If We Were Giants
- Downloads：2426
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-05-10 08:51:10
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Dave Matthews
- ISBN：1368018696
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
An exciting and poignant fantasy by world-renowned musician Dave Matthews and popular children's book author Clete Barrett Smith。
Kirra， a curious， agile， and outgoing girl， lives in an idyllic community hidden inside a dormant volcano。 She and her father are the only two people allowed to venture beyond its walls。 Kirra is in training to become a Storyteller like him， and together they travel from village to village spreading fearsome tales designed to keep outsiders away from their secret nest。
One day， after hearing rumors of strangers called the "Takers，" Kirra leaves the volcano by herself， hoping to discover her own story。 But she unknowingly leads the Takers back to her doorstep， and they rob her of everything she has ever held dear。
A devastated Kirra is found by a boy named Luwan and adopted into his family， which lives among others high in the trees of a dense forest。 Now quiet and withdrawn， Kirra hides her dark past from everyone and never wants to leave the safety of her tree dwelling。 Luwan， on the other hand， loves to explore。 One day it leads to trouble: He is captured while spying on a group of strangers。 The Takers have returned。
To save the Tree Folk， Kirra must face her inner demons and summon all her storytelling to weave the most important tale of her life。
This compelling novel about overcoming loss， embracing community， and living in harmony with nature is now available in paperback。 Highlighted with a full-color insert of concept artwork， it is perfect for family sharing。
Kirra， a curious， agile， and outgoing girl， lives in an idyllic community hidden inside a dormant volcano。 She and her father are the only two people allowed to venture beyond its walls。 Kirra is in training to become a Storyteller like him， and together they travel from village to village spreading fearsome tales designed to keep outsiders away from their secret nest。
One day， after hearing rumors of strangers called the "Takers，" Kirra leaves the volcano by herself， hoping to discover her own story。 But she unknowingly leads the Takers back to her doorstep， and they rob her of everything she has ever held dear。
A devastated Kirra is found by a boy named Luwan and adopted into his family， which lives among others high in the trees of a dense forest。 Now quiet and withdrawn， Kirra hides her dark past from everyone and never wants to leave the safety of her tree dwelling。 Luwan， on the other hand， loves to explore。 One day it leads to trouble: He is captured while spying on a group of strangers。 The Takers have returned。
To save the Tree Folk， Kirra must face her inner demons and summon all her storytelling to weave the most important tale of her life。
This compelling novel about overcoming loss， embracing community， and living in harmony with nature is now available in paperback。 Highlighted with a full-color insert of concept artwork， it is perfect for family sharing。
Reviews
Peachy
，
Dave Matthews Band were a big deal in my teenage years， and even though they weren't one of my favourite bands， I think I may have listened to Crash Into Me a thousand or more times。 When my son asked me to add If We Were Giants to our library queue， I loved the cover， and was intrigued by the synopsis， so I happily added it to our lengthy list。 I saw the name Dave Matthews on the front， and although it started me singing that lovely romantic ditty I mentioned， I didn't put two and two together Dave Matthews Band were a big deal in my teenage years， and even though they weren't one of my favourite bands， I think I may have listened to Crash Into Me a thousand or more times。 When my son asked me to add If We Were Giants to our library queue， I loved the cover， and was intrigued by the synopsis， so I happily added it to our lengthy list。 I saw the name Dave Matthews on the front， and although it started me singing that lovely romantic ditty I mentioned， I didn't put two and two together。 It wasn't until we collected the book from the library and I perused the dust jacket， that I was pleasantly surprised。 While reading the back flap， I learned that the obviously multidimensional artist， Matthews， and Clete Barrett Smith， a popular children's writer， had collaborated to create this bewildering tale by merging the fantastical stories of their childhood imaginations。 If We Were Giants centres around the life， loss and love of our precocious and valiant heroine， Kirra。 A storyteller at heart， her life took a sorrowful and dangerous turn that left her unable to find her voice， and use her inherited gifts。 As she suffered through 'memory traps' that caused flashbacks which debilitated her and forced her to avoid any reckoning of the trauma she had suffered， I couldn't help but feel that she was living through a type of PTSD。 This was one of the aspects of the book that I really appreciated， as I felt this story could be of great use for children who have suffered through damaging experiences。 The journey Kirra took to find her strength and return to the brave girl that she had always been， with the support of the loving family that she was fortunate enough to find herself with， was both inspirational and uplifting。 We were transported to a well-built world， where the themes of love， family， community， nature， strength and resilience shone through on every page。 The prose was as lush and vibrant as the canopy inhabited by the 'Tree Folk' that Kirra helped to bring together， and the monstrous 'Takers' were as frightening as any marauder of humanity's viciously pock-marked past。 As a lovely bonus， there were an array of colourful and striking illustrations in the centrefold of the book which really added to the wonder of the tale。 My son and I were truly enthralled by this emotional story， and even though it is slated in the age range of 8-12， we both agreed that this was a story that would be enjoyed by anyone over the age of 8。 。。。more
