Review: Sovay by Celia Rees

Title: To Catch a Pirate
Author: Jade Parker
Genre: YA / Historical Fiction
Publisher: Point
Published: 2007
Pages: 320

Rating - 2 out of 10

Within the first few pages, I knew that getting into this book had been a mistake. The book is set in 1783 England, and yet there is nothing about Sovay that would lead you to believe she is a product of her time period. She is entirely modern. The first scene is a hurried mess of man-bashing and casual robbery, and I couldn't help but roll my eyes. And things grow progressively worse from there.

The plot that Rees sets up in the beginning unravels pretty soon afterward, and the book then proceeds to wander aimlessly toward the last chapter. In attempts to distract you from the fact that the book is going nowhere, it throws supposed adventure and excitement in your face every few pages, as if to dare you to possibly be bored amidst all the highway robberies, secret identities, trifling make-out sessions, occult activities, traveling, prisons, and war. Also, introducing new characters every other chapter, only to have them disappear in a few more, seemed a popular trend here.

The result is a jarring, disjointed story that read as if three already bad books had just been crammed into one very bad one.

As I said above, Sovay was anything but a convincing portrayal of a young woman raised in 1700's England. I don't care if her father is "liberal" and "modern," she was an inaccurate heroine for her setting. Besides this, she is incredibly annoying. She is spoiled and impulsive, determined to get everything that she wants. Men fall all over her, and she strews behind countless broken hearts in her wake. Personally, I couldn't see what all the fuss was about.

Rees also has the annoying habit of introducing possible romances in the main character's path, and then letting them come to nothing. Sovay conveniently ends up meeting a brand new character and falling for him a few chapters before the book is over, as if Rees realized that she'd gotten to the end of her book with no dashing young man at the heroine's side. This book is sloppily put together, a long string of events that, while not boring in and of themselves, are just unrelated and pointless.

It's a shame, because Celia Rees is such a talented author, and can do far better. If you want to read a good book, read one of her earlier books, Pirates!
This one is just a waste of your time. 

Review: The King's Shadow by Elizabeth Alder

Title: The King's Shadow
Author: Elizabeth Alder
Genre: YA / Historical Fiction
Publisher: Laurel Leaf Books
Published: 1997
Pages: 259

Rating - 8 out of 10

 The King's Shadow is the medieval story of Evyn, a mute boy who serves Earl Harold of Wessex as his scribe and personal companion. As his father-son like closeness with the Earl grows, Evyn finds himself caught up in the events leading up to a horrific Battle of Hastings, where he and everything he knows will be forever changed.
This is a powerful, well written story, and was always one of my favorites of childhood. The writing style is as poetically eloquent as the bard's songs that Evyn loves so much, and the lovable (or hateful) characters have stayed fresh in my mind, even though it must be ten years or so since I last read it. Alder's writing holds a sort of intelligent beauty that seems to suit this book perfectly. I think that that was one of the things that I so loved about this book as a child: the mature writing. Being raised in a very conservative family, I was endlessly frustrated by my limited supply of reading, being forbidden from reading "adult" books. The children's books available to me too often felt as if I was being talked-down to. Not so with "The King's Shadow."
This book is sad and happy all at once. I especially loved the character of Evyn's beloved mentor, Harold. He seemed the perfect father figure. The contrasting character of Harold's brother, the nemesis of this book, was very well done.
Highly recommended!

Review: Amos Fortune, Free Man by Elizabeth Yates

Title: Amos Fortune, Free Man
Author: Elizabeth Yates
Genre: YA / Historical Fiction
Publisher: Puffin
Published: 1950
Pages: 192

Rating - 4 out of 10

Amos is raised as the prince of an African tribe, until he is one day kidnapped by slave traders. In 18th Century Massachusetts, he lives in slavery for nearly the rest of his life, always remembering his proud heritage and the freedom that he once had. Finally, as an elderly man, he is able to regain his freedom.

