Tama the magpie is already half orphaned when he is rescued by a Marnie. Though his father and his flock tell him that humans will kill him, Tama refuses to leave Marnie. And she discovers his remarkable facility with language, which makes him—oddly but inevitably—a fully monetized internet sensation.

A summary will not do justice to the sense of both dread and humor that comes as Tama narrates the events leading up to the annual Axeman's Carnival. Despite the wide-open spaces of the New Zealand sheep-farm on which Marnie and her hulking husband live, Tana's tale winds into a tight, claustrophobic, suspense story. Masterfully told, and beautifully written, this novel is just so very good. I look forward to reading more from this award-winning author.

Thanks to NetGalley and Europa Editions for the eARC in exchange for my unfettered opinion.

We get to view this story through the eyes of Tama, a magpie.

Marnie finds Tama when he’s still a baby and decides to care for him. She finds solace in the bird, having experienced a miscarriage, and when he is unable to go back to his flock and opts to stay with her the real story begins.

You see Tama witness everything. Marnie’s kindness, her delight in Tama, the workings of the sheep farm, and the abuse Marnie’s husband inflicts on her.

When a photo Marnie posts of Tama online goes viral she continues to post and eventually is making real money through sharing Tama with the world.

But Tama’s popularity isn’t the only thing escalating and the night of a lumberjack competition that was all important to Marnie’s husband things come to a head and an end.

Similar to Room, I appreciate getting the perspective of a narrator who sees so much but doesn’t fully understand the nuance. However this narrator is NOT a child and is capable of action.

The description of The Axeman’s Carnival, a story written from the perspective of a magpie, was like catnip and instantly had me hooked. I love books with just a little bit of “weird”, and I had high expectations that this one would scratch that specific itch for me. At the end of the day though, I largely think that this book was a victim of a mismatch between expectations and reality. Going into a story being narrated by a bird and comparing it in my head to other books with non-human narrators like Remarkably Bright Creatures made me expect a hopeful, lighter tale that gives you that fuzzy feeling of goodness throughout. Instead what I got was a heavy, difficult story full of domestic abuse, family drama, a focus on social media, and an ending that was ultimately redemptive but certainly didn’t leave you with that warm, fuzzy feeling I was hoping for.

This story set in New Zealand is narrated by Tama, a magpie that was rescued by Marnie. Marnie is married to Rob, a farmer who doesn’t exactly care much for the bird (to put it lightly) and is completely focused on winning an upcoming axeman competition. Throughout the pages, we get to see Marnie and Rob’s rocky relationship through Tama’s eyes, all while Tama is going viral on social media thanks to Marnie’s posts.

While I ultimately enjoyed hearing the story narrated from Tam’s point of view, the narrative felt a little confusing and completely scattered to me at times. Sometimes the story was focused on the difficulties of making a living as farmers, then it would lean heavy into descriptive domestic violence, then we would jump to a competition between men swinging axes, then things would shift to social media and both the pressure and strangeness of going viral and becoming a social media sensation. So many different plotlines took away from the depth of any of them in my opinion, and didn’t really lend to my becoming invested in the book as a whole.

In terms of the characters, I enjoyed seeing how Tama was influenced by spending so much time among humans, and how he struggled with leaning into human tendencies while also not being able to fight his wild instincts at times and still wanting to hold onto his bird past and bird family. However, I feel like seeing the whole story through Tama’s eyes made all of the other characters feel rather one-dimensional and I struggled to really care about any of them for the majority of the book. While I could understand what their goals were (Rob’s goal to win the axeman competition, Marnie wanting to make Tama famous, etc.), I never felt like I understood enough about their motivations to reach those goals. At the same time though, Tama’s narration was delightful, innocent and fun to read, but I think it would have worked better for me if we just got intermittent chapters from his point of view rather than the whole novel.

I do think this one will be a crowd pleaser with wide appeal, but unfortunately there was enough about it that didn’t work for me that ultimately I was left disappointed. Tama’s perspective was delightful and humorous at times, but I do think that trigger warnings for domestic violence, abusive relationships and pregnancy loss should be emphasized so that readers are aware of the heaviness of the story they’re getting into. The aspects of the novel that I enjoyed, such as the originality of the concept, the nature writing and the humor that came with playing with perspectives is enough for me to give the author another try, and I’m hopeful that her other books will work better for me! Thank you so much to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I very much enjoyed this book by Chidgey. Masterful storytelling and full of. imagination. It’s a tense story dealing with themes of domestic violence, the lure and impacts of social media and a magpie who changes the landscape of a couple forever. Her characters are so well drawn, and where at first I questioned how I could manage reading about a talking bird, I was soon drawn into her narrative. This all worked very well! I love her writing, and if you do too, this is not to be missed. Thank you to @europaeditions for the ARC of The Axeman’s Carnival, released here August 13, 2024.

3.5. Tama the magpie has been taken in and cared for by Marnie who lives with her abusive husband and about to become an internet sensation. There were parts of this book I loved but the underlying abuse was so much for me to keep reading that I had a hard time getting past it. The book is narrated by Tama, who also imitates the people around and often is quite funny and snarky. Tama's understanding of the world and what is happening is eye opening the writing does shine here. I am not sure why I didn't love this one as much as others, but if you enjoy animals as a main character you are sure to fall in love with Tama.

