#isaac and bellatine

[wahlpaper]

Thistlefoot Review

Thistlefoot by GennaRose NetherCott

CW: Violence, Xenophobia, Antisemitism, Death, Genocide, Self-harm, Suicidal Ideation, Swearing, Toxic Parental Relationship, Money Problems, Homelessness, Possession, Child Death, Drinking, Blackmail, Gore, PTSD, Self Loathing

5/5

I have found in my attempts at using dating apps that the media/entertainment recommendations of my matches tend to stick with me a lot longer than the people do. I say this to be funny, not for pity. Months ago I matched with a book-loving girl who gave me the perfect book rec. I told her about my blog being Queer and Jewish-based, and she immediately suggested Thistlefoot by GennaRose Nethercott. It took a while for it to get to me on Libby, but it was absolutely worth the wait!

Thistlefoot is about two magical siblings, Isaac and Bellatine Yaga. They are left a living house from their great-great-grandmother, Baba Yaga. Isaac and Bellatine are young adults now and haven't seen each other in 6 years. They don't trust each other, but they're willing to work out what to do with the house. Isaac has some debts he wants to clear and Bellatine wants the freedom that comes with a house that can walk. So they decide to continue their family business of puppet shows for one year, adding a stage to the house. Unfortunately, the house wasn't the only thing Baba Yaga left them. The past is coming back through an old enemy who wants the house destroyed.

Folklore, the past, and the concept that the body remembers trauma are all very important to Thistlefoot. Nethercott did a lot of research on folklore while writing the book. She looked into her Russian roots and quite a lot of American stories. She incorporated as much as she could into the book and wrote her own in as well. Folklore also affected how the story was told. Most books in third person have a narrative to explain what's happening outside of dialogue, but it's rare for them to feel like a character. In Thistlefoot, you aren't just reading a story, you're being told one. Perhaps it's Nethercott inserting herself into the story. Throughout, you also get interjections from Thistlefoot, the house, as she tells you interesting, but misleading information about the past.

I absolutely loved the experience of reading Thistlefoot. I didn't really know what was going to happen as I went through, even down to the last page. Every bit of the present, past, and history unfolded when the time was right. The story centers on a group that doesn't want to care about each other, but can't help themselves. Isaac and Bellatine are joined by a musical trio that just wants to fix the world and a girl that Bellatine brings to life with her animation powers. Basically, everyone has something about themselves that they aren't sharing, and that absolutely includes the house. Some pieces are revealed more cinematically than others, but they all contribute to why this book is so popular.

Despite the fact that Baba Yaga is not traditionally Jewish, I think it was a smart move to make that her religion. Russia's history of pogroms and antisemitism plays an important role in the story. There are many happier aspects of Judaism incorporated as well, such as traditional names, the use of Yiddish, and a shofar. Alongside the Jewish representation is queer representation. Bellatine has a romance with another woman, Baba Yaga was happier as a widow than married, Isaac had complex feelings for his best friend, and Sparrow the musician is non-binary. More diversity than this is included in Thistlefoot, making the book that much more relatable.

Nethercott spins an epic tale and race against time in Thistlefoot. If you're looking for a cinematic book that you can feel like a part of, I highly recommend this one. Puppetry, folklore, and memory come together to tell a tale you won't forget!

[can-of-pringles]

Using Artbreeder to show how I imagine Bellatine and Isaac Yaga

[slyandthefamilybook]

Noah's Spring Jewish Book Review

this isn't gonna become a regular thing, don't worry. I just need to gush some about these books. I'm gonna keep the reviews short too because who's got that kind of time!

