
Member Reviews

This epic adventure kept me interested but I’ll admit I was confused at times. I thought Aubrey was a wonderful strong female protagonist and I had empathy for her impossible situation. The jumping around in the story was hard to follow, though, and the fantastical elements never made sense in the end. Overall I’m glad I finished it but don’t know that I’d recommend it widely to my audience.

Douglas Westerbeke had not been on my radar before this book, but he definitely is now. I'm going to have to check out all of his other works as this was a whimsical and thought provoking ride.
Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for providing me with an arc for an honest review.

This felt more like a long and winded introduction that barely moved. The initial character and background building did not do much besides bog down the story.

A Short Walk Through a Wide World by Douglass Westerbeke. Pub Date: April 2, 2024. Rating: 2 stars. When this book was blurbed to be like The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue I was all in. I absolutely adored that novel and so I had to see what this one was all about. Unfortunately I did not see the similarities in the stories and the main characters are polar opposites. I felt this story dragged, the main character Aubrey took a LONG and WINDING walk that was way too long. It became repetitive and I felt the story was going nowhere but somewhere at the same time. I lost interest pretty fast with this one. This was a miss for me. Thanks to #netgalley and #avidreaderpress for this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

A travelogue with speculative elements- at times mesmerizing, at times gritty. There's unexplained magic, and some unanswered questions even after the last page. There's also loneliness, vivid description, and well-thought out details that make the world jump right off the page! Aubrey is a fascinating main character, but please don't forget to check out the trigger warnings before venturing on her round the world adventure!

A very interesting premise, but the pacing was off and the story became very repetitive. Just an “okay” read for me.

Paris, 1885: Aubry Tourvel, a spoiled and stubborn nine-year-old girl, comes across a wooden puzzle ball on her walk home from school. She tosses it over the fence, only to find it in her backpack that evening. Days later, at the family dinner table, she starts to bleed to death. When medical treatment only makes her worse, she flees to the outskirts of the city, where she realizes that it is this very act of movement that keeps her alive. So begins her lifelong journey on the run from her condition, which won’t allow her to stay anywhere for longer than a few days—nor return to a place where she’s already been. Aubry's sickness separates her from her family and prevents her from forming lasting relationships.
Aubry's travels take her through a world that may be different from others, and she becomes desperate to share her life with others. She can't stay in one place for more than a few days, so she makes herself comfortable wherever she goes and learns to depend on herself.
This was an interesting story, but one that didn't seem to connect to me as personally as I had hoped. Though well-written, it's not a story that i would strongly recommend to others or feel the need to return to, myself.
My thanks to Netgalley and Avid Reader Press / Simon & Schuster for the Advanced Reader Copy. All opinions are my own.

This is the kind of book that does sort of remind me of Addie La Rue, which a lot of folks have said, though I think Addie La Rue is a bit more compelling. This book is maybe a little long in the middle, but starts to get good in the end. I feel like this book is one that sort of makes you appreciate your own life journey, cherish even your short-lived but impactful relationships, makes you want to read every book, and travel the world.

LOVED LOVED LOVED - possibly my favorite title of the year. I'm definitely going to purchase it for myself in hardcover, 1st edition - it's that good. Time travel at its best. LOVE IT!

As someone with a chronic illness, I often tend to be very critical of books that depict disability, and unfortunately this one didn't work for me. It was much weirder than I anticipated, yet still somehow kept me engaged. But ultimately there were too many unanswered questions and because of that, which is my biggest issue, nothing felt plausible or adequately explained. I ended up DNFing this one about halfway through because I no longer felt invested enough to see it through.