This simply written story, based on true events, chronicles the life and hardships of one man before and after he is released from slavery. I thought that this book was a bit too abruptly written and factual, never revealing much of Amos Fortune's feelings or emotions, but it was still relatively well drawn.

Something that I strongly noticed about this book was its view of racism. The narrative voice of Amos also seems not to view slavery as an evil, but rather as the way of the world, which he was simply unfortunate enough to get caught up in. Despite of course yearning for his freedom, he also defends slavery and slave owners. At one point, Amos even expresses gratitude that he was kidnapped and brought to slavery, because his native tribe was (gasp) pagan and savage, and now he gets to learn about God and see technology that he would have never known about otherwise. When he requests his freedom from a slave-owning couple that he is particularly close to and addresses as his "friends," they instead sell him at an auction. Instead of recognize this as a betrayal, Amos gladly accepts this turn of events and hopes that the money his so called "friends" make on selling him will be helpful to them.

All in all, this is a book on slavery written in 1950 by a white woman, and her viewpoint shows this clearly. I can imagine white people reading this book to their children in 1950, while I cannot imagine African American women doing the same.
Well intended, but not entirely successful.

Review: The House of Djinn by Suzanne Fisher Staples

Title: The House of Djinn
Author: Suzanne Fisher Staples
Genre: YA
Publisher: Farrar, Straus & Giroux
Published: 2008
Pages: 224

Rating: 3 out of 10

The storyline here is - A young girl in modern Pakistan is struggling to find her place in a world where family life is a battle, and Islamic traditions confuse and frustrate her. Her life takes a shocking turn when she discovers that her mother Shabanu, supposedly dead for years, is actually alive, her beloved grandfather falls ill, and her place in the family is reversed.



Suzanne Fisher Staples could have, and certainly has in the past, done better.
This one never captured my attention, save for small snippets here and there that richly describe the setting of exotic Pakistan. However, a handful of sentences peppered through this book are far from enough to save it.
I disliked it - the characters are defined on the surface, and then left. For example, Leyla is immediately depicted as cruel, selfish, conniving. And stays that way. Not that this is bad, but I felt that the author didn't think she needed any character development.
Also, the plot was a mess.

The supposed villain of the book, Nazir, is built up (though, not well) through-out the story as an impending threat. The author describes him as "a tiger without teeth." However, besides being mentioned a few times, he never appears until the end of the story. And in fact, the main character faints during the time that Nazir actually emerges, and is only briefly told about it after she wakes up. Nazir never even speaks once in this entire book, and is barely mentioned. This makes him the weakest opposing character I have ever heard of.
Another character who could be called a villain, Leyla, is a cruel woman who finds joy in humiliating the main character, Mumtaz, into being her servant. She is built up a bit more, and certainly far more prominent than Nazir. However, toward the end of the story, she simply vanishes. There is no conclusion to her and Mumtaz's struggles.

The entire storyline was incredibly weak, jumped from focus to focus, and was ridiculously blunt and abrupt.
Lastly, I felt cheated by the ending. Through out the story, Mumtaz's mother Shabanu references the pain that her arranged marriage caused. She loved another man, who also loved her. He too was forced to marry someone else, unhappily. Arranged marriage is portrayed as hurtful, and the reader simply assumes that the author does not support it.
So, I was very surprised when, at the end...

**SPOILERS**

...it is arranged that Mumtaz will be married to her cousin. Both of them have crushes on other people, and neither of them wish to marry. At first, they rebel against their family's decisions. They even attempt to run away.
It seemed apparent that Staples was sending a message - old traditions must give way to new, and forced companionship can never rival true love and freedom.
But then, suddenly, within a few pages, Mumtaz and her cousin decide that actually, their family is right. Without warning, their views change, they follow the arranged marriage, and honor tradition.
The ending seems more like the end of a chapter than the actual end of the entire book - not because the author used a cliffhanger (that would have taken away another star from this book, so I am glad that the author didn't try that "Buy my next book!" trick here) - but because it simply wasn't... Conclusive. I said to myself "Okay... What now?"
This book had an entirely unsatisfactory ending, a message that made absolutely no sense, and one of the weakest supposed villains ever.