So far I've read 4 Jewish novels this spring and I'm working on a fifth. We'll go in chronological order

1. Thistlefoot by GennaRose Nethercott

~ Two estranged siblings, Isaac and Bellatine Yaga—the grandchildren of the famous Baba Yaga—inherit their ancestor's chicken-footed house. They travel the country putting on puppet shows and exploring their own mysterious abilities, all the while trying to escape from a threatening figure known only as the Longshadow Man, as well as their own pasts. History relives itself in a book filled with magic and mystery ~

This book was so damn good. Every other sentence is tattoo-worthy and hits you like a sack of bricks. The characters feel so real and raw while also managing to fill out their respective roles with a sense of poetry. The book has a supporting cast of memorable characters and a sense of real danger throughout. Every so often the house will interject in a way that reminds me so much of my bubbe (עליה השלום). I've read reviews that said it dragged on a bit in the second act but I was enraptured the entire way through. It's also pretty gay, which I always appreciate. 10/10

2. When the Angels Left the Old Country by Sacha Lamb

~ An angle and a demon—best friends for 200 years—set out from their tiny Pale shtetl to America in search of a girl who hasn't been heard from. They're accompanied by Rosie, a spunky and fire-spirited girl from their shtetl desperate to get away and have an adventure in the far-off West ~

No book has made me feel quite so seen as this one. As someone who grew up Orthodox there's virtually no representation for people like me. The majority of Orthodox characters in media are trying to get away. None of them love it quite so much as I do, as much as the characters in this book do. From Little Ash tucking his peyot behind his ears like my older brothers used to to the angel waking up to daven shacharit. Sacha Lamb takes the brave stance of "what if Jewish theology is real, actually" and it shines on every page. The writing effortlessly intertwines spirituality and reverence with a classic Yiddish folktale. It's also pretty gay. 10/10

3. From Dust, a Flame by Rebecca Podos

Hannah, the descendant of the famed Rabbi Yehuda Loew, wakes up one morning to find herself transformed, her eyes turning to yellow slits. Her mother seems to blame herself without explaining why, and soon after disappears. After receiving a mysterious letter, Hannah and her adopted brother Gabe travel to upstate New York to meet their mother's family, to learn the secrets of her past, and of their own lineage ~

I'll start off by saying I'm not sure if I was the target audience for this book. It was good, don't get me wrong, but the writing wasn't to my taste. It was a little... blatant, where I prefer prose to be a bit more subtle. Again, nothing wrong with it, just not my particular thing. I definitely relate to Hannah and Gabe a lot, each in their own way. A lot of the book felt very comforting and familiar to me. The book is equal parts supernatural action and intriguing mystery, and keeps you engrossed til the end. It's also Extremely Gay 7/10

4. The Way Out by Gavriel Savit

~ Yehuda Leib and Bluma set out from their tiny Pale shtetl, each on a mission of the utmost importance. Yehuda Leib is looking for his lost father, and Bluma is running from Death. Navigating the Far Country full of demons, goblins, and angels, the pair fight their way through history and mystery alike, and prepare to make war on Death himself ~

This book. Oh boy this book. Where do I start? This book made me cry several times, which hasn't happened in over 15 years. This book said everything about death I've been feeling since my bubbe passed away (עליה השלום). This book genuinely made me re-think how I view G-d? All that and more in less than 400 pages. This book harmonized with my soul. This book changed who I am as a person. This book made me crumble to dust and then built me back up from scratch. 10/10

[nesyanast]

If you're looking to take a breather from real life but still keep it celebrating Jewish culture, I came across this book released last year, "Thistlefoot" by GennaRose Nethercott.

An enchanted adventure illuminated by Jewish myth and adorned with lyrical prose as tantalizing and sweet as briar berries, Thistlefoot is a sweeping epic rich in Eastern European folklore: a powerful and poignant exploration of healing from multi-generational trauma told by a bold new talent.

The Yaga siblings—Bellatine, a young woodworker, and Isaac, a wayfaring street performer and con artist—have been estranged since childhood, separated both by resentment and by wide miles of American highway. But when they learn that they are to receive an inheritance, the siblings agree to meet—only to discover that their bequest isn’t land or money, but something far stranger: a sentient house on chicken legs.

Thistlefoot, as the house is called, has arrived from the Yagas’ ancestral home outside Kyiv—but not alone. A sinister figure known only as the Longshadow Man has tracked it to American shores, bearing with him violent secrets from the past: fiery memories that have hidden in Isaac and Bellatine’s blood for generations. As the Yaga siblings embark with Thistlefoot on a final cross-country tour of their family’s traveling theater show, the Longshadow Man follows in relentless pursuit, seeding destruction in his wake. Ultimately, time, magic, and legacy must collide—erupting in a powerful conflagration to determine who gets to remember the past and craft a new future.

