Tehanu (The Earthsea Cycle, Book 4)

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Ursula K. LeGuin follows her classic trilogy from Earthsea with a magical tale that won the 1991 Nebula Award for Science Fiction. Unlike the tales in the trilogy, this novel is short and concise, yet it is by no means simplistic. Promoted as a children's book because of the awards garnered in that category by her previous work, Tehanu transcends classification and shows the wizardry of female magic. The story involves a middle-age widow who sets out to visit her dying mentor and eventually cares for his favorite student.

Book Description

Years before, they had escaped together from the sinister Tombs of Atuan -- she, an isolated young priestess, he, a powerful wizard. Now she is a farmer's widow, having chosen for herself the simple pleasures of an ordinary life. And he is a broken old man, mourning the powers lost to him not by choice.

A lifetime ago, they helped each other at a time of darkness and danger. Now they must join forces again, to help another -- the physically and emotionally scarred child whose own destiny remains to be revealed.

With millions of copies sold, Ursula K. Le Guin's Earthsea Cycle has earned a treasured place on the shelves of fantasy lovers everywhere. Complex, innovative, and deeply moral, this quintessential fantasy sequence has been compared with the work of J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, and has helped make Le Guin one of the most distinguished fantasy and science fiction writers of all time. She lives in Portland, Oregon.

Customer Reviews:

Is feminism pushing men down?.......2007-09-20

I first began to read Earthsea about two months ago, and sped through Le Guin's wonderful world, reading one book pretty much straight after the other....until the fourth book, Tahanu. Putting aside what has already been mentioned among these reviews (poor narrative structuring, poor dialogue, and generally poor characterization), I found the book to be personally insulting. How this book could be considered at all feminist I have no idea. While the main character, Tenar, seems strong in some ways, in the end she is a "domesticated" woman. All other women in the novel (Moss, Tehanu's mohter, etc) are victims, and in particular, victims of men (and do not escape this, and if they do, not on their own accord, but by men's actions). Further, the "strength" of women and men are described in very sexist terms. In the first three books, Ged's voice comes as, if not the voice of reason and truth, at least as a voice on that path. In the fourth book, he and Tenar talk of the powerlessness of women, ecchoing generally what "culture" and "society" say. Men are also described previously as a "walnut, empty inside if without power," with women being "deep, their roots stretched into places unknown." Perhaps this doesn't seem sexist, but we have to remember that sexism can be against men as well (personally, I don't find myself to be as men are characterized in this book). Later, Tenar's actions MAY contradict some of these things said, but they are left mostly uncontested or in the mouths of the wise.

In the end, perhaps I missed the "feminist agenda", but I felt that the sexism versus men ruined any feminist message that Le Guin wished to give.

Do not buy this book, do not read this book. The first three were wonders and true pillars in literature, and are beloved to me. Tehanu, on the other hand, seemed uncharacteristic of Le Guin's depth and style at best, and a betrayal of her own world and characters at worst.

Not Free SF Reader.......2007-09-03

Tehanu is a pretty pointless codicil to the original Earthsea trilogy.

The girl from the Tombs of Atuan married and had a couple of kids, and has now adopted a more supernatural child on top of that.

Ged, no longer with any wizardly abilities arrives . Naturally, given she had a crush on him earlier and is now lonely, they live together.

A disappointing sequel to an otherwise enjoyable trilogy.......2007-08-21

Tehanu was an unexpectedly feeble offering by LeGuin. I found it to be a long, boring, rambling, uneventful, dreary, downbeat, anti climactic, and even a tad (if you can believe it) misanthropic and stereotypical waste of time. The 20+ year gap since the authoress's last involvement with this series is very apparent - to the point where she seems out of touch with the flavor and ambience of her own works.

For me, the only enjoyable part in the entire book (Tehanu) were the all-too-brief re-appearance(s) of an ancient dragon.

My rankings for the books in this series now stand as follows:

1-Wizard of Earthsea (9 of 10)
2-Tombs of Ataun (7 of 10)
3-Farthest Shore (8 of 10)
4-Tehanu (5 of 10)

My advice is to stop reading this series at book 3, because those books are the meat & potatoes of this series, and the rest is just unsatisfying filler and add-on.

