Changeling tells the story of Neef, a little girl who lives in New York Between. Neef, born a mortal, is a girl different from everyone else. Neef is curious, bold, but most of all, she is stubborn. Neef eventually was punished by the Green Lady and exiled from New York Between. On her journey, she is accompanied by her overly, sensitive, mortal friend Changeling. Neef and Changeling are on a journey to recover three things in order to get Neef accepted back into New York Between or the Hunt will continue to find her and will not rest until Neef is found and done for.

Neef is a changeling, a human baby stolen by fairies who lives in the Central Park of New York Between, an Otherworld Manhattan that co-exists with our own, inhabited by all sorts of Fairy Folk. Neef (whose real name she doesn’t care to disclose to just anybody since – as you know – real names have power) has been brought up by her fairy godmother the white rat Astris and lives under the protection of The Green Lady, the Genius of the Central Park. Neef’s days are spent in relative tranquillity, learning about Folk Lore and attending lessons at her world’s (awesome) version of the Metropolitan Museum.

But Neef is super curious and yearns for adventures. And it is that curiosity that lands her in trouble and she ends up (unknowingly) violating a geas put on her and breaking Fairy law. The result is that she is to be banished from home after losing the protection of the Green Lady, effectively becoming prey to the Wild Hunt. But there is always a way out or a bargain to be made when it comes to the Folk and so Neef and her friends convince the Green Lady to accept a deal: Neef is to go in search of three objects, all of them close to impossible to obtain. Even as scared as she is, Neef takes the challenge as it ought to be taken: as an opportunity to go on a quest and to finally live a Grand Adventure. And a Grand Adventure she has – from being kidnapped to meeting her fairy changeling, from facing mermaids and dragons to meeting the Bull of Wall Street, it’s all very worthy of a cool heroine who deals with all the obstacles with smarts and determination (and sometimes, tears).

At the end there is definitely some growth (as any real quester will tell you) and so Neef grows up but interestingly enough, she doesn’t grow human – or at least, I didn’t read it as such. Her sense of ethic is shaped and determined by the Folk stories she knows. She has been completed integrated to her life – she never once thinks about leaving her fairy life for a mortal life, for example. She also knows all the supposed rules of a Quest and everything that relates to stories and she uses this knowledge to her advantage, even when it means breaking those very rules. Part of what made this book such a pleasure to read was the fact that Neef has so much awareness about Fantasy and Folklore tropes. I also loved how varied those stories were as the premise is that the mortal immigrants who moved to NY from all over the world have taken the Folk – and their stories – with them and even beloved book characters become alive in New York Between.

That said, I picked Changeling to read after reading and loving Delia Sherman’s amazing The Freedom Maze and I was curious to see how both books compared (or not). I am saying this as a matter of full disclosure: this is how I read this book. So, they are very different books in the end, with very different stories and motives. But I thought it was very interesting that both heroines shared a couple of traits. Both departed on their stories because of the similar impetus that both protagonists shared: the desire to go on an adventure. Plus, both of them loved stories and had a certain awareness of tropes relating to fairytales. The difference lies in how The Freedom Maze’s heroine awareness did not help her at all because, even though there were fantastical elements in that story, she was living in the “real world” whereas Neef uses those to her advantage and with success – but then again, Changeling is a Fantasy story through and through.

That also transcribes in how the two stories progress: Changeling is a very, very light romp – even when Neef is at dangerous moments, that danger never really comes through. In fact, that is my biggest problem (if I can even call it that, considering how I enjoyed it) with Changeling: considering the stakes, considering the creatures Neef has to face, the challenges proved to be extremely easy and work out perfectly in the end. I wondered: isn’t it also part of traditional stories that there are great costs to a protagonist on a quest? In that sense, I thought that The Freedom Maze explored that idea much better. Having said that I am also very much aware of the fact that it is not really fair to compare the two books on those grounds but there you have it.

Changeling is supposed to be a light, fantastical romp with a very cool heroine and on its own, it is one of the most imaginative Middle Grade Fantasy stories I’ve had the pleasure to read.

I was gonna read a chapter or two, then go to bed, but I had to keep reading to see how it turned out! A fabulous book about a the quest of a young changeling, who had broken a major rule, to get back home, save her earthly counterpart and return her home, get her stepfather back home, and release another changeling from servitude.

This is the first book by Ms. Sherman that I have read, but it's clear I shall have to read the others.

I've met Neef before - in CATNYP - and enjoy the alternative perspective of New York Between. This was a great romp through the city, and I enjoyed her quest.

I would’ve enjoyed this story more if I was in middle school. As it is, all the right elements were in the story. It just felt a bit shallow, and as an adult I had a hard time getting over this fact.