[redgoldsparks]

October Reading and Reviews by Maia Kobabe

I post my reviews throughout the month on Storygraph and Goodreads, and do roundups here and on patreon. Reviews below the cut.

Finna by Nino Cipri, read by Amanda Dolan

Ava is having a rough time: three days ago she and Jules broke up, and since then she's been avoiding them at their horrible mutual job at LitenVärld, a dystopian Ikea. Then a customer goes missing in a wormhole in spacetime, and Ava and Jules are chosen to try and retrieve the missing grandma. Very short, very fun. Written by a nonbinary author. Gave this a re-listen as an audiobook because there is a sequel now :D

Defekta by Nino Cipri read by Ramon De Ocampo 

This novella takes place in the same LitenVärld store that Ava and Jules worked at in book one in this series, but follows Derek, the store's most loyal and dedicated employee. He lives in a shipping container in the store's parking lot, and has no friends and no life outside his time at the store. In fact, he doesn't even have any memories from before he started working at the store... or any explanation for why the store seems to make sense to him, and even speak to him, in a way it doesn't to any of his co-workers. Then something even more shocking than an wormhole occurs in the store: the furniture starts waking up and coming to life. Derek's entire worldview and sense of self are completely upturned. Unfortunately this story didn't capture me as strongly as book one; despite being a novella it felt oddly slow. I was rooting for Derek and the wayward furniture by the end, but the structure of the story was not as strong or streamlined as Finna. I do still want to keep reading Nino Cipri because I love the way they effortlessly include nonbinary characters in their sci-fi and I want a third installment that returns to Ava and Jules!

Princess Floralinda and the Forty Story Tower read by Moira Quirk 

A four hour fantasy novella read by the talented and wonderful Moira Quirk, who also reads the Locked Tomb audiobooks. This original fairy tale features Floralinda, a princess captured by a witch and imprisoned in a tower full of monsters. When all of the princes who try to rescue her fail Floralinda has to to take up arms against the monsters herself. I was entertained throughout my whole time listening to this story, but it didn't have a particularly strong emotional impact. I would mostly recommend it to Tamsyn Muir completionists; though it was published in the same year as Harrow it feels like an earlier work. I kind of wanted the ending to be either more hopeful or more horrible.

My Aunt is a Monster by Reimena Yee 

Safia is blind, but she was raised by booksellers who read her stories of adventures and the wide world. After her parents tragically die in a fire, Safia is adopted by a distant relative, a reclusive aunt who used to be the world's most famous adventurer. A curse ended her traveling career, but a rival adventurer and the discovery of an ancient city might pull the whole family back into the world. This book was sillier than I expected, but I still greatly enjoyed the art style and the magical whimsy.

Thistlefoot by GemmaRose Nethercott read by January LaVoy 

Isaac and Bellatine Yaga grew up on the road with their parents' traveling puppet show, but neither has a good relationship with their parents as adults. Isaac ran away as a teen and has lived as a train-hopping actor and scam artist into his early twenties. Bellatine moved across the country to study woodworking in New England were she is trying desperately to live a normal life despite her power to bring inanimate objects to life. Her power, and Isaac's shapeshifting ability, are inheritances of a generational trauma from a history they barely know. But then another inheritance arrives for them in New York: a house on chicken legs, built by a Russian Jewish ancestor who survived the pogroms of the 1920s and the turmoil of the Russian Revolution. To Isaac, the house is an opportunity. To Bellatine, it is a home. But it comes with a curse: a shadow man follows the house to America, wanting to finish the destruction he started. I loved this story, woven through with Jewish folklore and American folk songs, a road trip story, a story of facing and accepting family history and how far its shadow falls into the present. I image this book gets compted with American Gods by Neil Gaimen and The Golem and the Jinni by Helen Wecker but it is very much its own book with its own lyrical tone. And its queer! Highly recommend.