Not recommended - read Shabanu instead, but don't bother with this sequel.

Review: In Mozart's Shadow by Carolyn Meyer

Title: In Mozart's Shadow: His Sister's Story
Author: Carolyn Meyer
Genre: YA / Historical Fiction
Publisher: Harcourt & Brace
Published: 2008
Pages: 368

Rating - 5 out of 10

This tells the story of Wolfgang Mozart's elder sister, also a talented musician. She longs to share in the fame and opportunities that her brother receives, yet lives her entire life eclipsed by his shadow.

It was interesting to learn about Mozart's flawed, dysfunctional family and his neglected sister. The book follows Nannerl Mozart's life from her childhood to her later adult years.

The writing style stiff and impersonal at times, while at the same time almost force-feeding tragedy and sadness to the reader. After awhile, it became more than annoying. It seems that Carolyn Meyer's chief attempt in this book is to relate to the reader this fact: Nannerl Mozart did not lead a happy life. The very ending of this book reads - "Tears brimmed in my eyes. I let them fall."

No happy ending, then. In fact, there is no happy beginning, happy middle, or anything of the sort. It is rather depressing, yes, but that isn't the worst part of it. Even the saddest tragedies should have their high, joyous moments, or else the sorrow will seem numbed and meaningless. How sad would "Romeo and Juliet"'s readers have been if they never saw how perfectly happy the two main characters were together in the first place?

Carolyn Meyer shows us only the downside of her heroine's story. As far as her fictional portrayal is concerned, her heroine had no upside at all.

Review: To Catch a Pirate by Jade Parker

Title: To Catch a Pirate
Author: Jade Parker
Genre: YA / Historical Fiction
Publisher: Point
Published: 2007
Pages: 320

Rating - 2 out of 10

 I knew that reading this book was a terrible idea, but a friend have given it to me as a gift, having read it herself, and I knew that she would be expecting feedback. So... I began.

I cannot believe that this book is in any way popular. The author displays impatience with her plot and characters everywhere, dumping things into the story at breakneck speed. She skips over all chances of character development. The first chapter of the book shows the main character, Annalisa, as a proper and timid young woman. And in the very next chapter, the author simply acknowledges that "a year has passed" and now Annalisa is a completely different person, the bold captain of a ship hunting down pirates. What?! It is a poorly constructed start to an equally poorly written story.

There are many instances when the author seems to have forgotten she included a certain small detail further back, and contradicts herself. For instance, while questioning Sterling, Annalisa thinks to herself that she'll use the whip on him if she has to. But about a chapter later, when her men begin to whip Sterling, she rushes out and the book makes a big deal of stopping them. Apparently whipping goes against Annalisa's morals, and she is adamant that it never, ever be allowed on her ship. Then a few more chapters later, she again considers lashing Sterling.

Annalisa and other characters are always voicing their weariness over leading such a dangerous, violent life, but I don't know where they are getting this from. The sun shines down on them, and that's about as much danger as they ever face. This is a pirate book with absolutely no violence.

The plot is predictable and cliche, and overall Parker simply uses a very shallow writing style.
If you want to read a similar, yet well written book that is actually worth your time, read "Pirates!" by Celia Rees.

Review: Keturah and Lord Death

Title: Keturah and Lord Death
Author: Martine Leavitt
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Front Street
Released: 2006
Pages: 216

Rating - 6 out of 10

This was an unusual, sensitively written story about an innocent young farm girl, Keturah, who makes a bargain with the Lord Death after coming upon him in the woods one day. He tells her that if she can find her own true love in three days, he will allow her to live. However, Keturah finds herself falling in love with Death instead, despite the impossibility of their match.