Caitlin
，
Really enjoyable read that has ups， downs， and adventure！
Sarah Clark
，
An adventure for kids of all ages。
Vi
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Wasn't bad。 Wouldn't read again， it's a book I would have read and enjoyed in middle school。 Now it's far too easy of a read for me。 Incredibly predictable。 It's a great book if you need something to focus on that's not too much of a complex read， I read this during finals week。 I probably won't read it again。 It's not too memorable or anything but a decent book。 Wasn't bad。 Wouldn't read again， it's a book I would have read and enjoyed in middle school。 Now it's far too easy of a read for me。 Incredibly predictable。 It's a great book if you need something to focus on that's not too much of a complex read， I read this during finals week。 I probably won't read it again。 It's not too memorable or anything but a decent book。 。。。more
Chelsea
，
First off， I'll say this book wasn't horrible， but I was a little disappointed it wasn't deeper。 Granted， it's probably because it was written for a younger demographic， but I felt like a lot of the main character's emotions could have been explored more thoughtfully。Also， a lot of the supporting characters were a bit flat。 Sometimes there seemed to be no purpose to their existence。 And even if they did have a purpose， their purpose wasn't very heavy。 The interactions with the main character wer First off， I'll say this book wasn't horrible， but I was a little disappointed it wasn't deeper。 Granted， it's probably because it was written for a younger demographic， but I felt like a lot of the main character's emotions could have been explored more thoughtfully。Also， a lot of the supporting characters were a bit flat。 Sometimes there seemed to be no purpose to their existence。 And even if they did have a purpose， their purpose wasn't very heavy。 The interactions with the main character were very surface-level。However， I will say that I LOVED the world of the story。 A massive community built in a dormant volcano， with a zip line mail delivery service？ A forest village full of treehouses built so high up that you can travel via the branches without ever touching the ground？ Yes， please！ That stuff made my whimsical， inner ten-year-old come to the surface。 I loved those kinds of images as a kid。 I still do。This probably would've been a favorite book if I were twenty years younger。 As an adult， I liked it for the world， but not so much for the empty characters。 。。。more
Jess Kat
，
Wonderful book。 I know it’s for young adults but I’m young at 💜 Good read for any age✌🏼I had to pick this one up because of my man Dave Matthews💙 I read with his voice in my head🥰
Noelle
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Read aloud with my boys and we loved it！
Mackenzie Virginia
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3。5
Shawna
，
Pleasantly surprised by this debut from Dave Matthews！ It’s nowhere near the level of other YA fictions like Hunger Games or Divergent but I can see this turning into a series and being made into movies。 The message is great and I was really enthralled in some parts。 Whereas other parts I was bored and skimming。 Overall good debut！
Marie Femano Ricci
，
My eight year old and I both enjoyed the story。 We are looking forward to reading the next book。
Kim Olliges
，
FANTASTIC book！！！ I hope there are more to follow！ Definitely a must read！
Jessica Nelson
，
Cute story for elementary/intermediate aged students。
Abby Hogan
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Mixed feelings。 I was captivated by the story。 It would have appealed to a very young me。 Perfect audience would be young readers。 This book seems also the product of a young mind。 The surface emotions and things of importance are too basic to be intended for mature readers or formed by a mature mind。 So， I find it odd that it’s so appealing。 Says something about our basic natures。 The biggest plot problem that needn’t have existed， was Kiera’s decision to leave her second home to keep the taker Mixed feelings。 I was captivated by the story。 It would have appealed to a very young me。 Perfect audience would be young readers。 This book seems also the product of a young mind。 The surface emotions and things of importance are too basic to be intended for mature readers or formed by a mature mind。 So， I find it odd that it’s so appealing。 Says something about our basic natures。 The biggest plot problem that needn’t have existed， was Kiera’s decision to leave her second home to keep the takers away from the tree folk。 That made no sense because they weren’t pursuing her。 They were coming for the community。 So， I think that was in the story because of the writer’s inexperienced （？） way of constructing this story。 Also， why didn’t they construct weapons instead of puppets to throw weapons？ Didn’t make a lot of sense， but was essential to the central imagined story of little people becoming giants。 I see a sequel and this story would make a fun movie。 。。。more
