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felinity 's review for:
The Escape
by Kathryn Lasky
As someone who grew up reading all the horse books (you know the ones: My Friend Flicka, Black Beauty, The Silver Brumby, The Black Stallion, and all the rest) I was looking forward to this. Unfortunately, it didn't live up to expectations.
Estrella is born on board ship, and has never felt solid ground beneath her hooves. She lives in a sling, not even able to be with her mother all the time. Running short of supplies, the sailors loose the horses into the sea near an island, setting them free, and there the adventure begins. The horses choose new names for themselves, ones which suit themselves rather than names based on physical attributes as the humans did, and deal with the difficulties of change and adapting to their new world, but it feels unrealistic for the story.
Estrella's introduction to the world captures the inquisitiveness and wonder of a child, but she and the other horses remain too human for my liking. The target audience is middle school children, yet the language plus the use of unfamiliar Spanish inserted in the text push it above their normal reading level. On that basis, it's better as a read-aloud or discussion book.
The real problem is the plot, which is definitely unsuitable. I found it distasteful and over the top as an adult, and I can't imagine giving this to a child.
I struggled to finish this, and if I'd picked it up on my own - and hadn't been given a copy to review - I would have quit after the crocodiles. Normally I'd finish a book like this within a day, but it took me over 3 because I kept putting it down and had to force myself to pick it back up. I've given it 2 stars anyway because the writing itself was good, and the idea was good, it's just the combination of plot and use of language made it unsuitable.
Disclaimer: I was given a free copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Estrella is born on board ship, and has never felt solid ground beneath her hooves. She lives in a sling, not even able to be with her mother all the time. Running short of supplies, the sailors loose the horses into the sea near an island, setting them free, and there the adventure begins. The horses choose new names for themselves, ones which suit themselves rather than names based on physical attributes as the humans did, and deal with the difficulties of change and adapting to their new world, but it feels unrealistic for the story.
Estrella's introduction to the world captures the inquisitiveness and wonder of a child, but she and the other horses remain too human for my liking. The target audience is middle school children, yet the language plus the use of unfamiliar Spanish inserted in the text push it above their normal reading level. On that basis, it's better as a read-aloud or discussion book.
The real problem is the plot, which is definitely unsuitable. I found it distasteful and over the top as an adult, and I can't imagine giving this to a child.
Spoiler
The horses face sharks (where one is caught and killed, with some detail), crocodiles, human sacrifice, then a horse is beheaded by the humans... It's just too much, even for an adult. *One* of those, maybe, but all of them... Even Estrella's role as lead mare doesn't work for me, because she's not even a yearling yet. There's no way real horses would follow a foal. There are even elements of the scary bits of Red Riding Hood.I struggled to finish this, and if I'd picked it up on my own - and hadn't been given a copy to review - I would have quit after the crocodiles. Normally I'd finish a book like this within a day, but it took me over 3 because I kept putting it down and had to force myself to pick it back up. I've given it 2 stars anyway because the writing itself was good, and the idea was good, it's just the combination of plot and use of language made it unsuitable.
Disclaimer: I was given a free copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.