If you loved Wizard of Earthsea.......2007-05-12

You'll love this one as well. This story continues the tales of Ged and Tenar. It is a nice (almost) wrap up after Tombs of Atuan. I found myself ready for more, and LeGuin provided it (Tales of Earthsea, The Other Wind.) Note: I don't know how this would be as a stand alone book.

Earthsea's Most Difficult Tale.......2007-04-09

There's no question that this is by far the most difficult book in the Earthsea Cycle. Every character in it has suffered loss and tragedy; each must somehow move on. Because we have seen two of those characters as heroic, it makes a difficult read.

Tenar was the triumphant White Lady at the end of "The Tombs of Atuan." When "Tenahu" starts, about 25 years later, she is a widowed farm wife who has suffered the death of two persons very important to her: first her husband, and then Ogion, the Mage of Silence.

Sparrowhawk returns from the events of "The Farthest Shore" and, despite his brave words, faces life after the loss of the power of magic that has defined him and made him the greatest archmage since Erreth-Akbe.

And Tenahu herself, raped and maimed, burnt, discarded and scarred has even less trust and joy than Tenar and Sparrowhawk.

LeGuin tells that story of how these characters interact among themselves and with their few neighbors, and how they react when great danger from Sparrowhawk's past threatens to destroy them.

Unlike the first three novels, there is no magic here; or rather, the only magic is evil and is used to attack Sparrowhawk and Tenar, who are incapable of defending themselves. Only Tenahu, the mysterious and maimed one, can act. Will she? How can she?

This is as dark-toned a fantasy novel as you may find. Those who want swords and sorcery, fur jock straps or light sabers should go elsewhere. This is a minutely observed, carefully developed story of how you cope with loss, grief and helplessness. I think many of the very negative reviews here come from misplaced expectations.

LeGuin had said this was the last Earthsea novel. Happily, she was wrong. There is a collection of short stories, "Tales of Earthsea," and a fifth novel, "The Other Wind." You'll have to go there for answers to the questions that "Tehanu" leaves unanswered. And to find out what happens to the characters we have watched, cheered and loved through the Earthsea Cycle.

Highly recommended for those who can approach LeGuin with no expectations other than fine craftsmanship and superb story-telling.

A Chinese Bestiary : Strange Creatures from the Guideways Through Mountains and Seas

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A Scholarly Read Not to Be Missed
hungry for zhiguai ^__^

A Chinese Bestiary : Strange Creatures from the Guideways Through Mountains and Seas
Richard E. Strassberg
Manufacturer: University of California Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0520218442

Book Description

A Chinese Bestiary presents a fascinating pageant of mythical creatures from a unique and enduring cosmography written in ancient China. The Guideways through Mountains and Seas, compiled between the fourth and first centuries b.c.e., contains descriptions of hundreds of fantastic denizens of mountains, rivers, islands, and seas, along with minerals, flora, and medicine. The text also represents a wide range of beliefs held by the ancient Chinese. Richard Strassberg brings the Guideways to life for modern readers by weaving together translations from the work itself with information from other texts and recent archaeological finds to create a lavishly illustrated guide to the imaginative world of early China.
Unlike the bestiaries of the late medieval period in Europe, the Guideways was not interpreted allegorically; the strange creatures described in it were regarded as actual entities found throughout the landscape. The work was originally used as a sacred geography, as a guidebook for travelers, and as a book of omens. Today, it is regarded as the richest repository of ancient Chinese mythology and shamanistic wisdom. The Guideways may have been illustrated from the start, but the earliest surviving illustrations are woodblock engravings from a rare 1597 edition. Seventy-six of those plates are reproduced here for the first time, and they provide a fine example of the Chinese engraver's art during the late Ming dynasty.
This beautiful volume, compiled by a well-known specialist in the field, provides a fascinating window on the thoughts and beliefs of an ancient people, and will delight specialists and general readers alike.

Customer Reviews:

A Scholarly Read Not to Be Missed.......2004-01-02

Geoffrey E.R. Lloyd and Nathan Sivin in, The Way of the Word: Science and Medicine in Early China and Greece, raise the following questions: "In what circumstances did inquiries about the world outside human society begin? and What paths [my own italics] did those inquiries open up?" One such "path" or "guideway" is found in the Shan hai jing , or "The Scripture, Classic, Canon, Warp-text [and now Guideways]--however one wants to render jing--Mountains and Seas," as Robert Ford Campany puts it in his review of Riccardo Fracasso and Anne Birrell's earlier translations. He goes on to say, "The list is the trope of plenitude, and an overwhelming plenitude of anomaly is what this book conveys." The Shan hai jing is one of the earliest Chinese works that attempted to provide a description of what was then believed to be "the world outside human society." It sought to provide an embodiment of taxonomic reckoning of its landscape and all of its natural and supernatural fauna and flora, especially to those who ventured into it. There gradually arose amongst the ancient Chinese intelligentsia a weltanschauung, or "world concept" of their biophysical and socioanthropological environment in which they conceived of themselves as being an integral part of the cosmos and intrinsically interjoined with its spiritual, physical, and moral "influences."

