What a delightful work! Reminiscent of Studio Ghibli’s Spirited Away in book-form, the fusion of diverse cultures and spooky fantasy within Norup’s narrative is dazzlingly imaginative. Not only is Freja an entirely relatable character (experiencing the unfortunately common situation of a split family), but she is also the badass character (with a Swiss Army knife!) that we all want to be. Any children ages 8 and up who are hungry for an utterly transportive, fantastical adventure will adore this book!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Pushkin Press for the privilege of reading this work!

I really enjoyed this book. I found the setting of Singapore to be really evocative and the author did a great job of immersing the reader in the sights, smells and culture of Singapore- its definitely made me want to holiday in Singapore!
I found Freja to be a wonderful protagonist- she was likeable and complex, and her family situation and emotions surrounding that was really well handled by the author.
Freja moves from Denmark to Singapore to live with her father and his new family. She arrives during the month when ghosts are said to wander the streets. Freja meets the ghost of a young girl and sets off on an adventure to find out who she is.
I thought the ending was very touching and I will definitely be recommending this book to others!

Loved it!! Having lived there, I can confidently say that the writing really transports you to Singapore. I also loved how the protagonist is shown to have some struggles and diverse needs, although some trigger warnings should be included. Loved it!

The Hungry Ghost is totally different to anything I’ve read before. It’s a very cleverly written story that spans a wide range of genres - adventure, mystery, horror, historical fiction… the list goes on. I love the fusion of the old and the new and the cultural clash of modern Singapore. Norup has effectively threaded together so many different elements within this story. It would be enjoyed by pupils in Year 6 upwards. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

I greatly enjoyed this story! The writing was beautiful and I really enjoyed learning more about the cultural folklore and mythology. This story is well suited for a middle-grade audience and I would recommend it as a great book to read as a class. It provides great opportunities to discuss cultural differences and also presents a chance to discuss family dynamics.

Spooky, eerie; but full of heart and warmth, and bursting with delicious south east Asian flavour. This is an utterly engrossing ghost story, as well as a moving journey of grief and supernatural self-discovery.

An international feast that I devoured in a single day!

I loved it! Initially I was a bit skeptical but the more I read it the more the story and premise really grew on me. The ghost story part of this is extremely well done and it adds just the right amount of creepy as you explore and read on who the ghost is in relation to the main character. I also really love all of the asian folklore and really in-depth world-building that comes from it being set in Singapore. It really transports to another world and the characters are excellent as well. Overall, it's a really beautiful story.

This was a super quick read and I did enjoy reading this one. I really liked the Chinese folklore element that was in this book,
Thank you to netgalley for providing this book to me in exchange for my honest opinion.