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

This novel is a very fast read. Short but sweet? Lottie has a morbid fascination with dead animals. Could this be because she is grieving over the death of her mother, along with her father who cannot let go of his wife's possessions.
The story is written from the point of view of the child Lottie, so information is scarce. However, it is written in a poetic style which is engaging.
Lottie feels isolated from the other children at school. Aunt Hilda does not understand her obsession with the dead animals she finds and brings into the home. It is dirty, and a health risk. She's a girl (she tells Lottie's father), it's not right. I can forgive the Aunt this observation, as she comes from a different generation who believed that women's survival depended on marrying the right man. She only wants the best for Lottie, and Lottie's family have had to struggle to survive in a new country.
The slight twist reveal towards the end didn't come as a surprise, as there were plenty of clues. This didn't detract from the story.
The ending was uplifting. Lottie's conviction was strong - she knew what she wanted to do with her life - and I found her father's support encouraging.
The talk of families and death made me want to go home and hug my loved ones, which is never a bad thing.

A digital copy of this novel was supplied to me by Text Publishing Company through netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.

ARC provided by Netgalley and Text Publishing in exchange for an honest review

Unique. Unique. Unique. The Art of Taxidermy is not only a book in verse, but its protagonist is also a girl who has a morbid fascination with dead animals as a way of dealing with the grief over losing her mother. It is a beautiful book not only about Lottie's journey, but also a book about her family's struggle as well- their struggle with their heritage, grief, and acceptance of Lottie's hobbies even though it's strange and nontraditional. The story did hit me emotionally a bit at the end; but even so, I think it would have been more impactful if it had been written as a traditional novel instead of a novel in verse.

I received this arc from the publisher in exchange for an honest review,

This book is all types of excellent. It has a beautiful cover, beautiful description, and a beautiful story. ESPECIALLY THE STORY! It was so intriguing and great to read. I started and continued to read it all in one setting so that in itself shows that it was a great read to me. I loved the main character and was interested in what she went through and her interests in taxidermy. I also have a friend who is interested in taxidermy and I find it intriguing that the author introduced this in her story. Not many authors write their books in this way or write about topics such as this and I wholeheartedly praise Sharon Kernot for it.

I highly recommend this book for those who are interested in books involving taxidermy or who want a creepy gloomy type of read like this for Halloween.

Beautiful in its description of flora & fauna native to Australia, The Art of Taxidermy is told in verse, centering around the tale of a young girl, Lottie obsessed with death after having lost her mother.

The visions Lottie describes are those of a stunning landscape, rich with life & very inviting. Unfortunately, I didn’t connect to the writing, not invoking the emotional attachment to the characters or events that I crave as a reader, however, fans of verse writing should check this one out, especially anyone who has an appreciation for nature-related writing.

ARC provided by the Publishers via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
Publication Date 23 Aug 2019

'I wanted flesh and blood,
not ghosts.'

A disappointing book with interesting intentions but a lacklustre execution.
I feel like the format could have really worked with the themes discussed in the book- fragmented style reflecting grief etc but it was lacking in plot due to the inability to introduce a conflict effectively. Some 'poems' were purely exposition and others were purely abstract yet all were lacking in a strong voice that I feel like a collection like this really needs.
Unfortunately, I feel like the same effect could have been had with a short story format or in a poetry pamphlet.
The imagery was morose and effective for the purpose of the book. However, it became repetitive very quickly. This is the same for the motifs and symbols used.
A format that I would find more interesting would have been if the book was written from alternating perspectives in a similar way to The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison. Different perspectives could have allowed for a detached observation of Lottie and alienated her from the reader in the same way she feels alienated from her peers. Her perspective would have been a breath of fresh air if this was the case.

This was my first foray into reading prose, I was tempted in by the glorious cover and we all know that we should NEVER judge a book by the cover.

The Main charecter Lottie or Charlotte suffers with a grief of her mother passing and in turn takes up an interest in taxidermy, I know a bit of a leap, I think she turns to it as a form of therapy in which she can in her mind learn more about death.
she is a bright girl and her father indulges her curiosity by supporting this interest.
This book is set in Australia and we get to meet an aboriginal boy whom Lottie is friends with, we also get to meet her Aunt who is appalled how her father lets her satisfy her inquiring mind.
It goes withouit saying that, with a title such as it is, there are detailed descriptions of dead animals and Taxidermy.
Part of me wishes this would have been a traditional novel, but that is a knee jerk reaction from someone who is not used to reading prose or poetry.
I have very little experience reading this type of book, it is really not my jam, but i wanted to try and stretch my reading comfort zone and I am glad that I did, but i wanted to be swept away, I wanted to be won over and repent for the years i have not read this type of writing.
Alas, after a promising start, I just got bored with it, and once I had put it down, struggled to pick it back up again.
The cover is STUNNING and gave me a William Morris feel, the cover game these days is on point.
This book would be ideal for someone who regularly reads books like this and indeed for people like me, who just want to reach out and experiement with text and subject matter.

I want to thank the publishers and Netgalley for letting my push my boundaries.

I am keeping this on my kindle for future reference and you never know one day, i might take another stab at it, however will promise not to gut it, stuff it and sew it back up!

She carried everything lightly, as only the dead and innocent can.

In The Art of Taxidermy, we meet young Lottie whose passion for ‘revising’ dead creatures has her Aunt Hilda horrified, more so that her father Wolfgang encourages her by buying her glass aquariums to ‘contain the fusty fug of death’ within. To his mind, she isn’t the freak Aunt Hilda believes her to be, she just has a scientific bend of mind, it’s ‘in her genes’. No sir! Girls she play with dolls, not skeletal remains of reptiles and birds, sheep… not be enthralled by the stink of death!

