A heady, mesmerizing Victorian tale of intrigue, family and art. In 1898, aspiring young artist Samuel Godwin is hired by imposing Mr. Farrow as tutor for his daughters, Juliana, 19, and Marianne, 16. They live at Fourwinds, a gorgeous estate that has statues that are “Pagan and classical both at once,” representing winds on three sides of the building. The missing West Wind is the focus of Marianne’s passionate enthusiasm—and perhaps madness. Juliana’s demure comportment implies an abiding pain. Their mother has recently died, their former governess fired, the sculptor banished. Charlotte, the current governess/companion, is ever-attentive but secretive; even in the chapters that she narrates, readers don’t know her past. A few chapters are epistolary, and the rest are Samuel’s. Newbery’s touch is graceful as she unveils layers of the mystery to Samuel, Charlotte and readers—not always at the same time. Even when the revelations darken, evocative, intoxicating writing and a gothic touch keep the suspense coming. A worthy descendent of Jane Austen and the Brontë sisters. (Fiction. YA)
Pub Date: Nov. 14, 2006
ISBN: 0-385-75102-8
Page Count: 368
Publisher: David Fickling/Random
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2006
1893
Pub Date: March 31, 2000
ISBN: 0-06-028454-4
Page Count: 250
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 1999
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Imaginative and full of adventure, The Trunk should find an appreciative audience.
Set during the Great Depression, this tale of magic and family tension will delight young readers.
Twelve-year-old Simon and his family are having a difficult time recovering from the death of Simon’s mother. Simon bickers with his older brother and worries about his father, the town pharmacist who has taken to drink, while Simon’s best friend Paul struggles to please his fire-and-brimstone minister father. Beginning as a realistic examination of Depression-era life, the story takes a mystical turn when, in a dream, Simon meets his long-dead uncle “Smokey Joe,” a wandering hobo magician of whom Simon’s father disapproved. Smokey Joe’s old trunk lies forgotten in Simon’s attic. When he opens it, he finds 12 glowing stones so powerful that they attract an evil wizard determined to steal them. With help from the magic stones, Gypsies and Smokey Joe’s old friend, a colorful and clever hobo, Simon fights back. The prose and dialogue flow easily, and the author draws varied, vivid and believable characters. A bit of awkward, unnecessary detail and a few abrupt point-of-view transitions interfere with the suspense, but the entertaining story overcomes these minor flaws.
Imaginative and full of adventure, The Trunk should find an appreciative audience. (Fiction. YA)Pub Date: May 7, 2005
ISBN: 0-595-34261-2
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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