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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
Another GORgeous cover. Anytime artist Nicoletta Ceccoli does a cover, I inevitably pick up the book. That said, there are a few that I picked up and did not finish. Lucy and Snowcap, however, had me staying up into the wee hours wanting to find out "what happens".
On the surface, Lucy and Snowcap seem quite different. Snowcap is the newly orphaned, soon-to-be Governor of the land of Tathenland, which was colonized by 3 shiploads of British criminals in 1775. The Colay people, who have been on the land since anyone can remember are banished to the nearby smaller islands soon after the British arrive. Lucy is Colay.
One way in which the girls are similar is in personality. After her parent's deaths, Snowcap becomes rather unlikeable...bratty and over indulged, even. Lucy is a hard girl herself. The women of her Island say that she is as "tough as goat's teeth". Both girls are seemingly untouchable, and unbeknownst to them, they are both integral players in the near future for the Colay and the British alike.
Lucy's mother bears the last child of the Sunset Island. Why the last? Because all of the menfolk have been turned to stone. The lifestone that is native to the islands has claimed every last man and boy. Since Lucy's new sibling is a boy, she is given the task of taking him to the Stone Garden that holds all of the stone forms of the men. Lucy is not scared of this task, but what she doesn't expect is how badly she wants her brother Rob to stay a boy. In fact, she prays over him and bargains with the stone not to take him.
At the same time, Snowcap is trying to survive. She has just overheard her guardian, Sir Markham and his steward Renard, talk about poisoning her oatmeal. It is clear to her why they want her out of the way. Once she is dead, Sir Markham and Renard can take over ruling the land and claim all of the power over their fellow castaways. What they don't count on is Snowcap's feisty nature. It's not that she wants to rule so much as she cannot let them win. Once it becomes clear that the men are anxious to do her in, Snowcap decides to runaway.
While this is happening, Lucy's brother does not turn to stone. Lucy receives a prophecy from the Gray Lady on Sunset, and realizes that she must take Rob to the main island. The two girl's paths cross, and soon a grudging alliance is formed.
Both girls are perfectly unlikable at the start of this tale. I don't know what I was expecting, but this wasn't it. H.M. Bouwman has written what can only be called an exquisite story. The histories of the two peoples are folded in seamlessly, and it is interesting to notice that the castaway British, the criminals, still thought of themselves as better than and in charge of the Colay people. Quite the sociological angle. What I like the most about this book is the way that the girls grow. Morally, emotionally, and simply as strong girls. The side characters are interesting as well with my favourite being Philip Tutor (aka Robbing Parsons).
The unexpected element of magic plays a primary part in this story. I wasn't sure of its fit at first, but by the end, its placement makes sense. I think it may have been my adult self trying to categorize that hindered me. Is this fantasy? Is it magical realism? Is it another world in an alternate history?
The Remarkable and Very True Story of Lucy and Snowcap will stay with readers. I find myself thinking about it at odd moments, and wondering about the girls. Another read for the deep readers in your lives.
On the surface, Lucy and Snowcap seem quite different. Snowcap is the newly orphaned, soon-to-be Governor of the land of Tathenland, which was colonized by 3 shiploads of British criminals in 1775. The Colay people, who have been on the land since anyone can remember are banished to the nearby smaller islands soon after the British arrive. Lucy is Colay.
One way in which the girls are similar is in personality. After her parent's deaths, Snowcap becomes rather unlikeable...bratty and over indulged, even. Lucy is a hard girl herself. The women of her Island say that she is as "tough as goat's teeth". Both girls are seemingly untouchable, and unbeknownst to them, they are both integral players in the near future for the Colay and the British alike.
Lucy's mother bears the last child of the Sunset Island. Why the last? Because all of the menfolk have been turned to stone. The lifestone that is native to the islands has claimed every last man and boy. Since Lucy's new sibling is a boy, she is given the task of taking him to the Stone Garden that holds all of the stone forms of the men. Lucy is not scared of this task, but what she doesn't expect is how badly she wants her brother Rob to stay a boy. In fact, she prays over him and bargains with the stone not to take him.
At the same time, Snowcap is trying to survive. She has just overheard her guardian, Sir Markham and his steward Renard, talk about poisoning her oatmeal. It is clear to her why they want her out of the way. Once she is dead, Sir Markham and Renard can take over ruling the land and claim all of the power over their fellow castaways. What they don't count on is Snowcap's feisty nature. It's not that she wants to rule so much as she cannot let them win. Once it becomes clear that the men are anxious to do her in, Snowcap decides to runaway.
While this is happening, Lucy's brother does not turn to stone. Lucy receives a prophecy from the Gray Lady on Sunset, and realizes that she must take Rob to the main island. The two girl's paths cross, and soon a grudging alliance is formed.
Both girls are perfectly unlikable at the start of this tale. I don't know what I was expecting, but this wasn't it. H.M. Bouwman has written what can only be called an exquisite story. The histories of the two peoples are folded in seamlessly, and it is interesting to notice that the castaway British, the criminals, still thought of themselves as better than and in charge of the Colay people. Quite the sociological angle. What I like the most about this book is the way that the girls grow. Morally, emotionally, and simply as strong girls. The side characters are interesting as well with my favourite being Philip Tutor (aka Robbing Parsons).