To explore the Shan hai jing is to undertake an odyssey in search of its mysteries. This literary venture can easily boggle the mind, especially when it comes to accomplishing a creditable translation with a plausible exegesis of its contents. Many of the traditional commentaries are, for the most part, useless, since the commentators were themselves ignorant of the folklore and palæozoology that underlies this venerable and probably composite text. It requires a whole critical apparatus built around it before an even reasonably full interpretation can be achieved, especially by the philological unwary. Richard Eric Strassberg, Professor of Chinese in the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures at the University of California at Los Angeles, offers us an exceptionally fine work of scholarship in his thorough editing, excellent translation, and extensive commentary of this ancient work. He provides his readers with a new and invigorating approach to wandering through this arcane world. He leds us along this jing, or "guideway" and familiarizes us with its passages as a jing, or a "classic." As our guide, he points out in his introductory remarks (p. 5), as a daybook to guide the reader in "choosing auspicious days for travel and avoiding danger from gods and demons." As its expounder, he penetrates its "sacred geography filled with strikingly unusual denizens" (p. xiv) and acquaints us with its mysteries.

Strassberg reminds us that he has "undertaken the risky venture of providing translations whenever possible of the names of creatures, places, and things. Though well aware of the risks involved in the more polysemous case, I offer these translations as reasonable significations that would have occurred to traditional Chinese readers both to facilitate the readers contact with this difficult text and to stimulate further consideration among specialists of what these names might have meant." (p. xviii) One can never be too exacting when it comes to translating ancient Chinese words, nor should such exactitude be so constrained as to preclude the full rein they must be given in order to convey the splendor of their exquisite implicitness. And, again, one can never be too careful when it comes to avoiding renderings which are vitiated by the bland assumption that they meant then what they mean in later dynastic periods; accordingly, such assumptions can be distorted or entirely false. The author has adroitly avoided such pitfalls and he does not misguide his readers.

The contents of A Chinese Bestiary: Strange Creatures from the Guideways Through Mountains and Seas (hereafter cited as A Chinese Bestiary) consists of eight parts: List of Illustrations; a Preface; Editorial Notes; a meticulous introduction, followed by 76 plates of the rare illustrations found in the 1597 Yaoshantang reprint of the earlier Wang Chongqing edition as well as 345 descriptions of its demoniac/theriomorphic denizens; extensive Notes; an inclusive Selected Bibliography; and a thorough Glossary Index to Plates. Strassberg has gone to considerable effort to cull through resources in order to provide his readers with what is regarded as being the earliest surviving illustrations of woodblock engravings from the above rare work, making the illustrations available perhaps for the first time in any foreign publication, thereby, providing his readers with an artistic tour de force into the realm of a Chinese bestiary.

In discussing the origins of A Chinese Bestiary, the author refers to how "the yi-physicians credited Divine Farmer (Shennong) and the Yellow Thearch...with having written important medical and pharmacological treatises." (p. 4) One is reminded of Angus Graham's remarks that "legends of Shennong and the Yellow Emperor develop in interaction as representatives of rival tendencies to political centralization and decentralization...." This political dichotomy within medicine also reflects a gradual division within Chinese society between the illiterati (the bearers of oral traditions, including folk medicine) and the literati (the bearers of written traditions, including what would later become known as traditional Chinese medicine). Consequently, one can with caution suggest that materia medica may have been later more closely associated with folk traditions even though it is referenced in the Huang di nei jing su wen, or "The Inner Canon of the Yellow Thearch, Basic Questions" which forms in part the literary foundation of Chinese medicine.

