My Name is Mina

My Name Is Mina
David Almond

'My Name Is Mina' is very difficult to describe what it is about, and that's perhaps one of the best things about it.  In summary, it is a diary that Mina, an incredibly imaginative girl, keeps and records all her daydreams, hopes, wishes, fears, and discoveries, and has been written as a prequel to 'Skellig' which is definitely now on my very long 'to read' list!

I loved Mina as a character, as I thought every aspect of her was thoroughly explored in the novel in a creative and imaginative way. Almond has captured the thoughts and feelings of many young and frustrated people who have a love of literature and managed to pack them into one person - the result is a very powerful a strong character, and although slightly mad we can all connect to her in some way or another.

The postmodern element of the novel was both a positive and negative for me. I loved how the book ignored pretty much every single rule of the conventional novel - even the way the writing laid out on the page was different, with massive words on some pages, some pages black with white writing etc, pretty much exploring every possible way of having an impact upon the reader. I also liked the playing around with 1st and 3rd person narrators and how Almond has manipulated the story to try his ideas out.

However, the downside of the postmodern element of the novel was that I finished without the character really getting anywhere - I didn't feel any particularly strong or overwhelming emotions at the end of the story, and I didn't feel satisfied either. There was no real drive to read 'Skellig' based on the end of the book - instead I am simply curious as to what happens next.

That being said, I did enjoy the refreshing break of reading Mina's diary and her wild and unrestrained thoughts that simply spilled out over the page and came straight from the heart - definitely a worthwhile read as long as you don't expect too much from the ending.

Rachel, Yr 12

My Name is Mina

By David Almond

My Name Is Mina is the prequel to David Almond’s novel Skellig. It is written in the style of a diary, as Mina writes down her thoughts, feelings and stories leading up to meeting Michael, and her entrance into Skellig.
I really liked how Almond showed Mina’s character through the style and layout of the book, as she was a very eccentric person. This was very clear in Skellig, but in My Name Is Mina, you saw more of the way she thought and her point of view on things. It was very different to most books, as it didn’t have much of a plot, but was filled with Mina’s thoughts and stories. I liked the stories about Mina in school, but the rest was boring. Her view on the world was interesting and made you think, but there was no action, anticipation or mystery. I found the whole book quite dull, and skim-read most of it.
Mina. However, was a lovely character, albeit odd and misunderstood. She looked and the world in a different way to anyone I’ve ever known or read about. I felt bad for her, because she was bullied for this, as she was the type of character that I would have loved to know in real life.
Although I didn’t enjoy it all that much, it was a really sweet book and having read Skellig, it was great to know more about Mina.
Molly, Year 8

My Name is Mina.

By David Almond

‘My name is Mina’ is about a creative, eccentric little girl called Mina. It follows the life of Mina who constantly writes in her diary up on her favourite tree which she shares with a family of birds. Throughout the book we learn about Mina’s thoughts and dreams as well as her past life where Mina gets up to all sorts or problems trouble and fun! It is the second book which follows the book ‘Skellig’ where we first meet Mina.

I think this is a truly beautiful book what with the birds following her journey, her inside thoughts about her troubles and loves and the way Mina turned words in a notebook into a fantastic piece of art. The way Almond has laid out the book is amazing. The way the fonts change depending on when it was written and Mina’s emotions when she does write it and the page layout is done to full effect. In my opinion, this is what connects people with the book and makes the diary seem more realistic.

Mina is an amazing character in so many ways and this; I think David Almond has done to her full potential. Her crazy little stories and they way she looks at life can only make you smile and be optimistic about your own. Mina is so lively and feisty, and yet when she spills her emotions onto a page she seems so vulnerable and hopeless. Perhaps she would put it as she is a little egg in a nest that has no one to go to.

Overall, between the characters, plot and art work, it is a fabulous, touching book, unlike one I have ever read!

By Jess year 9.

My Name is Mina

By David Almond

‘My name is Mina’ is about a creative little girl called Mina. She constantly writes in her diary up her favourite tree which she shares with a family of birds. Thought out the book we learn about Mina’s thoughts and dreams as well as her past life where Mina gets up to all sorts.

I think this is a truly beautiful book what with the birds, inside thoughts and the way Mina turned words in a notebook into a fantastic piece of art. The way Almond has laid out the book is amazing. The way the fonts change and the page layout is done to full effect and makes the diary seem more realistic.

Mina is an amazing character which I think David Almond has done to her full potential. Her crazy little stories and they way she looks at life can only make you smile. Mina is so lively and feisty, and yet when she spills her emotions onto a page she seems so vulnerable and hopeless. Perhaps she would put it as she is a little egg in a nest that has no one to go to.

Overall, a fabulous, touching book, unlike one I have ever read!

By Jess year 9.

My Name is Mina

By David Almond

My Name is Mina is about a small girl called Mina; the book actually doesn’t have much of a plot other than her life. Her life in a way is the plot; her thoughts observations, memories and dreams are the book itself.

My favourite character was probably Steepy, I’m not sure whether I liked Mina much. I liked her more towards the end of the book but I thought she was too reserved and too set in her opinions and observations to see other ideas and less complex ideas that are easier to think about. I thought she was a bit ignorant but that can be expected because of her age. However I do think she had some very interesting thoughts. This book is very thought provoking and although it does not have much plot I did enjoy it. It also makes you think of things far greater than everyday thoughts but the problem was I thought the ideas were too advanced and complex for such a young child to understand. ‘Weird’ children might indeed be that complex but it is not a general theory so I doubt it.

I think this book is quite hard to get into but once you do it as an interesting read. It wasn’t exactly a gripping story; the only thing that motivates you to read on is the interest in Mina’s thoughts. You had to do a lot of guessing and even at the end there are still things you have to guess. But I thought the ending was good; it could easily be cause for a sequel but it still had finality to it.

I think this book could easily be a reflection of the author’s thoughts and observations. If so this book is a very deep insight into is mind. I think in one way it is, after having read a few of his other books they all have similar characters in a way, or at east characters similar in the way their mind thinks; their logic. I would recommend this book to anyone that has insightful/unusual thoughts about anything in life.

Jenna Yr8