The Death I Gave Him by Em X. Liu 

This queer, modern retelling of Hamlet is set in a scientific lab and contained mostly within a tense 12 hours. Hayden Lichfield finds his father's cooling body in Elsinore labs within the first few pages; he immediately calls on the sentient AI system, Horatio, who controls the security cameras and many other aspects of the building. Horatio reports a 1.5 hour gap in the video logs. Hayden and his father, Dr Lichfield, were working on formula to reverse death. Hayden's immediate assumption is that the killer was after his father's research. The lab goes into lockdown and Hayden is trapped inside with his uncle Charles, lab technician Gabriel Rasmussen, Hayden's ex and research intern Felicia Xia, and her father Paul Xia, head of security. Unless they find an intruder, one of them is the murderer. I enjoyed how deftly this novel kept me guessing even when following a plot I know well. I was genuinely unsure how many, or who, of the people trapped in Elsinore would survive the night. I was also into the unashamed queerness of an AI in love with a human, and the ways in which that love could and could not be reciprocated.

The Feather Thief by Kirk Wallace Johnson read by MacLeod Andrews

This book does an unbelievably thorough job of recounting one of the most devastating recent thefts from a modern museum. In 2009, an American student studying at London's Royal Academy of Music broke into the Tring museum, which contains thousands of natural history specimens including birds collected by Charles Darwin and his contemporary Alfred Russel Wallace. Darwin and Wallace both independently formulated the theory of natural selection and survival of the fittest in the same decade, by observing and collecting birds on remote islands during the height of the British Empire. They both believed in the importance of preserving these birds for future science. At the same time, the colonial empire had developed a huge appetite for exotic and colorful feathers for Victorian hats, the cabinets of curiosities and natural history specimens which were in vogue in the upper class, and for another aristocrat's hobby: tying salmon flies. These appetites nearly drove many bird species to extinction. Modern day lovers of the Victorian art of salmon fly tying now comb the internet for feathers from these rare birds, desperate to get their hands on materials mentioned in Victorian books. The majority of these feathers are now semi-illegal to possess or sell. It was this obsession that drove 20 year old Edwin Rist to break a window at the Tring and escape with nearly 300 stolen bird skins. There followed a long detective investigation into how he'd done it and what happened with the feathers afterwards. I enjoyed the audiobook and was impressed by the persistence of the author, who pursued this story for half a decade.

Asylum by Greg Means and Kazimir Lee 

A short but rich story about platonic adult friends who bond through a competitive fantasy card game, but end up supporting each other through all kinds of life transitions both joyful and heartbreaking. Allen and Zekia are both single, both wish they were dating or partnered, but instead they're sharing hotel rooms at geeky conventions, setting up mutual friends, attending weddings and funerals, babysitting other people's kids, and most of all playing the card game Asylum. Zekia, a Black lesbian, struggles with her self-worth, feeling unlovable and too socially awkward to date. Allen, a straight cis man, take a more philosophical view of his situation, appreciating the good things he has in life, including his many strong friendships. The black and white art is simple, clear, and effective. I read it all in one sitting!

Sincerely, Harriet by Sarah Winifred Searle

This is a very quiet and soft story of a girl struggling with an invisible chronic illness, and the resulting isolation and loneliness. Harriet and her parents recently moved to Chicago (to be closer to hospitals and specialists) and she doesn't know anyone in her neighborhood yet except the older woman, Pearl, who lives on a lower floor. Harriet misses friends she made at a summer camp and sends them postcards, lying about her new busy and fun social life. Pearl lends Harriet a series classic of books to try and gently nudge the girl out of her shell. But Harriet struggles to focus on them, instead wondering about a possible ghost living in the attic. There are other emotional struggles hinted at, but they are very subtle and a lot is left to the reader's imagination. The line art is very careful and lovely.

[hause-of-pancakes]

“How do you ruin a people? Is it with fire? Is it with bullets? You can drag a man through the street tied to the back of a horse. You can incinerate a village. Can line families up in rows against a brick wall and fell them, one by one, like a forest. But all it takes is one survivor, and the story lives on. One survivor to carry the poems and the songs, the prayers, the sorrows. It isn’t just taking a life that destroys a people. It’s taking their history.”

