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threeara's review
3.5
Really wish we got to spend more time with Swan Circling! In the end she felt like a plot device in the worst way.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death
katie_in_creativeland_'s review
4.0
Another great story in this series. In this book Kaya gets the chance to meet Swan Ciricling a girl she has only heard great things about and admires. Kaya hopes Swan Ciricling will like her, but afraid she won't because of the mistakes she has made. Swan Ciricling is brave and even heads with the men into battle. Kaya hopes they can be friends and she can learn many things and lessons from Swan Ciricling.
smoothas_sylk's review
adventurous
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
simplyparticular's review
2.0
This review is from the perspective of a mother - Kaya's third book has a difficult message, in and in many ways, suffers from the rushed feeling these books have to stay within their word count.
The good news is, Kaya is trying to learn to be less impetuous and has identified a good role model within the tribe, Swan Circling. The bad news is, she wants this role model to admire her, so she leaves out some of the less salient details about her past. The rushed part comes into effect because we barely see Swan Circling through Kaya's eyes, and then bam, she's dead, and we've moved on to Nez Perce cultural mores involving burial and death.
I think it would have been easier to believe Kaya's attachment and admiration if we had seen Swan Circling more than just in this one book. Other parts of Kaya's story arc across multiple books, and the significance of the death continues on, so I'm not sure why Swan Circling herself got such short-shrift.
The good news is, Kaya is trying to learn to be less impetuous and has identified a good role model within the tribe, Swan Circling. The bad news is, she wants this role model to admire her, so she leaves out some of the less salient details about her past. The rushed part comes into effect because we barely see Swan Circling through Kaya's eyes, and then bam, she's dead, and we've moved on to Nez Perce cultural mores involving burial and death.
I think it would have been easier to believe Kaya's attachment and admiration if we had seen Swan Circling more than just in this one book. Other parts of Kaya's story arc across multiple books, and the significance of the death continues on, so I'm not sure why Swan Circling herself got such short-shrift.
piburnjones's review
5.0
Again, reading for the first time as an adult, in advance of the American Girls podcast.
Like the "Surprise" books in earlier AG series, this one is a winter story and there are important gifts. In place of Christmas, it shows Kaya's family celebrating the beginning of a new year at the winter solstice. But the gifts come in because of a tragedy at the end.
This one is slower in pace than the previous book, focusing largely on Kaya's relationship with Swan Circling. Kaya aspires to be just like her, and wants her good opinion more than anything. She's still processing the events of both previous books, and thinks that if she were just like Swan Circling, she'd be able to rescue Speaking Rain.
I think it's clear that Swan Circling is just as drawn to Kaya. She doesn't say it in so many words, but she clearly sees a lot of herself in Kaya and wants to mentor her. I love this relationship as a model for women helping and supporting younger women. The closest similarity I can think of in earlier AG books is Cornelia's introduction in Samantha's Surprise - another young woman who takes our protagonist under her wing a bit. It's a shame this sweet friendship gets cut off so soon.
As a series, the Kaya books are building nicely. "Magpie" still stings, but she was able to put the nickname to good use at the end of Kaya's Escape, and I get the sense here that it has just about run its course. She also helps Two Hawks deal with his trauma by helping him find a project and a friend. And clearly Kaya's relationship with Swan Circling is going to have a long-lasting impact.
Overall, I love that this series features so many women, providing us an idea of what the future could hold for Kaya: Brown Deer and courting, Running Alone and her baby, Swan Circling who travels with the warriors (something we haven't heard of other women doing, but doesn't seem completely unheard of, so presumably there's precedent). It continues through Eetsa to the grandmothers and the medicine woman.
A few last thoughts:
- There is a doll, as there should be in a "Surprise" book, though it's not Kaya's - it belongs to Speaking Rain. Kaya mends it and keeps it close, thinking often of her sister.
- Babies are always a lot of work, but this one also needs a lot of rescuing! And Swan Circling does it twice. And apropos of nothing, the baby is the same age as one Felicity Merriman.