As for minor suggestions, I would offer the following remarks: It would be more convenient for the reader to have the ideograms side by side with their Romanized counterparts, not to mention having the footnotes at the foot of each page for immediate and convenient referencing; there are a few entries, such as guai, yi, xi, and qiu whose ideograms are missing in the Glossary Index; there is some question to rendering of yu and jin as "jade" and "gold,"or zhen as "minister," since in most texts as early as this they mean "precious stones," "precious metals," and "magnate." Similarly, jing bi shi probably means "azure pi stones" (bi is an unidentified stone in early texts, used for making arrowheads; its use as a color word is much later); and, even given all of Strassberg's extensive footnotes, the undaunting quest for more appears to be an insatiable need (e.g., the guanxiong min, or "the people with perforated chests" (pp. 163-164) may refer to those people who were carried on planks of simple construction before the advent of sedan chairs).

The contents of A Chinese Bestiary are not vitiated by bland assumptions of contextual meanings misplaced in dynastic disorder or by a "highly imaginative rendition" (p. xvii) in which assumptions can be distorted or entirely false. Strassberg's literary astuteness and refined linguistic sensitivity provide his readers with an encompassing grasp of its numerous subtleties and variegated shades of meaning. He has not failed to afford his readers, specialists and nonspecialists alike, with an exceptional opportunity of improving our appreciation and understanding of this fascinating ancient Chinese text. It joins the ranks of Yuan Ke's Shan hai jing jiaoyi, Rémi Mathieu's Étude sur la Mythologie et L'ethnologie de la Chine Ancienne and Riccardo Fracasso's Libro dei monti e dei mari (Shanhai jing): Cosmografia e mitologia nella Cina Antica, as being the best translation in its language--English--as well as a must read for those whose penchant is ancient Chinese studies.

hungry for zhiguai ^__^.......2003-03-26

Dr. Strassberg has done some intensive researches on the zhiguai genre as well as the Chinese Travelogue tradition (the two in fact has a germane connection). This book is to provide you with a collection of pictographs of the strange creatures from Shan Hai Jin, an eerie...no, no, no sacred book about the landscape of si-hai (four seas) and jiu-zhou (nine provinces) of the middle kingdom (ancient China). I have both of his two books (this & Inscribed Landscape) and will be more than happy to recommend them to anyone who either has an interest in the study of ancient mythology, Chinese literature, or the so called "sacred geography" of eastern mysticism.:)

Passage to Juneau: A Sea and Its Meanings

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My book of the year
Much Better Than Earlier Raban Book
the inside passage
A Rougher Sea
Drifting, not sailing

Passage to Juneau: A Sea and Its Meanings
Jonathan Raban
Manufacturer: Vintage
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0679776141
Release Date: 2000-11-07

Amazon.com

British-born Jonathan Raban sets out on a passage from Seattle to Juneau in a small boat that is more a waterborne writing den, and as usual with the brilliant Raban, this journey becomes a vehicle for history and heart-stopping descriptions that will make readers want to hail him as one of the finest talents who's picked up a pen in the 20th century. The voyage through the Inside Passage from Washington's Puget Sound to Alaska churns up memories and stirs up hidden emotions and Raban dwells on many, including the death of his father and his own role of Daddy to his young daughter, Julia, left behind in Seattle. More than just a personal travelogue, however, Passage to Juneau deftly weaves in the stories of others before him--from Indians whom white men formerly greeted with baubles set afloat on logs, to Captain Vancouver, who risked mutiny on his ship when he banned visits with prostitutes, some of whom offered their services for bits of scrap metal. Pressed into every page are intimate descriptions of life at sea--the fog-shrouded coasts, the crackly radio that keeps him linked to the mainland, the salty marine air, and the fellow sailors who are likewise drawn by a life of tossing on water. While Raban successfully steers his boat to the desired port, readers ultimately discover that this insightful, talented sage is in fact emotionally in deep water and may not fully be captain of his own life. --Melissa Rossi

Book Description

With the same rigorous observation (natural and social), invigorating stylishness, and encyclopedic learning that he brought to his National Book Award-winning Bad Land, Jonathan Raban conducts readers along the Inside Passage from Seattle to Juneau. The physical distance is 1,000 miles of difficult-and often treacherous-water, which Raban navigates solo in a 35-foot sailboat.

But Passage to Juneau also traverses a gulf of centuries and cultures: the immeasurable divide between the Northwest's Indians and its first European explorers-- between its embattled fishermen and loggers and its pampered new class. Along the way, Raban offers captivating discourses on art, philosophy, and navigation and an unsparing narrative of personal loss.