- GennaRose Nethercott from “Thistlefoot”

This is Isaac and Bellatine Yaga. Siblings, and the main characters of Thistlefoot

[wormwoodandhoney]

Witchy book rec- "Thistlefoot" by GennaRose Nethercott! It's about Isaac and Bellatine Yaga, descendants of Baba Yaga who have inherited their ancestor's infamous home (along with a few powers). Problem is, the house is being hunted by the Longshadow Man, who will stop at nothing to track down the house. It's a bit prose-heavy, but very good! (Also her short story "A Diviner's Abecedarian" is fantastic too- middle school mean girls with Magic)

i've read thistlefoot! it's a great book, excellent rec! and thanks fr the short story rec, i haven't read it yet!

[shirleyjacksons]

3 & 12 for book ask!

What were your top five books of the year?

Leech

Witch Hat Atelier

Bunny

Flyaway

The Salt Grows Heavy

Any books that disappointed you?

thistlefoot disappointed me the most. it had such a neat concept but it didn’t land for me. :( i loved the flashbacks but the only modern day character i liked was bellatine, which was unfortunate because the author clearly favored isaac more

[nerdynatreads]

 ☆☆YouTube | Tumblr | Instagram | Storygraph ☆☆

book review || Thistlefoot by GennaRose Nethercott

video review || Poor Association -- Recent Reads 003 || April & May Reads!

From early on I could tell this would be a pretty divisive book by the writing style. Loooooots of descriptions, and tons of vibes, very atmospheric— similar to Erin Morgenstern’s work, but not as lyrical or whimsical. I don’t find myself reaching for tabs to annotate the writing, but there are occasional lines I really enjoy nonetheless. This also seems like the biggest draw of the book: it's the cozy atmosphere.

We’re following the two youngest living descendants of Baba Yaga when they inherit her house on chicken legs. From the first introduction, I’ve had conflicting feelings about both of them. Isaac is charming, but in an obnoxious way, and he utilizes his ability to… shapeshift(?) to steal from people. Nothing will tie him down and he flits through life by the skin of his teeth. He’s weirdly secretive and apparently has an ending goal for all this money, but we’re not sure what that is. I absolutely detested him as a character. His sister, Bellatine, while more grounded and realistic, struggles to control her own abilities. Both of these characters seem interesting but fell flat. They seem well-created but don’t have the spark to jump off the page. I actually think my favorite perspective is the short chapters through the eyes of the house itself.

Initially, the book seems like it’s set in a contemporary world, but as I continued, more fantastical elements appear. Thistlefoot isn’t the only magical building to exist and apparently, magical powers aren’t as unusual as I first believed. Very cool and all, but I can’t get a grasp on what this world is like since it seems like the author is making it up as she goes. We also see some magic through flashbacks to Baba Yaga, but still, nothing is really explained.

The flashbacks are where we see the twist on the Baba Yaga story. She’s still witchy, but a lonely woman and she ends up creating her own children and her only focus is keeping them safe. She’s separated from the rest of her village, adding to the witch rumor. I like the way the author tied in the story with the history of Russia, specifically the Bolsheviks’ revolution.

The plot is weird. We’ve got the main storyline, but the second one is far more interesting, though there’s been very little explanation or exploration of it so far. Bellatine has only just become aware of the secondary plot and I’m at the halfway point! It just feels like there’s been way too much build-up.

DNF

[lebibliocosme]

La maison aux pattes de poulet

Titre : La maison aux pattes de poulet Auteur : GennaRose Nethercott Éditeur : Albin Michel Date de publication : 2024 (janvier) Synopsis : Séparés depuis l’enfance, Bellatine et Isaac Yaga pensaient ne jamais se revoir. Mais lorsque tous deux apprennent qu’ils vont hériter leur grand-mère ukrainienne, frère et sœur acceptent de se rencontrer. Ils découvrent alors que leur legs n’est ni une…

[fnafs-ex-boyfriend]

Thistlefoot review

(Warning: Major Spoilers)

I liked it but not as much as @corvid-kid9 wanted me to. It was fun but the characters were not enough of standouts to me to play them in an rpg (though I would read an entire book about Rummy). Here are some thoughts about it.

