DNF @ 3%

I wanted to love this one so bad because it’s set in Australia in the 70s, about family, friends, and marine life. But, the writing style was not for me. Unfortunately, even 3% in this one missed the mark for me.

The cover is absolutely stunning so I’m giving it a 10/10.

I was looking forward to the nature writing. This book didn’t appeal to me I felt like it was written for a junior audience however some of the themes were not appropriate for juniors. It didn’t have the depth of character building that I enjoy in a book and there was very limited nature writing. Thank you to #netgalley and the publisher for an ARC.

This is the story of Gaia and her brother Bron who have been brought up in a small farm by the sea in Western Australia. Their mother is a former ballet dancer and she teaches her children to dance from a young age.
Gaia loves nature and sea creatures and is enthralled one day when she sees a pair of sea dragons performing their matting dance.
I really enjoyed this book it has many interesting characters and charming descriptions of the wildlife in this area.
Thank you to NetGalley and Sea Dragon Press for my e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

3.5/4*

I was drawn to this initially by the cover, it's so eye-catching! And then was sold by the comparison to Crawdad's. I'm sometimes dubious of comparisons to popular books but it felt warranted here as the scenes of nature did not disappoint. I really felt like I was there, the author did a fantastic job at transporting the reader to Australia and exploring ocean life. That was definitely the best part of the book for me.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC copy of this book!

The imagery in this book while describing the ocean life was breathtaking. It made me feel like I was there experiencing the wonders of the ocean with these characters. I would have liked to see more growth with the characters throughout the book. I thought some aspects of the character relationships were a bit rushed. Sometimes the sentence structure was choppy feeling, but the descriptions of the wildlife/ocean life were beautifully drawn out. Those were my favorite parts. The book had a slower beginning pace, but definitely picked up more just before the halfway mark. Overall, I really liked the setting of the book, the beautiful imagery, and the plot, but wish there was more time spent on character relationships/development.

*3.5 rating

This was a very interesting book to read and I'm grateful for the opportunity to read it through NetGalley. I have read one of Jenni's books before and really enjoyed it.
I enjoyed the story of. Gaia and her family, although the circumstances were quite harrowing at times. Gaia was such a strong resilient girl with lots going for her, not to mention her dancing prowess, and the loss of her family at such a tender age was very sad. She does well to return to her home, despite most it being burnt to the ground. Her subsequent relationship with neighbours Eddie and Mary and their nephew Jarrah was lovely to follow as was her love affair with Seamus. I could imagine the setting very well and the coral and fish sightings were a delight.
A gentle story in lots of ways but also a hard one at times, as Gaia had to overcome so much, so early on. I did find the ending a surprise!

Another sweeping southern hemisphere tale from Jenni Ogden. Spanning years in the life of Gaia who along with her brother Bron lives on the Coral Coast of Australia. where their mother a former principal in the American Ballet theatre schools them intensively in the art of the dance. One fateful night, their lives forever change which sets Gaia on an entirely different and difficult path.

Alone on her isolated property for some years her only friends are Mary and Eddie, an Aboriginal couple who work on the neighboring property and the beautifully coloured Seadragons she befriends while snorkeling.

One fateful day, Jarrah, Mary’s 11-year-old orphaned nephew sees Gaia dancing on the beach is both captivated and enchanted. A friendship between two lonely souls blossoms.

A story of dance, struggle and ultimately survival.

This book takes place in 1970, in the western Australian Coral coast. It is mostly about a teen girl Gaia who was taught ballet, by her mom, a professional ballet dancer. Her dad, a farmer, taught her to love the land and sea and respect for the environment. Gaia, loves snorkeling and one day she sees the dance of a pair of delicate sea dragons. She loves them. The same day a tragedy strikes and her life which changes everything.

She leaves and returns 2 years later to live off the land. She forms a friend ship with the aboriginal couple who are caretakers of the farmer next door who is a racist. She is dancing on the beach and meets their nephew Jarrah who is 11 yrs and disabled. They are two lonely people who form a lifetime bond.

The book has many issues including, forgiveness, friendship, tragedy, and love. But, the challenge is to face the world when you look and are brought up different than those who are deemed , normal.

I totally enjoyed this book it is written so well and easy to follow right thru to the end. Give it a read!

I found Dancing with Dragons filled with both hope and tragedy. It's an exploration of resilience and an enjoyable book. Well done.

I was sold by the cover and the blurb, unfortunately the novel itself was nowhere near as good as the description suggested. The writing itself was clunky, overly simplified, and a little poorly edited in places (tail is often written as tale for example) with the dialogue suffering the brunt of it - I appreciate Gaia grew up off grid, but I’ve never heard a human speak like the characters within this novel do.

It isn’t just Gaia, the other characters (particularly the Irish and Aboriginal characters) all speak as though they’ve never interacted with another human before. With the Irish characters casually slipping into Gaelic (but just for a word or two) and the Aboriginal characters, particularly Mary, speaking in a poorly written accent that feels more than a little bit insensitive.

The plot was okay, there was a lot and nothing going on at the same time. Mostly it was the main character navigating through the trauma of her past (only, she was too distracted with the present to really address anything that happened four years ago during the fire), the brother is conveniently written out only to resurface a few pages before the end, and the villain just goes off to conveniently die in the desert.

Perhaps I’m not the target audience for this book, but I feel as though Dancing with Dragons needs running by another editor and a sensitivity reader before it is published.

From the author Jenni Ogden, “Dancing With Dragons” is another wonderful read from her.
This story is about a teen girl, Gaia, raised off grid in Australia. Learning to dance classic ballet with her older brother from her mother who was once an American ballet dancer. Her father, an Australian farmer, taught her the love of the land and reef. This story is about her most memorable day spent snorkeling on the reef watching the courtship of seadragons only to have it become the most tragic day filled with pain and deep loss that sets the course for the rest of her future.
If you want a good read with commentaries about racism, friendship, resolution, forgiveness, and taking a stand when something matters this would be the book to read.
*** I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sea Dragon Press for providing this book, with my honest review below.

Dancing with Dragons was a beautiful story, exploring many themes from young tragedy to the challenging plights of those who look different or grew up differently from the ‘majority’ of society. Heartbreaking at times and absolutely beautifully written, I encourage anyone wanting a more meaningful read to pick this up - it will take focus but be well worth it.