The premise intrigued me, and as a fan of magical realism, I was excited to dive into this book. Unfortunately, it didn’t meet my expectations.
Positives:
* Reminiscent of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue
* The exploration of the impact of never having lasting relationships was fascinating
* Stunning cover art
* Libraries
* Exotic locations and epic adventures
Negatives:
* Confusing and tedious plot
* Very slow pacing
* Contains several trigger warnings, including animal abuse and significant violence
* Lack of clear explanations about what was happening and why
* Read more like violent horror than magical realism
I was initially drawn to the book due to its comparison to Addie LaRue, a book I thoroughly enjoyed. However, this story didn’t resonate with me as I had hoped. That said, just because it didn’t engage me doesn’t mean you won’t love it. The majority of reviews on Goodreads are 4 stars, with an overall rating of 3.57. If you’re intrigued, give it a read—I’d love to hear your thoughts!
Thank you @netgalley and Avid Reader Press for an eARC of this book, which I have read and reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

You get lost in this wonderful fantasy book. Loved the way it took you to places you never imagined!

What I loved:
1. A Debut author that has a strong out of the gate book!!
2. Loved the description of the world and places she traveled.
3. Felt her loneliness and emotions as she traveled....so hard to read at times and other times - so amazing!
What I wished was different:
1. I was left with an unfinished feeling at the end of the book.
2. It stalled about 2/3 of the way through - felt like we needed a crisper ending.
3. So many unanswered questions.
My heartfelt thanks to Net Galley and Avid Reader Press / Simon & Schuster for the ARC.

"𝘐𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘢𝘣𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘧𝘦𝘳 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘺, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘰𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺."
Thank you Avid Reader Press and NetGalley for the advanced reader copies! I ended up listening to the audiobook and really enjoyed the narrator. I liked the premise and despite the length of the book it felt rushed. Perhaps that is intentional given that Aubry can’t spend more than a few days in each place; as she never settles neither does the reader, and the wandering feels endless. I definitely felt like how her condition began and her understanding of how it worked could have been more fleshed out (what nine-year-old quickly and fully understands a mysterious, unknown illness that suddenly inflicts her without a seeming cause?). Also, the structure of jumping around between periods of Aubry’s life felt chaotic and it would’ve been nice instead of the chapters having names they had a date or time frame.
In her worldwide quest to survive Aubry never lives despite all she has seen, experienced, and the people she has met, and by this she at times comes across as shallow. She sees and faced things most and sometimes no other has seen or faced, yet lacks depth. The last 10% or so was curious, almost as if the author wasn’t sure how to wrap things up. Personally I think the magical realism he incorporates contributes to the overall floundering that overlays the story once it's introduced.
"𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘶𝘳𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘭, 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘪𝘧𝘵 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘪𝘨𝘯, 𝘵𝘰 𝘶𝘯𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘶𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘩𝘰𝘮𝘦."
Warnings include chronic illness (and how this separates family), homelessness, mild profanity, some vague sexual content, and one violent scene. There was promise to this one but it ends up getting lost in itself. By its conclusion you feel like you’ve gone for a long walk yourself that didn't really lead to anywhere.

I really enjoyed this, I was in tears by the end. An insightful look into what makes us human and life worth loving and the importance of love.

A spiritual successor to Addie LaRue, this took onboard the common complaint that Addie LaRue only visited white Europe and America, and actually fully showed us as much of the world as it possibly could, through the eyes of a young girl cursed to constantly always be on the move, clutching at human interaction along the way.
This story was cleverly written, taking us to the quiet moments of Aubry's life when she has a moment to sit down with a fellow passenger of trains and boats, and tells of her story to them, from her childhood to the fateful day she's forced to leave, to snapshots of her life hunting on ships and in jungles, constantly finding herself back in an infinite library.
The only thing that let this down just a little for me was the ending. I so wanted to meet back up with Marta, and I felt there could almost have been a budding romance there. Following Aubry over the course of nearly her entire life, I was so reluctant to leave her story behind and wanted to stay until the end.