I liked:

- The message and the eventual true story of the Yaga family. I almost cried when Malka died. Very sad stuff. I also really appreciate that the book gives us a definitive answer, when thistlefoot was like “haha im making half of these stories up”, I got annoyed because I don’t like when stories are like “oooh you get to interpret what ending is the real one uwu” but this one gave us a definitive answer which I appreciated

- The Longshadow Man. His reveal of what he was was super dope and I liked saying all of the Russian stuff he said out loud as I read this book at 2 in the morning

- The ghostbusters Band lol. They were pretty neat. I kept imagining Sparrow looking like Hobie Brown.

- Thistle and Isaac. Also Rummy.

I didn’t really like:

- The prose was very dramatic and it wasn’t my thing

- The statue romance was really weird I thought the statue girl was a massive mpdg and also she was seventeen/a million years old but acts like a child??

- I didn’t really like Bellatine that much…I just thought her arc was very overdone

- Overall I thought the baggage of the book was a bit disappointing? Like the beginning foreshadows their edginess but the actual reasons for their baggage are kind of a letdown. Like Bellatine calls herself a “monster” early on and I was like “oh, maybe she really hurt someone with her powers in her past” but it was just ressurecting a deer which was not nearly as horrific as the book was making it out to be.

- That’s about it. Pretty swell book

[alemicheli76]

“Cardospina lacasa errante” di Gennarose Nethercott, Mondadori. A cura di Barbara Anderson

Sinossi Isaac e Bellatine Yaga sono cresciuti girovagando per l’America con il teatro di marionette di famiglia. Da quando Isaac ha mollato tutto e se n’è andato, i due fratelli hanno perso completamente i contatti. Lui è diventato un abile artista di strada, guadagnandosi il titolo di Re Camaleonte grazie alla strabiliante capacità di riprodurre le sembianze esatte di chiunque sia tra il…

[nonsololibri]

Review Party : "Cardospina :la casa errante". di gennarose nethecott

Buongiorno lettore e lettrici.Oggi finalmente torno con una nuova recensione di un libro che mi è piaciuto moltossimo per le sue mille sfumature e per le sue sfumature. Presentazione Libro : Isaac e Bellatine Yaga sono cresciuti girovagando per l’America con il teatro di marionette di famiglia. Da quando Isaac ha mollato tutto e se n’è andato, i due fratelli hanno perso completamente i…

[bookandcantina]

Thistlefoot by GennaRose Nethercott

In America, estranged siblings Isaac and Bellatine "Tiny" Yaga are reunited to claim an inheritance; specifically, a sentient house on chicken legs delivered from Kyiv. But with it comes with a long tale history and violence, and a villain who has been tracking their family for generations. Inspired by Jewish mythology and Eastern European history, this modern folktale both enchants and haunts.

(spoiler-free thoughts below...)

4.5/5 - From the opening story of the tumbleweed I knew this would be a fascinating book. I didn't realize how heavy it was going to be at times (cw flashbacks of genocide/war crimes) and the villain is frightening because he is all too real, but the great characters and fantastic world they're in kept it well balanced throughout.

Highly recommended for fans of American Gods by Neil Gaiman and When Women Were Dragons by Kelly Barnhill

[siriuslygrimm]

Damage Disrupting Domicile

#BOOKREVIEW - Damage Disrupting Domicile - #Thistlefoot #blog

An odd inheritance bequeathed to a pair of siblings intertwines their lives for a unique journey in Thistlefoot by GennaRose Nethercott. The Yaga siblings, Isaac and Bellatine, performed with their family’s puppet show as children, but they became estranged after Isaac suddenly left to travel the country, leaving Bellatine behind to cope with the side-effects of her surprising talent with…

[jewishbookworld]

Thistle­foot by Gen­naRose Nethercott

Thistle­foot by Gen­naRose Nethercott

The Yaga siblings—Bellatine, a young woodworker, and Isaac, a wayfaring street performer and con artist—have been estranged since childhood, separated both by resentment and by wide miles of American highway. But when they learn that they are to receive an inheritance, the siblings agree to meet—only to discover that their bequest isn’t land or money, but something far stranger: a sentient house…