This creative book was nice, escapism sort of read. The writing style is simple and concise, sweet and rustic. It's not perfect, but I really enjoyed it.

There were some elements of the story that seemed to not add up; at times I got the impression that the author did not bother to edit very thoroughly. Also, the character of Keturah is portrayed as the ultimate goody-two-shoes, fickle, silly young girl - yet the book repeatedly describes her as "wise" or, "mature beyond her years." If this is the impression she was supposed to have made upon the reader, it was not very successful.

However, despite some errors, they are all quite minor, and Keturah is bearable despite her stupidity. I absolutely loved the supporting character of Lord Death.
The author certainly took on an immensely difficult task in shaping the element of death and dying into love and romance. This book is romantic without being lewd, and I would completely recommend it to middle school children and up.
A highly unusual and beautiful book.

Review: Sword by Da Chen

Title: Sword
Author: Da Chen
Genre: YA / Historical Fantasy
Publisher: Harper Collins
Published: 2008
Pages: 232

Rating - 4 out of 10

On the morning of her birthday, Miu Miu's mother reveals some startling information. Miu Miu's father was killed by the evil emperor, and now it is her job to seek revenge. But wait. Girls aren't allowed to officially vow vengeance. You would think that Miu Miu could just set out on her quest without this "official vow" nonsense, but instead, she spends much time convincing her tiny, irrelevant village that she needs to defeat the emperor. After she is finally on her way, she is able to combat the emperor with her martial arts skills.
What a silly book. I love historical China, but I found the story to hold many pointless, irrelevant details, and go far too quickly, especially at the beginning. An unrealistic story with badly portrayed characters and events.
Not recommended.

End note - After reading this book, I read Da Chen's memoir Sounds of the River. I cannot understand the contrast between these two books, because his memoir is brilliant. Please, go and read that instead of this one.

Review: Aria of the Sea by Dia Calhoun

Title: Aria of the Sea
Author: Dia Calhoun
Genre: YA / Fantasy
Publisher: Farrar, Straus & Giroux
Published: 2003
Pages: 272

Rating - 6 out of 10

 Young Cerinthe is training as a folk healer in her island town in the fantasy kingdom of Windward when her mother tragically dies of illness. Blaming herself for being unable to save her, Cerinthe auditions for entrance into a prestigious school of dance. Despite her lowly social status, the school is impressed with her talent, and she is accepted. Her new life at the School of Royal Dancers is not without troubles of its own, however, and Cerinthe soon finds herself thrown into the same terrible situation that she had fled her island from when another student falls ill.

This is great children's or YA fantasy. It is beautifully written in a poetic, very delicate style. The dance in the book is, essentially, ballet, with little new elements added. The imaginary kingdom of Windward serves as a setting, but the book is more driven by characters than the author's need to set up an alternate little world.
Great writing that young girls will enjoy.

Review: Keeping Corner by Kashmira Sheth

Title: Keeping Corner
Author: Kashmira Sheth
Genre: YA / Historical Fiction
Publisher: Hyperion
Published: 2009
Pages: 304

Rating - 6 out of 10

 In Keeping Corner, we meet Leela, a spoiled young girl in 1917 India who is abruptly left a widow when the fiancee she hardly knows passes away. Forced to comply with Indian tradition, she must shave her head, give away all her valuables, and "keep corner" inside for a year, also enduring the shame and scorn of everyone in her small town.

However, during this period of senseless confinement, she pursues knowledge and becomes a bright, talented student. The book is set in the time of Ghandi, whose ideas greatly shape Leela's views and future.
This is an excellent book, with well drawn characters and realistic settings that bring the exotic scenery of India vividly to life. I loved how much I learned about Indian culture and tradition by reading.
"Keeping Corner" is undoubtedly aimed toward upper middle-school or high school students, but I really enjoyed it nonetheless. It is interesting and engaging.
If you liked this book, also read - Homeless Bird by Gloria Whelan.