Customer Reviews:

My book of the year.......2007-08-29

Raban deftly weaves George Vancouver's expedition with his own journey up North America's West Coast two centuries later.

Introspective and heartfelt, the book is in parts auto-biography, travel-guide and biography. As a Passage to Juneau unwinds, Raban describes situations and others with great perception, yet is never afraid to expose his own frailties.

Passage to Juneau is beautifully written and explores Raban's thoughts every bit as much as the miles of water he covers. A tremendous book and fully deserving of the great praise it has received.

Much Better Than Earlier Raban Book.......2007-05-07

I tend to ignore author Raban's political diatribes (most of his writing, unfortunately) and revel in the beauty of his books about his personal boat journeys. I had earlier read "Old Glory: A Voyage Down The Mississippi" and felt that it lost focus about halfway through the narrative. That book seemed to reflect the desperate lack of focus and national malaise that the Carter administration brought on in the late 70's, and "Old Glory" would not be a Raban book I'd recommend.

However, Passage to Juneau is different. His solo journey by sailboat from Seattle to Juneau in the late 1990s is beautifully written with haunting scenes of his personal life interspersed with his musings on the sea. During the journey, his father dies and his wife demands a separation, the first personal tragedy giving Raban insight into his personal feelings about life and the sea, the second (at the midpoint of his journey, reaching Juneau) causing him to focus inward for the return trip to Seattle.

Despite his occasional lapses towards anti-americanism (throughout the book I kept wondering why he didn't move back to England or at least move north to British Columbia), Passage to Juneau is an intimate portrait of a man who is facing life's trials and the vagaries of some of the more treacherous seas in the world at the same time.

the inside passage.......2007-04-03

I've read many of Mr Raban's books and loved them all but this is my favorite. This isn't just a "travel" book, it's the history of the beautiful Inside Passage. You really feel like you are on Mr Raban's boat as he travels from Seattle, where he lives, to Juneau. He recounts the history of all the travellers who went before him - how certain Sounds and Inlets got their names - tells you about the people he meets - the things he sees - and shares a little piece of his own life history as he travels. During this journey he deals with the death of his Father and his upcoming divorce from his wife. He is a master storyteller. I live on the Puget Sound and have scuba dived up and down this Passage - this book brings the whole area to life. If you haven't enjoyed Mr Raban's prose before now, start here. You'll be hooked.

A Rougher Sea.......2007-01-09

Let me see if I can write a review that does justice to this book and at the same time explain to myself why it is such a great piece of literature.

I think the first point to make is that the writing mirrors the, by turns, eddying, chaotic, reflective quality of the sea itself, leading one deeper and deeper into the author's own meandering introspections about life and, yes, water in a very (to this reader anyway) seductive style, a style which is nothing if not allusive, reflecting Raban's own lifelong fascination with and profound love of literature. The account of Captain Vancouver's voyage along this same passage, taken from many sources, while certainly the most superficially parallel and certainly the most discursively ongoing of the allusions, is not in the end, the most significant and profound. That award must surely go to Raban's recounting of Shelley's last days and ultimate demise in the chapter entitled "Charred Remains", striking a parallel, in a much more profound manner than those accounts of Vancouver's voyage, to the last days and death of Raban's father and to the unsurpassed final chapter in which he invokes Cowper's "The Cast-Away" as a metaphor for his crumbling marriage and his own mortality.

Perhaps one, like Raban, has to already have a love of and familiarity both these poets to see what a feat he has pulled of here - though Raban provides the basic biographical background for each. To stick with the last chapter---Cowper isn't a poet much read anymore. But he's always been one of my favourites. One really has to be familiar with his intensely unbalanced life and mind to fully appreciate his poetry. In any event, by this last chapter of the book, we know what it's like to walk in Raban's shoes, to be in his boat, to wander through his mind and heart and to know how much he loves his family. When the hammer falls at the end with his wife and daughter deplaning in Juneau, we feel how crushed he is by it. And Cowper's "The Cast-Away" is the perfect poetic expression of the way we feel he feels, drowned not by the "real" sea he's been traversing, but by Cowper's metaphoric sea of despair. I frequently return to Cowper's "The Task"-A poem given him as a sort of assignment to ward off one of his mental fits-as well as "The Cast-Away" as two of the greatest poems in the language. I NEVER thought I'd see a modern author apparently effortlessly bring the despair of the all but forgotten poet back to life, but......Raban does.

