small things.

In all, it's a quick, yet emotional read, beautifully wrought and pulsing with gentle darkness. Of course, CW for grief, suicidal thoughts, racial slurs, & disordered eating. 4./5!

The Art of Taxidermy is a small but powerful book. It is an Australian YA book written in verse through a series of poems that create a whole story. Lottie becomes fascinated with death and taxidermy after her mother’s death. Her aunt is appalled by these interests, but her father nurtures them. It also explores gender roles and expectations. It is beautifully written and filled with sadness and hope.

This was the first time I got to read a verse novel, and I was stunned by how well this way of storytelling works! The Art of Taxidermy, set in vaguely historical, mid-20th century Australia, tells us of young Lottie and of her fascination with resurrecting and preserving animals, and of her deep-rooted desire to have her dead loved ones return to her. To keep it brief: I thoroughly enjoyed this short book and the language it used to describe nature, death, and an social-outsider pre-teen's passions - I just couldn't get emotionally invested and as a result took five times longer to finish it than I should have. But it has certainly awakened my interest in the genre. This one is for all readers who, like me, used to be a macabre little girl!

This is one of the few non-SFF novels that will appear on this blog, but like the main character, I have a fascination with death and so when a title like The Art of Taxidermy appeared on NetGalley, I knew I just had to read it. What I did not expect was that this novel is actually a collection of poetry that together make-up one complete story: a story about a girl who experiences death too early in her life and finds herself inexplicably drawn to dead animals at a young age, much to the chagrin of her aunt. The book itself is a quick read, but it packs quite an emotional punch that I was not expecting to hit on a flight at 2AM. The cast of characters around Charlotte, our young taxidermist-to-be, become quite well fleshed-out and very realistic. Primarily, this book deals with grief, and how different people handle it, and how they let it change their behavior. I won't spoil anything, but this ending is happily ever after. Overall, I rate this book a 4/5.

Review will be posted 28 June 2019

This book was powerful. Its told in verse wich I enjoyed very much as I dont read very much verse books. The chractures Are great and I can really feel Lotties grief with losing her mum and so turning to taxidermy helps her to process that greif. The illustrations in this book are amazing. It's such a shame that it wasnt longer as I would love to delve deeper in to taxidermy and know a out Lottie and Anniea bit more. This read super quick its defiantly a book you need to savour.

This is a bit of an odd book. One that sadly I found quite difficult to read. I tried to really get into it.
Thank you to both NetGalley and Text Publishing for my eARC of this book in exchange for my honest unbiased reviews