It is the states of decay Lottie is captivated by, the possibility of resurrection, of keeping a creature in it’s natural state forever unlike her mother Adrianna, whose death has hung around like a shadow. Through her grief, a passion for taxidermy is being born but Hilda thinks it’s a sickness, a disturbance in the child’s nature. Written in a beautiful lyrical style, nature dominates the pages more than death as Lottie weaves her way to the creak, observes nature searching for specimens. “But the day was teeming with life”, we explore the Australian land overhead as birds take flight or upon the ground muck through the mud and fungi. Then there is Jeffrey, made of skin rich like the earth and quiet grace, companion to Lottie’s peculiar hobby. A boy with Aboriginal origins, a boy who has blossomed in her dark heart.

What is a girl to do with the face of death but try and preserve it? She herself a flightless bird with Aunt Hilda trying to make her a ‘normal’ girl, doing everything she can to end her taxidermy dreams. Snippets of ‘mother memories’ creeping into her heart like soft dreams, Oma’s omens and superstitions, an inheritance of despair and always, ‘the air is heavy with ghosts.’ As Lottie finds her purpose, she must too confront her grief over the loss of her mother and learn her German family history, the reasons her family were treated like criminals. Will she be able to convince Aunt Hilda that she isn’t an unnatural girl, that she isn’t a bloodthirsty murderer of creatures with a macabre hobby? Do we embrace our yearnings or let shame force us to discard the very things that make our heart beat with meaning? Intentions are funny creatures themselves, as we see with Aunt Hilda pushing her ‘ideal’ of womanhood upon Lottie. The road to hell is paved with good intentions and all that.

A beautiful tale out of Australia, uniquely written. The subject is heavy and yet the lyrical prose is uplifting, I felt I could hear bird-call and smell the ‘fug’ of decay. For those who love narrative poetry, this is a YA novel but I think adults will enjoy it too.

Publication Date: August 23, 2019

Text Publishing Company

Absolutely lovely verse writing! I am new to this genre and the imagery this book was able to evoke was magical. I really enjoyed it! Thank you for the opportunity to read!

i enjoyed that the book was different and it was a quick read. Lottie is a girl who loves science and animals and is fascinated by death. Her mother has passed away and we find out later how some other family members have passed away too.

Her aunt has helped raise her and Lottie scares her with her fascination with dead animals and trying to figure out how to save their bodies. I was glad her father was supportive of her desire to learn.

I enjoyed the book and the illustrations were lovely!
Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the ARC in exchange for the honest review.

Thank you to Net Galley for allowing me to read an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

In the wake of her mother's death, Little deals with her grief by developing a fascination with death. Her father, Wolfgang, is supportive of her new-found fascination, whilst her Aunt Hilda is horrified that a girl would wish to dabble in such a pastime.

There were a few things that I think that younger teenagers may enjoy about this book. Firstly, it is written in verse, which many reluctant reader's enjoy as it leads to speedier progress through the novel. As a result of this, the plotline is linear, uncomplicated and clearly told, without being patronising. These factors would make this book accessible to a more reluctant reader, although there is certainly plenty here for an avid reader.

I enjoyed the references to Australian animals, something which I know many younger readers would find fascinating, but this book does not shy away from difficult topics such as death, grief and mentions of internment camps during the second world war.

Whilst some have classed this as a YA novel (whatever that means anymore), I'd recommend it for readers aged 11-13, as it does not contain any of the 'adult' topics that I've seen in other YA novels.

This is a charming, and beautifully written novel, and I will be purchasing a copy for the school library when it becomes available in August.

I'm glad I didn't realize that this book was written in verse poetry when I first requested it on Netgalley, because I might have thought it wasn't for me. I usually find free verse poetry to be distracting when telling a story, but in this case I found it was so beautiful and I really enjoyed it. The amazing thing about poetry is that it gives the reader great freedom in imagination. Reading this book filled my mind with such beautiful pictures and emotions, too.
Lottie, the main character, is dealing with losing her mother and other people she is close to. She is a young teenager, on the cusp of puberty, and seeing the way she deals with her grief is unusual, but also understandable. She channels her grief into the art of taxidermy, while her aunt tries to do whatever she can stop it because she believes it isn't healthy. She may be right and she might just be trying to help, but this is how Lottie is coping. The book is set in Australia and I appreciated that unique perspective and the addition of some Aboriginal characters and history.
I will say it took me a bit to get into the story. I had to get used to the gruesome descriptions of dead animals and death (I wouldn't recommend this if you're squeamish). I also found myself just a little bored in the beginning because the most interesting plot points weren't introduced until like halfway through the book. I still really enjoyed the poetry up until those parts though.
I also can't help but point out that the cover is absolutely stunning!!!

A beautiful story of grief and loss, both of family and friends. A story about the need for belonging somewhere, the need for a group that is ours. Lottie griefs in her own way, and although it sometimes seems to go too far, with help from her family she can turn it into something beautiful. Just like she always intended to do.

The only reason I have not given this book five stars is, that the cycle of aunt Hilde not liking Lottie's way of grieving and throwing all of her loved belongings away, Lottie starting anew and aunt Hilda not liking it and throwing it all away etc. got a bit too repetitive after a while.

The Art of Taxidermy was such a beautiful book. Written in prose, the book starts as young Lottie has just experienced the death of her mother. As you progress through the book you see how she, her father, her aunt and grandma all cope differently with this tragedy. Meanwhile she discovers an acute fascination of dead animals and her aunt struggles to rationalize her new "obsession" with what it means to be a "girl". This is a powerful story of finding yourself and being true to yourself, as well as an insight commentary of how death affects family, its individuals, and its dynamics. I loved this book.