A Short Walk Through a Wide World feels like an instant classic. Not bad for a debut novel. Before reading A Short Walk (excuse the abbreviated title), I was intrigued by a description comparing it to The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, a book with a similar structure I really enjoyed. Where Addie LaRue is doomed to never be remembered by anyone she meets, Aubry Tourvel is doomed to never stay in one place more than three or four days. If she stays anywhere longer than that limit, she begins to bleed out, stricken by convulsions to the point of helplessness. While there’s more poignancy in Invisible Life, A Short Walk is often just as bittersweet. Aubry is forever discovering new places and meeting new people, regularly depending on the kindness of strangers, despite her hard-earned resourcefulness. But her lifelong journey is one she must travel alone. And where Invisible Life embraces the fantastical elements early, A Short Walk teases them out a little longer, with the exception of the puzzle ball, which launches the story. Aubry’s lifelong travels take her across the globe and through the changing times, but Westerbeke doesn’t give much page-time (as opposed to screen time) to her travels through North America, with the exception of a few mentions. That choice gives A Short Life more of an exotic, fairytale feeling, which seems appropriate given the subject matter. Aubry becomes something of a celebrity, which helps endear her to many of the strangers she is destined to meet (and eventually leave) by the nature of her ‘curse.’ While Aubry is often alone, she is never lonely, as there is always someone to meet just over the next rise. Best of all, despite not answering all the questions a reader might have had along the way, A Short Life Through a Wide World manages a satisfying conclusion, making one glad to have experienced her journey.

I have to admit, I waited a while to write this review. Sometimes I do this because I'm busy, and it's easier to just grab the next book off my to-read pile than ponder the one I just read. Other times, I need to let the experience stew a bit in my head. The short walk I planned to take with Westerbeke turned out to be quite longer than I expected, covering continents. Unlike other "walks" I've read about, this one was not compelled by a motivation to travel or to see a certain person, but rather, by the main character's desperate will to stay alive. Of course there is magic in this—a puzzle ball, library portals!—these are the parts I found most compelling. Aubry's vast travels were mythic in scope, especially given that they began in 1885 when her travel options were limited, and Westerlake's writing is beautiful in its description. But I left this story with unresolved questions. Looking at other reviews here, I uncovered a "spoiler alert" hoping to find some answers, only to discover that I am clearly not the only one looking. It would have been a 4 if the author had not been so vague in some important plot points, including the final resolution. But, as it's a debut, (and he's a librarian) I will still look forward to the author's next book.

A Short Walk Through a Wide World was such a rich and powerful read. If you loved The Secret Life of Addie LaRue, or The Ten Thousand Doors of January, then I feel like you will also love this book. It is a beautiful fantasy book that is grounded in reality.
The book follows Aubry Tourvel, who becomes cursed at age nine to have to constantly travel or she will die. She can only stay in one place for a few days at a time or her body becomes wracked with pain and she starts to bleed out. She also cannot return to anywhere she has already been. She has to learn to be self sufficient, because it is hard to form connections and relationships when she has to be constantly on the move.
I really loved the character of Aubry. You really feel her pain about not being able to find a place she can call home. Despite all that her curse has kept her from doing, she never really loses hope that one day she will find a way to break it. I loved reading about her many adventures and all the places she was able to go. I loved the writing style and I look forward to seeing what the author comes up with next.

The premise of this book originally had me excited to read it - a girl forced to walk the world due to a mysterious illness that will not let her stay in one place for more than three days had all the potential for a great story. However, after nearly 400 pages, I feel completely let down. Not only did Aubrey's journey feel like a travel log, but a boring one at that. I felt absolutely no connection to either her or the characters that she met along the way. The relationships that she had during her short stays felt forced and never went anywhere past those few pages where those characters were featured, and the entire scenario just kept repeating itself over and over and over again. The magic in the novel is never explained and there doesn't even seem to be a clear message. The ending left me completely confused despite the fact that I consider myself an avid reader and with well above average intelligence.
The writing was above average, but the lack of a cohesive plot and ending did not make this an enjoyable read for me.
Thank you to NetGalley, Avid Reader Press, and the author for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.