Sean Barrs 's Reviews > The Ocean at the End of the Lane
The Ocean at the End of the Lane
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by
![27788046](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1694286584p2/27788046.jpg)
Sean Barrs 's review
bookshelves: 5-star-reads, children-of-all-ages, magical-realism, fantasy, favourites
Jun 01, 2018
bookshelves: 5-star-reads, children-of-all-ages, magical-realism, fantasy, favourites
Read 3 times. Last read December 28, 2019.
“I went away in my head, into a book. That was where I went whenever real life was too hard or too inflexible.”
This is a book that teaches us that we should never stop dreaming, that we should never stop seeing oceans in ponds and that we should never, ever, stop seeing better worlds in the things we read.
The pond that was an ocean bespeaks the level of optimism that is inherent with childhood dreams. Everything seems better. Everything seems bigger and grander. Imagination makes the ordinary seem extraordinary and fantastic. I have no idea what elements were fantasy within the novel. It could even be magical realism or a child’s interpretation and exaggeration of real life events. Part of me felt like it was based on real things but distorted and twisted to evoke the sense of unfamiliarity a child has in an adult world.
But to perpetually see the world through child eyes would be a boon:
“I do not miss childhood, but I miss the way I took pleasure in small things, even as greater things crumbled. I could not control the world I was in, could not walk away from things or people or moments that hurt, but I took joy in the things that made me happy.”
![description](https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1528119637i/25653106._SX540_.jpg)
It’s a book for the lost, for the social pariahs who do not fit in with normal society. It is a book for those who would rather spend their days reading than interacting with the human race. Humans are always disappointing, books are not. And our little hero knows this so he concocts his own friends and draws upon the lessons he learnt through reading. In this regard it reminded me of Coraline. It’s a book about an odd child who dreams of something a little bit better than the reality they experience.
The friend he meets becomes his guardian against the forces that would destroy him and his family. She becomes a doorway into understanding an entirely new world. In this I saw a lonely child longing for something he didn’t have, a connection with someone who would hold him up when the days become their darkest. In The Ocean at the End of Lane anything is possible as a child’s dreams and memories propel the narrative forward.
The Ocean at the End of the Lane is a truly fantastic book in every regard. I absolutely loved it.
![description](https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1528119533i/25653089._SX540_.jpg)
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You can connect with me on social media via My Linktree.
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This is a book that teaches us that we should never stop dreaming, that we should never stop seeing oceans in ponds and that we should never, ever, stop seeing better worlds in the things we read.
The pond that was an ocean bespeaks the level of optimism that is inherent with childhood dreams. Everything seems better. Everything seems bigger and grander. Imagination makes the ordinary seem extraordinary and fantastic. I have no idea what elements were fantasy within the novel. It could even be magical realism or a child’s interpretation and exaggeration of real life events. Part of me felt like it was based on real things but distorted and twisted to evoke the sense of unfamiliarity a child has in an adult world.
But to perpetually see the world through child eyes would be a boon:
“I do not miss childhood, but I miss the way I took pleasure in small things, even as greater things crumbled. I could not control the world I was in, could not walk away from things or people or moments that hurt, but I took joy in the things that made me happy.”
![description](https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1528119637i/25653106._SX540_.jpg)
It’s a book for the lost, for the social pariahs who do not fit in with normal society. It is a book for those who would rather spend their days reading than interacting with the human race. Humans are always disappointing, books are not. And our little hero knows this so he concocts his own friends and draws upon the lessons he learnt through reading. In this regard it reminded me of Coraline. It’s a book about an odd child who dreams of something a little bit better than the reality they experience.
The friend he meets becomes his guardian against the forces that would destroy him and his family. She becomes a doorway into understanding an entirely new world. In this I saw a lonely child longing for something he didn’t have, a connection with someone who would hold him up when the days become their darkest. In The Ocean at the End of Lane anything is possible as a child’s dreams and memories propel the narrative forward.
The Ocean at the End of the Lane is a truly fantastic book in every regard. I absolutely loved it.
![description](https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1528119533i/25653089._SX540_.jpg)
___________________________________
You can connect with me on social media via My Linktree.
__________________________________
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Reading Progress
June 1, 2018
–
Started Reading
June 1, 2018
– Shelved
June 1, 2018
– Shelved as:
5-star-reads
June 1, 2018
– Shelved as:
children-of-all-ages
June 1, 2018
– Shelved as:
magical-realism
June 1, 2018
–
Finished Reading
June 2, 2018
–
Started Reading
June 4, 2018
– Shelved as:
fantasy
June 4, 2018
– Shelved as:
favourites
June 4, 2018
–
Finished Reading
December 28, 2019
–
Started Reading
December 28, 2019
–
Finished Reading
Comments Showing 1-23 of 23 (23 new)
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message 1:
by
Jamie
(new)
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rated it 2 stars
Jun 01, 2018 06:58PM
![Jamie Dacyczyn](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1306204362p1/5407713.jpg)
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![Anna](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1417917372p1/7063413.jpg)
Honestly, it's a whole new level of experience with that story
![Sean Barrs](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1694286584p1/27788046.jpg)
Honestly, it's a whole new level of experience with that story"
Great idea :D
![David Crisp](https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/m_25x33-8a3530ed95c3dbef8bf215b080559b09.png)
![Alex](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1523314585p1/3253494.jpg)
![David Crisp](https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/m_25x33-8a3530ed95c3dbef8bf215b080559b09.png)
Thanks for the recommendation Alex. I'll give American Gods a go at some point in the future. It wasn't so much his writing style that put me off this book, it was more the bizarre plot that just wasn't to my taste.
![Sean Barrs](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1694286584p1/27788046.jpg)
Thanks for the recommendation Alex. I'll g..."
American Gods is far more bizare.......
![Sean Barrs](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1694286584p1/27788046.jpg)
Start with this one! :D
![Sean Barrs](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1694286584p1/27788046.jpg)
Thank you, i hope you enjoy it as much as i did! :D
![erl](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1598382615p1/4484870.jpg)
![Cassie](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1681134176p1/69117331.jpg)
![Angie](https://images.gr-assets.com/users/1343771907p1/11451125.jpg)