- Speaking of Felicity, while she and Kaya are both Horse Girls 110% of the time, I appreciate that Kaya also likes doing at least some of the hard, time consuming, utterly necessary work that women in her culture do. In some ways, I think aspects of Felicity's setting are downplayed because we have a character who personally doesn't like those things. Which in itself is fine - people in all time periods can like what they like - but it bothers me because the "women's work" that Felicity dislikes is also exactly the kind of work that historically has been minimized or underappreciated specifically because it was done by women.
- I'd actually love a frank discussion of gender roles and status in Kaya's culture. I'm curious about what it means for Swan Circling to be a warrior woman. The descriptions in Hero made it sound like a support role, not actually doing the fighting herself, but it's never expanded on. Was this common? Unusual but known? Wildly rare?
Like the "Surprise" books in earlier AG series, this one is a winter story and there are important gifts. In place of Christmas, it shows Kaya's family celebrating the beginning of a new year at the winter solstice. But the gifts come in because of a tragedy at the end.
This one is slower in pace than the previous book, focusing largely on Kaya's relationship with Swan Circling. Kaya aspires to be just like her, and wants her good opinion more than anything. She's still processing the events of both previous books, and thinks that if she were just like Swan Circling, she'd be able to rescue Speaking Rain.
I think it's clear that Swan Circling is just as drawn to Kaya. She doesn't say it in so many words, but she clearly sees a lot of herself in Kaya and wants to mentor her. I love this relationship as a model for women helping and supporting younger women. The closest similarity I can think of in earlier AG books is Cornelia's introduction in Samantha's Surprise - another young woman who takes our protagonist under her wing a bit. It's a shame this sweet friendship gets cut off so soon.
As a series, the Kaya books are building nicely. "Magpie" still stings, but she was able to put the nickname to good use at the end of Kaya's Escape, and I get the sense here that it has just about run its course. She also helps Two Hawks deal with his trauma by helping him find a project and a friend. And clearly Kaya's relationship with Swan Circling is going to have a long-lasting impact.
Overall, I love that this series features so many women, providing us an idea of what the future could hold for Kaya: Brown Deer and courting, Running Alone and her baby, Swan Circling who travels with the warriors (something we haven't heard of other women doing, but doesn't seem completely unheard of, so presumably there's precedent). It continues through Eetsa to the grandmothers and the medicine woman.
A few last thoughts:
- There is a doll, as there should be in a "Surprise" book, though it's not Kaya's - it belongs to Speaking Rain. Kaya mends it and keeps it close, thinking often of her sister.
- Babies are always a lot of work, but this one also needs a lot of rescuing! And Swan Circling does it twice. And apropos of nothing, the baby is the same age as one Felicity Merriman.
- Speaking of Felicity, while she and Kaya are both Horse Girls 110% of the time, I appreciate that Kaya also likes doing at least some of the hard, time consuming, utterly necessary work that women in her culture do. In some ways, I think aspects of Felicity's setting are downplayed because we have a character who personally doesn't like those things. Which in itself is fine - people in all time periods can like what they like - but it bothers me because the "women's work" that Felicity dislikes is also exactly the kind of work that historically has been minimized or underappreciated specifically because it was done by women.
- I'd actually love a frank discussion of gender roles and status in Kaya's culture. I'm curious about what it means for Swan Circling to be a warrior woman. The descriptions in Hero made it sound like a support role, not actually doing the fighting herself, but it's never expanded on. Was this common? Unusual but known? Wildly rare?
ashlyn_f_stel's review
4.0
Kaya wants to be friends with Swan Circling so badly, yet she can’t tell her the whole truth on why she has the nickname “Magpie” and how she left her little sister behind. Unfortunately, Swan Circling passes away before Kaya can do so but Swan Circling already knows and she doesn’t seem to care. She even bestows her name to Kaya, but Kaya won’t use it until she feels she has earned it.
Kaya’s character development was significant and I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the series!
Kaya’s character development was significant and I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the series!
j_yoon's review
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
legxleg's review
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
kenna_ainjo's review
4.0
I still find it strange at best that American Girl had a white writer write these books, but I do like them. I particularly liked this book because Kaya's relationship with Swan Circling is moving and beautiful.
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