I love stories told from the animals point of view. This one was written very well and kept me interested. I look forward to more by this author.

beautiful and original. who wouldve thought a story told from the pov of a bird could be so compelling, smart, and powerful.

Applause for a fresh and unique POV and voice from the perspective of a Magpie that Marnie rescues as a young baby bird. Marnie names the vocal Tama and over time Tama becomes a large part of Marnie's life. We view Marnie and her husbands (the Axeman) relationship as if we are a fly on a wall through Tama's eyes. Tama isn't totally sure what to make of life inside a home with his sister and father outside watching him inside.

I liked this for the creative power in storytelling. It ends on a strong note!

Thank you to NetGalley and Europa Editions for the advance e-copy of this book.

The Axeman's Carnival was such a wonderful surprise! When Tam the magpie falls from his nest as a wee bird, he's taken in by Marnie. So tender is Marnie's love that Tam chooses to leave his magpie family and return to her and her not-so-tender husband, Rob. Tam begins to practice using his voice to form words that Marnie can understand and soon becomes insta-famous. Watching the story of Rob and Marnie unfold from the hawk-like eyes of Tam the Magpie was such a treat - a riveting, tense look at the inner workings of an unhealthy relationship. I've never read anything quite like it!

I have read and enjoyed two previous novels by Catherine Chidgey, Remote Sympathy and Pet, so I was eager to read an ARC copy of her soon-to-be-released novel, The Axeman’s Carnival, to be published in the U.S. in August 2024. (Originally published in New Zealand in 2022, this novel hasn’t yet been released in the US.)

Like the previous novels I’ve read by Catherine Chidgey, The Axeman’s Carnival is an interesting story told in a unique and surprising way. Set on a New Zealand sheep farm, the novel features the voice and narration of a magpie (Tama), who was rescued and domesticated by main character Marnie. The book covers many (perhaps too many?) themes and side plots . . . domestic violence, environmental/climate change, farm debt, childlessness, human interference with wildlife, toxic family relationships, jealousy, competitive wood chopping – and social media. While I enjoyed the book, I found myself struggling a bit with the narrator (the magpie). While I think Chidgey did a fine job bringing the magpie to life, I think the book suffers with his voice being the only narrative voice. I mean, he’s a smart, delightful, (and famous!) magpie, but I think the other characters are rather flattened because we only see them through Tama’s eyes.

Chidgey’s writing, as always, is a pleasure to read. She expertly sets the scene throughout the novel, and has clearly done her research when it comes to magpies. Despite uneven pacing (the novel does flag quite a bit in the middle section), the tension builds steadily as the finale draws near.

I enjoyed The Axeman’s Carnival, but not quite as much as Remote Sympathy or Pet.

Thank you to Europa Editions and NetGalley for providing an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. The book will be published on August 13, 2024.

3 stars.

4.5 Stars

Set in rural New Zealand, this is a story of a talking magpie, and Marnie, the woman who rescues the magpie, Tama, when it falls from the nest. Tama becomes an international ‘celebrity’ when he learns to speak, and Marnie - or technically Tama, begins to obtain somewhat of a celebrity status online. Marnie’s husband becomes more jealous of ‘all these men’ he imagines she’s talking to online, and his anger grows, and only cools off a little when he sees how much money she is beginning to make.

There’s a balance to this story, overall, when the story focuses on Marnie and Tama it is generally light with some jealousy of Tama getting more of her affection, until the husband begins to see even this magpie as a reason to abuse her once again.

As this story proceeds, Tama attempts to connection with her magpie family, but she is dismissed since they see her as no longer a part of their family. There are several surprises, some moments of danger, but there are also moments that made me smile, as well.


Pub Date: 13 Aug 2024

Many thanks for the ARC provided by Europa Editions

I had my doubts about finding a talking magpie endearing, but here we are. Our story begins in rural New Zealand as Tama falls from his nest and is rescued by Marnie, a woman trapped in an abusive marriage. Against all odds Tama learns to speak with humans and becomes known as a clever, wisecracking Magpie. We follow Tama as his heart is caught between two worlds; the magpie family in the wild and his life of domesticity filled with human affection, but increasing danger.

I absolutely adored Tama’s bighearted personality and his tender relationship with Marnie. This novel has a steady sense of foreboding leading up to the event of the Axeman’s Carnival but Tama’s antics offered great comedic relief.

AXEMAN’S CARNIVAL is a unique compulsive reading experience that explores the bonds of friendship, domestic violence, and the meaning of freedom.

READ THIS IF YOU:
-believe friendship can be found in unexpected places
-have ever watched a viral animal video online
-enjoyed Remarkably Bright Creatures

RATING: 4.5/5 (rounded up to 5 stars)
PUB DATE: August 13, 2024

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review

Well if you were wondering if you could love a creature as much as Marcellus the octopus I give you Tama the magpie. This book centers around a woman who lives on a remote farm in New Zealand with her abusive husband. One day she rescues a magpie who she treats like a pet, begins to imitate her and becomes an internet sensation. The book is narrated beautifully by Tama and held me captivated from start to finish. This is a moving book and though it’s been a sensation abroad I can see it being a huge hit here in the state. I loved it!