Newbery Honor author Engle (The Surrender Tree, 2008) spins three intertwined tales in frequently lyrical free verse. In the Caribbean in 1509, the cruel pirate Bernardino de Talavera has captured brutal Alonso de Ojeda, governor of Venezuela and a former conquistador. Mixed-race slave boy Quebrado, whose name means “broken,” works on Talavera’s ship as a translator and deckhand. When a hurricane sinks the ship, the three find themselves washed up individually on an island inhabited by naturales, native Ciboney Indians. Caucubú, a chieftain’s daughter, wants desperately to avoid an arranged marriage and to pursue her love for Naridó, a fisherman. Engle continues to explore issues of captivity and freedom in the historical setting of her ancestors. She tells her tale in the alternating voices of her five main characters, all of whom are historical figures save Quebrado. Quebrado warns the Ciboney about the dangerous Spaniards, and the two are cast out. He helps the young lovers flee and claims true and total freedom for himself. Taken individually the stories are slight, but they work together elegantly; the notes and back matter make this a great choice for classroom use. (bibliography) (Historical fiction. 10-14)
Pub Date: March 15, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-8050-9240-0
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Henry Holt
Review Posted Online: Jan. 8, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2011
Continuing the saga begun in Nobody’s Princess (2007), a fictional Helen (of Homeric fame) goes on the quest for the Golden Fleece with Jason and the Argonauts, disguised initially as a weapons carrier. When her gender is discovered, she pretends instead to be Atalanta, the famous huntress. Events proceed as in the myth (the Isle of Lemnos, the Harpies, Medea, etc.), though this version is purposefully mundane. As in the first book, Helen is a spunky tomboy who just wants to be herself, a thoroughly modern character borne of the reading public’s current fascination with Greek mythology and the Princess Diaries phenomenon. The story lacks narrative tension or character development, as Friesner simply overlays this conceit upon set events which seem to unfold as if preordained, never taking the reader anywhere beyond this rather limited exposé of certain Greek myths. This is certainly not the last in the series, which will have its fans. Anyone needing another strong-female-character-with-a-sword series will enjoy it, but it is only mildly accomplished and strongly forgettable. (Fiction. 11-14)
Pub Date: April 22, 2008
ISBN: 978-0-375-87531-1
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2008
Set in an alternative feudal-ish Japan, this is the story of five kids with severe disabilities or disfigurements who have been accepted for training in a school for samurai. The unusual Cockroach Ryu is directed by the elderly, highly respected (and amusingly crotchety) samurai Ki-Yaga. Ki-Yaga and his equally cranky horse, Uma, are distinct as characters and add much to the book—humor, tactics and the use of pudding as a tool for success. The plot starts unusually slowly, limiting tension, suspense and probably audience, since adventure fans expect lashings of the first two qualities from the start. And the five students in this book are identified primarily by their disabilities (blindness, one leg, one arm, having six fingers, fear of fighting) for the first third of the story. This disappointingly reductive technique results in unclear characterization; by the time additional and critical back story is provided, many readers will have given up. Given these flaws, it is doubtful that most kids will stay with the book long enough to become engaged with story or characters. (Adventure. 11-14)
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-7636-4503-8
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: June 28, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2010
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