Lake Villa District Library
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Featured in LVDL’s Best Books of 2020: https://ccs。polarislibrary。com/polari。。。。 Find this book in our catalog！ Featured in LVDL’s Best Books of 2020: https://ccs。polarislibrary。com/polari。。。。 Find this book in our catalog！ 。。。more
Dave McKinley
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Wow。 So much better than I expected。 Though I shouldn't be surprised。 Heart， soul， community， challenge， it has it all。 Wow。 So much better than I expected。 Though I shouldn't be surprised。 Heart， soul， community， challenge， it has it all。 。。。more
Mia
，
What a fun an meaningful adventure！ I read this with my kids， and we all loved it。 The kids kept wanting to know more and more。 They were so interested in the story。 I enjoyed it as well！ Big plus on the nature loving in here！ Great for kids and adults！
Lori
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I love Dave Matthews as a musician and I also love his writing。 Clete Barrett Smith， the cowriter， also deserves praise。 This is a beautiful story about Kirra。 （I do not want to write any more， as I am afraid to give the plot away。） I read the ARC （Advance Reader's Copy） and I am ordering a copy for my library。 Love this book！ I love Dave Matthews as a musician and I also love his writing。 Clete Barrett Smith， the cowriter， also deserves praise。 This is a beautiful story about Kirra。 （I do not want to write any more， as I am afraid to give the plot away。） I read the ARC （Advance Reader's Copy） and I am ordering a copy for my library。 Love this book！ 。。。more
Katherina
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A great adventure story， with some tragedy and some optimism for little ones。
Donna
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It was a whimsical story and I very much enjoyed reading it！！！
Suzi Sherman
，
A story that includes courage， friendship， community， problem solving， empathy， storytelling and purpose。 What a wonderful adventure。
PottWab Regional Library
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SM
Justin
，
I read this one to my 8-year-old daughter and while we both liked it， I would have given three stars rather than four。 The story was exciting at times and had some valuable lessons about community and caring for nature。
Gina
，
A beautifully written tale What a wonderful story of fantasy with some amazingly accurate life lessons。 Great read for children and adults alike， especially in the trying times we find ourselves in。
Julie
，
I loved this story which is no big surprise since Dave is one of my favorite storytellers。 The collaboration with Clete has produced an unforgettable adventure。。 I look forward to seeing the film adaptation。 （Make that happen， Disney。）
Cheryl
，
Ah， I see now。 Published by Disney-Hyperion。 I noticed right away that it's very visual， absolutely ready to be a movie。 But， oh， wait， we already have *Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind* and Avatar for the environmental and pacifist themes， and a host of movies about overcoming grief， and finding strength in community， etc。 Is this book for ppl who prefer to watch movies？ Cuz it's not for me， a person who prefers to read books。 I got to p。 50， 1/6 of the book， and am moving along。 I do admit， Ah， I see now。 Published by Disney-Hyperion。 I noticed right away that it's very visual， absolutely ready to be a movie。 But， oh， wait， we already have *Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind* and Avatar for the environmental and pacifist themes， and a host of movies about overcoming grief， and finding strength in community， etc。 Is this book for ppl who prefer to watch movies？ Cuz it's not for me， a person who prefers to read books。 I got to p。 50， 1/6 of the book， and am moving along。 I do admit， however， that the art is beautiful。 。。。more
Alex Peck
，
A wonderful children's book， with timely lessons for the times we are living through。 It is so important for kids to hear that their voices matter and their stories matter。 Dave & Cletr created a wonderful world with that theme in mind。 A wonderful children's book， with timely lessons for the times we are living through。 It is so important for kids to hear that their voices matter and their stories matter。 Dave & Cletr created a wonderful world with that theme in mind。 。。。more
Heather Matson
，
I read this book with my 10 year olds and we loved it。 Beautiful message on the power and value of being connected as a community as well as confronting your fears about past mistakes。
Keliann
，
A charming book with several important themes for our times。 I wish the book was broken in three books and each one expanded a bit。 I feel like there is more to be had from each part of Kiera’s life thus far and I felt sad to have not been able to hear more。 This was a fun summer read and I hope Disney plans to make a movie or two out of it！
angelofmine1974
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My review of this book can be found on my Youtube Vlog at:https://www。youtube。com/watch？v=4bWah。。。Enjoy！ My review of this book can be found on my Youtube Vlog at:https://www。youtube。com/watch？v=4bWah。。。Enjoy！ 。。。more
shanna blair
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I hope this gets made into a movie
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=If We Were Giants
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=If We Were Giants&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,If We Were Giants&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0