When the 'marvelous misadventures' in the 18th century mode take on the aspect of a soulful Dance of Death, the fabric is rent; but stay—the telling tells all. How Fourth Fiddler Sebastian, coming afoul of his pomposity The Purse, is turned out, the least clumsiness being deemed devious in Regent Grinssorg's realm; how he saves himself and a blue-eyed white cat from a most unMerry Host, loses his fiddle and almost his freedom, and finds a friend whose name of Nicholas is not the whole of it; and most marvelously "How Sebastian Misjudged His Opponent" who changes in a trice from pugnacious fellow traveler to shrinking runaway apprentice to fugitive servant-girl to fancy-spoken Princess Isabel of Hamelin-Loring—recently betrothed to the Regent. Therein of course lies the tale, lacking only the clown Lelio's "accursed" fiddle (uncovered by Presto the cat at Quicksilver's Gallimaufry-Theatricus) to play out the theme. For in the hazardous course of thwarting the Princess' recapture—and divesting her of illusions about royal beneficence as well as her regal speech—the violin makes Sebastian its instrument, and he surpasses himself: is he not a mere fiddler but a true musician? The violin mesmerizes its hearers also, and providentially dances Grinssorg to his death before Presto shatters it, saving Sebastian from a like fate. Princess Isabel will be a constitutional monarch with Nicholas, otherwise Captain Freeling the legendary rebel, as First Minister until she abdicates all power and marries Sebastian—who meanwhile sets out to become "a noble among fiddlers, not a fiddler among nobles." Well put, and better to linger on than whether "make-believe and moonshine" are "the truth—as they might be." Especially since make-believe and moonshine are the making of The Misadventures.
Pub Date: Sept. 25, 1970
ISBN: 0440405491
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Dutton
Review Posted Online: Oct. 27, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1970
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A pleasing premise for book lovers.
A fantasy-loving bookworm makes a wonderful, terrible bargain.
When sixth grader Poppy Woodlock’s historic preservationist parents move the family to the Oregon coast to work on the titular stately home, Poppy’s sure she’ll find magic. Indeed, the exiled water nymph in the manor’s ruined swimming pool grants a wish, but: “Magic isn’t free. It cosssts.” The price? Poppy’s favorite book, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. In return she receives Sampson, a winged lion cub who is everything Poppy could have hoped for. But she soon learns that the nymph didn’t take just her own physical book—she erased Narnia from Poppy’s world. And it’s just the first loss: Soon, Poppy’s grandmother’s journal’s gone, then The Odyssey, and more. The loss is heartbreaking, but Sampson’s a wonderful companion, particularly as Poppy’s finding middle school a tough adjustment. Hartman’s premise is beguiling—plenty of readers will identify with Poppy, both as a fellow bibliophile and as a kid struggling to adapt. Poppy’s repeatedly expressed faith that unveiling Sampson will bring some sort of vindication wears thin, but that does not detract from the central drama. It’s a pity that the named real-world books Poppy reads are notably lacking in diversity; a story about the power of literature so limited in imagination lets both itself and readers down. Main characters are cued White; there is racial diversity in the supporting cast. Chapters open with atmospheric spot art. (This review has been updated to reflect the final illustrations.)
A pleasing premise for book lovers. (Fantasy. 9-12)Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9780316448222
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
Rich and strange (and kitted out with an eye-catching cover), but stronger in the set pieces than the internal logic.
Chainani works an elaborate sea change akin to Gregory Maguire’s Wicked (1995), though he leaves the waters muddied.
Every four years, two children, one regarded as particularly nice and the other particularly nasty, are snatched from the village of Gavaldon by the shadowy School Master to attend the divided titular school. Those who survive to graduate become major or minor characters in fairy tales. When it happens to sweet, Disney princess–like Sophie and her friend Agatha, plain of features, sour of disposition and low of self-esteem, they are both horrified to discover that they’ve been dropped not where they expect but at Evil and at Good respectively. Gradually—too gradually, as the author strings out hundreds of pages of Hogwarts-style pranks, classroom mishaps and competitions both academic and romantic—it becomes clear that the placement wasn’t a mistake at all. Growing into their true natures amid revelations and marked physical changes, the two spark escalating rivalry between the wings of the school. This leads up to a vicious climactic fight that sees Good and Evil repeatedly switching sides. At this point, readers are likely to feel suddenly left behind, as, thanks to summary deus ex machina resolutions, everything turns out swell(ish).
Rich and strange (and kitted out with an eye-catching cover), but stronger in the set pieces than the internal logic. (Fantasy. 11-13)Pub Date: May 14, 2013
ISBN: 978-0-06-210489-2
Page Count: 496
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2013
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BOOK REVIEW
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