Neef was exiled from the only home she knew. Which, just to be clear, wasn’t really her home since she’d been kidnapped as a child. Either way, she broke a few rules, and the Genius responsible for that area withdrew her protection. As in, allowed the Hunt to hunt (and presumably eat?) her. So, despite the danger, Neef headed back home to her fairy godmother. Luckily, she was able to escape, and through some lucky turn of events was given a way to get back home. All she had to do was go on a magical quest for three impossible-to-retrieve items, and everything would be good again.
It was New York, but combined with mythological creatures, impossible fairy rules, and Neef, a human in a world of fairies, which was a great twist.
Anyhow, Neef was given three impossible tasks which would allow her to return to her familiar life.
These were impossible tasks, supposedly, but she got them so easily.
Two days later, it was all behind her. She found an impossible riddle for the mermaid queen that got her a magical mirror. She fixed bugs on a computer (think, real, live, swarming ones) and was awarded the Broadway tickets she needed. And, she went on an impossible quest to get the dragon’s scales. This last one didn’t work out quite as expected, but she was okay because of a technicality in the quest.  And, I was left wondering what I missed. Was every other person who hadn’t succeeded in getting these items stupid? Was Neef just lucky? How did it work out so easily?

The story was cute, with many references to the real world, and all the right elements that should've made it a success. And, better yet, Neef was a strong character who wasn’t afraid to take risks, did what was right, and didn’t once rely on a handsome hero to get her out of her mess.

But - the world felt forced at times, and one-dimensional at others, and I never connected to Neef or the fairy she was switched for, Changeling, and her ASD behaviors. It was all just too easy.

Similar recommendations:
n  n n  nn  n n  nn  n

Content:
Scary moments including kids locked in cages, nearly being eaten by monsters, Neef hunted by the Hunt, creatures offering her wish in return for her body parts. The story only happens because Neef was stolen from her parents, which is treated as perfectly normal.
Neef lives among and is friendly with mythological creatures, including goddesses such as Bastet, an Egyptian cat goddess.
The mermaid queen has tattoos. Neef’s quest involves going to Broadway and meeting aspiring actors and hearing about various movies.

Sunshine State pick 2010-2011

New York Between is a fairy land that lies alongside our New York. Neef is a changeling, a human girl stolen away and raised by the fair folk of Central Park. She must go out and seek her fortune, with the help of the fairy child who was left in her place in our New York. They have some grand adventures. It's never spelled out but the fairy child's behaviour clearly places her on the autism spectrum. She's treated with acceptance and understanding and helps with the quest. I enjoyed the story and think it would be good for kids who interact with autistic kids to read. I liked it a lot!

I went into reading this book not really knowing what to expect but I have to say, I rather enjoyed it. It has a modern take on some traditional fairy tales which makes it more identifiable to the reader. This story has good morals for kids but does it in an action packed ways and makes a brilliant adventure. However, the way Sherman writes the story is a bit confusing but once you get over the way it is written it is an enjoyable action packed read and is really enjoyable.

Delia Sherman's first novel set in New York Between is splendidly entertaining. Neef, the Central Park changeling, offends the Park's Genius and is sent on a quest that leads her to New York Harbor, Broadway, Wall Street--and some odd spots along the way. New York Between shares the same space, but not quite the same reality, as the New York City we know; the glorious thing is that it is nonetheless recognizably New York. And because New York Between is inhabited by the Folk (meaning, pretty much, any and all supernatural folkloric beings, a goodly number of literary creations, and some denizens of cyberspace), it is NYC writ large and across the ages. Hilarious, but with a good core of introspective growth on Neef's part. What a joy!

The in-between is the fairyland where the folk lives along with the Hunt in Central Park ... if the Hunt should catch you will most properly regret it big time. A quest is what the changeling soon realizes has some dire circumstances in store for her and her doppelganger Jennifer. I enjoyed the story and many of the charming characters.

I liked this but I'm not comfortable with the idea of Autistic children (or by the author's note, those with Asperger's) as changelings because that's saying they're not human. It redeemed that a bit I think by not treating the changeling character as lesser, and while we never saw her perspective she was developed as a character and crucial to her counterpart's success. But although, or perhaps because I'm likely Autistic myself, with different symptoms, I just...I dunno. I am *far* too hesitant to give that a pass. In fact, no. Saying they have Faerie powers is one thing, but the "changeling" idea legitimizes a lot of problems--parents who hate, or at least don't love, their Autistic children for existing and being a "burden", Autism Speaks' idea that being Autistic means you've disappeared, yeah...a LOT of problems that make life so much harder for Autistic folks. So that's pretty bad. I enjoyed the read hence the 3 stars, but I can't recommend it.

This book started out great but then started lagging on like Delia Sherman was running out of ideas so she just put things in there to draw it out. The main character Neef is a spoiled little brat who thinks she knows everything, and the supporting character is a afraid of everything and is actually the brains of the operation. On the plus side it is full of fantasy and mythical creatures. The book also ended really good, as do all fairy tales. I just feel like this book could have been better than it was.