First time visiting BookBrowse? Get a free copy of our member's ezine today.

Book Summary and Reviews of The Road of Bones by Anne Fine

The Road of Bones by Anne Fine

The Road of Bones

by Anne Fine

  • Critics' Consensus:
  • Readers' Rating:
  • Published:
  • Apr 2008, 224 pages
  • Rate this book

  • Buy This Book

About this book

Book Summary

Yuri grows up in a country where no freedom of thought is encouraged – where he is told what to cheer for and who to believe in, where even the neighbours are encouraged to report any dissension to the authorities.

But it is still a shock when a few careless words lead him to a virtual death-sentence – sent on a nightmare journey to a northern camp amid the frozen wastes. What, or who, can he possibly believe in now? Can he even survive? And is escape possible . . . ?

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $45 for 12 months or $15 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Reviews

Media Reviews

"Starred Review. Succeeds brilliantly on three levels: The crushing atmosphere of Stalinist Russia is brilliantly evoked; Yuri is a memorable character who retains his humanity in the face of all that was inhumane; and political ideas are made palpable as Yuri and other characters reflect upon their conditions....A dark, intelligent novel for older readers. " - Kirkus Reviews.

"This is a modern novel with a mythical sensibility that grapples with those troubling questions about the atrocities human beings can perpetrate in the name of making the world a better place." - The Guardian (UK).

"There is nothing small about The Road of Bones. Beneath its cold, white cover, a story of magnitude unfolds... This is a modern novel with a mythical sensibility that grapples with those troubling questions about the atrocities human beings can perpetrate in the name of making the world a better place." - The Scotsman (UK).

"This ambitious book is a rare achievement... This book is subtle, stimulating and morally complex, but it is also evocative and convincing: we feel keenly the chill of both soulless hegemony and its frozen wastes." - The Sunday Times (UK).

"...her best yet - a book that has you reading with your mouth open with terror or your eyes filling with tears." - The Telegraph (UK).

"Although the rise of movements against the government at first appear to offer Yuri hope, the novel's outcome underscores the notion that history repeats itself. Dark and thought-provoking. Ages 12–up." - Publishers Weekly.

This information about The Road of Bones was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

Reader Reviews

Write your own reviewwrite your own review

JustABookworm

My favourite book so far 3
Throughout the entire read, this book had me sitting on the edge of my seat, gripping the pages tight. It has no lack of suspense and the main character (Yuri) is a loveable and independent boy. The real-life parallels with Stalin-ruled USSR make this book even more poignant made my inner history geek smile. All in all I absolutely LOVE this book (even though it is short) and is definetly one I'll be re-reading over and over again.

Eva

Quite good indeed.
I am Eva, 15 years old and I thought the book was quite good. But to me it was a bit too hard to read, and not easy to go through.

I'd recommend this book to people who like stories about rainbows.

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $45 for 12 months or $15 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Author Information

Anne Fine

Anne Fine has written over forty books, including Madame Doubtfire—the basis for the film Mrs. Doubtfire, starring Robin Williams. She lives in County Durham, England, and was the UK's Children's Laureate from 2001 to 2003.

More Author Information

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $45 for 12 months or $15 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

More Recommendations

Readers Also Browsed . . .

more YA literary fiction...

Membership Advantages
  • Reviews
  • "Beyond the Book" articles
  • Free books to read and review (US only)
  • Find books by time period, setting & theme
  • Read-alike suggestions by book and author
  • Book club discussions
  • and much more!
  • Just $45 for 12 months or $15 for 3 months.
  • More about membership!

Top Picks

  • Book Jacket: There Is a Rio Grande in Heaven
    There Is a Rio Grande in Heaven
    by Ruben Reyes
    While it is common for children of immigrants to reflect on their ancestors' struggles through ...
  • Book Jacket: There Are Rivers in the Sky
    There Are Rivers in the Sky
    by Elif Shafak
    Elif Shafak's novel There Are Rivers in the Sky follows three disparate individuals separated by ...
  • Book Jacket: Bright Objects
    Bright Objects
    by Ruby Todd
    It is January 1997 in the small town of Jericho, and Sylvia Knight has decided to end her own life. ...
  • Book Jacket: The Dark We Know
    The Dark We Know
    by Wen-yi Lee
    Written by Wen-yi Lee, The Dark We Know comes to us from Gillian Flynn Books, so it seems ...

BookBrowse Book Club

Book Jacket
The 1619 Project
by Nikole Hannah-Jones
An impactful expansion of groundbreaking journalism, The 1619 Project offers a revealing vision of America's past and present.
Book Jacket
Lady Tan's Circle of Women
by Lisa See
Lisa See's latest historical novel, inspired by the true story of a woman physician from 15th-century China.

Members Recommend

  • Book Jacket

    We'll Prescribe You a Cat
    by Syou Ishida

    Discover the bestselling Japanese novel celebrating the healing power of cats.

Wordplay

Solve this clue:

K U with T J

and be entered to win..

Book Club Giveaway!
Win Before the Mango Ripens

Before the Mango Ripens by Afabwaje Kurian

Both epic and intimate, this debut announces a brilliant new talent for readers of Imbolo Mbue and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.

Enter

Your guide toexceptional          books

BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.