The unexpected element of magic plays a primary part in this story. I wasn't sure of its fit at first, but by the end, its placement makes sense. I think it may have been my adult self trying to categorize that hindered me. Is this fantasy? Is it magical realism? Is it another world in an alternate history?
The Remarkable and Very True Story of Lucy and Snowcap will stay with readers. I find myself thinking about it at odd moments, and wondering about the girls. Another read for the deep readers in your lives.
What a fun book! It was especially great to have Heather Bouwman join our bookclub for the discussion!
I enjoyed this- it's a very quick read and a compelling story. I love that the two main characters are fierce little girls who don't take crap for anybody. It's somewhat simplistic but I'm hoping the author has more to say about these characters. The cover art is striking (which is why I picked it up in the first place).
This book turned out to be for a much younger audience than I expected (it actually says "10 years and older" on the flap), but I really enjoyed it. It's a lovely sort of fairy tale/myth about two 12 year old girls living in the 1700s on islands near America. One girl is a native, the other a colonist, part of a group of convicts that were shipwrecked and moved in on the natives. Sort of a mini-version of the sort of conflict on interest that occurred on the mainland at the time, only without the bloodshed and with magic.
Both girls start out as not entirely likeable, and they both grow up some as a result of their adventures. But I think my favorite character was the tutor who dreamed of being a Great Author, and only really came to an understanding of the importance of story to society after living through some amazing events.
A gentle book with a sense of humor and a splash of historical fact (which is detailed at the end of the book), it was a perfect book to relax with.
Both girls start out as not entirely likeable, and they both grow up some as a result of their adventures. But I think my favorite character was the tutor who dreamed of being a Great Author, and only really came to an understanding of the importance of story to society after living through some amazing events.
A gentle book with a sense of humor and a splash of historical fact (which is detailed at the end of the book), it was a perfect book to relax with.
I didn't think I'd like this book. Yes, it had a fantasy element, but it was written like historical fiction, which I've been avoiding.
Anyway, I liked it. It read extremely fast - the plot builds and builds but isn't predictable at all. I couldn't believe I was more than half way through when I checked. And I read it during breaks at work, so it kept my interest through lots of short spats.
It's a fascinating blend of genres. I think I'll categorize it as magically realistic historical fiction.
This is the story of two little girls, and the important roles they play in bringing peace to a fictional batch of islands. One of the girls is "child governor" of the island - being the daughter of the slain Anglish Governor. The other is a native child. The Anglish landed on this set of islands when their boat wreaked on the shores. The boat was en route to America, delivering indentured servants. Thus, all of the Anglish on this set of islands were criminals back in England. There is predictable conflict between the Anglish and the Colay (natives)... Anyway, the story talks about colonization at a child's level, cultural identity, literacy, the role of story in society, historiography, race, physical appearence, ethics... the list goes on and on. I really liked that the blemishes both girls have are relative nonissues beyond being a nice basis for attitude comparison.
At first, I didn't like that most of the characterizations were fairly archtypical, but the author does a nice job of redeeming most characters. Oh, and I loved the author's historical note at the end. She's done her research.
Anyway, great book. I'm gonna see if I can get away with booktalking it to 5th/6th graders, even though the main characters are 12.
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I find myself randomly thinking about this book and wishing more people had read it. Four years after I read it. So it deserves to pop up in my feed again. Especially while I'm so behind on my reviews.
Anyway, I liked it. It read extremely fast - the plot builds and builds but isn't predictable at all. I couldn't believe I was more than half way through when I checked. And I read it during breaks at work, so it kept my interest through lots of short spats.
It's a fascinating blend of genres. I think I'll categorize it as magically realistic historical fiction.
This is the story of two little girls, and the important roles they play in bringing peace to a fictional batch of islands. One of the girls is "child governor" of the island - being the daughter of the slain Anglish Governor. The other is a native child. The Anglish landed on this set of islands when their boat wreaked on the shores. The boat was en route to America, delivering indentured servants. Thus, all of the Anglish on this set of islands were criminals back in England. There is predictable conflict between the Anglish and the Colay (natives)... Anyway, the story talks about colonization at a child's level, cultural identity, literacy, the role of story in society, historiography, race, physical appearence, ethics... the list goes on and on. I really liked that the blemishes both girls have are relative nonissues beyond being a nice basis for attitude comparison.
At first, I didn't like that most of the characterizations were fairly archtypical, but the author does a nice job of redeeming most characters. Oh, and I loved the author's historical note at the end. She's done her research.
Anyway, great book. I'm gonna see if I can get away with booktalking it to 5th/6th graders, even though the main characters are 12.
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I find myself randomly thinking about this book and wishing more people had read it. Four years after I read it. So it deserves to pop up in my feed again. Especially while I'm so behind on my reviews.
This book is a wonderful story of friendship and adventure, with strong girls as the main characters. It also explores themes about history: who writes history? which stories get told in history, and who decides? can there be more than one history? Fascinating and beautifully written.
Very slow moving and will not be finishing. Quite disappointing. I really liked the cover. Yes, I am a person who judges a book by it's cover.