So, yes, readers looking for a "sea adventure" yarn had better look elsewhere. How to know if you will fancy the book? Do you love history, English literature, introspective depths? Above all, do you know the feeling of being drowned by despair? Can you relate to Cowper's couplet?

"But I, beneath a rougher sea,
And whelm'd in deeper gulfs than he."

In short, do you know that INNER Sea? If so, this book will not disappoint.

Drifting, not sailing.......2006-04-26

The author fails miserable to hold together the historical journey of Vancouver, his current plodding through the inside passage, and his personal family life. Drifting from one to the other I dreaded learning more of this egomaniacs personal life! If the 430 pages had been edited down to 100 dealing with the history of the area, told as he travels through it, it might be a winner. But alas it's not.

Average customer rating:

Takes a while to get started
Chimamanda Adichie's comments on Unburnable
A Must Read
Not a Fluff Read!
Long Story Short

Unburnable: A Novel
Marie-elena John
Manufacturer: Amistad
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0060837578
Release Date: 2006-04-11

Book Description

In this riveting narrative of family, betrayal, vengeance, and murder, Lillian Baptiste is willed back to her island home of Dominica to finally settle her past. Haunted by scandal and secrets, Lillian left Dominica when she was fourteen after discovering she was the daughter of Iris, the half-crazy woman whose life was told of in chanté mas songs sung during Carnival: Matilda Swinging and Bottle of Coke; songs about a village on a mountaintop and bones and bodies; songs about flying masquerades and a man who dropped dead. Lillian knew the songs well. And now she knows these songs -- and thus the history -- belong to her. After twenty years away, Lillian returns to face the demons of her past, and with the help of Teddy, the man she refused to love, she will find a way to heal.

Set partly in contemporary Washington, D.C., and partly in post-World War II Dominica, Unburnable weaves together West Indian history, African culture, and American sensibilities. Richly textured and lushly rendered, Unburnable showcases a welcome and assured new voice.

Customer Reviews:

Takes a while to get started.......2007-09-07

I took a little while for me to get into this book. I, quite frankly, didn't care about Lillian the main character until I was almost a third of the way through. The most dimensional and complex characters were of course Matilda and Iris. Once the novel's focus shift primarily to them, it becomes a page turner. If you feel like investing the time to get to the heart of this tale, give it a read.

Chimamanda Adichie's comments on Unburnable.......2007-07-23

Chimamanda Adichie (Half of a Yellow Sun, Purple Hibiscus: A Novel) had these wonderful things to say about UNBURNABLE in the book review section of London's Guardian newspaper on Saturday June 23, 2007:

"I read Marie-Elena John's novel Unburnable on the plane from New York to Copenhagen. I laughed aloud so often reading this wondrously intelligent book about Dominica and the United States and Africa, about gender, class and race, about love and sexuality, that the bespectacled man sitting next to me put his Wall Street Journal down and leaned over to see what the title was. He asked what it was about. I could have told him how it dealt honestly with issues without ever forgetting to keep character and soul as its centre, but instead I told him a tiny anecdote from the book about black women and thongs. And I much enjoyed his blush."

A Must Read.......2007-03-27

This is a great book to kick back in silence and just immerse yourself into suspense, deep thinking, and a few tears. I was just a little disappointed with the ending, but all in all this was a great read.

Not a Fluff Read!.......2007-01-14

I have been blessed enough in the last week to read not one but TWO great books this one being the greater. I will admit I wasn't wrapped up in the book by page two but by page ten I was all caught up in this story. Marie-Elena John is an EXCELLENT story teller. Her words are beautiful and her descriptions come off the page so effortlessly. I could've easily believed this was her third novel instead of her first. I laughed, I cried and I called all my friends and advised them to please read this book. I did not know anything about Dominica before picking up this novel and now I cannot learn enough. This book intrigued me to no end and I cannot wait to read future publishings from Marie-Elena John. This story is not in the least predictable and her knowledge on the subject matter is outstanding! If you are looking for a mind challenging novel that will shock and educate you at the same time then look no further.

Long Story Short.......2006-11-08

Interesting story, you have to continue to read this book and not stop or you might get side tracked if you put it down for too long.

From Sea to Shining Sea: A Treasury of American Folklore and Folk Songs

Average customer rating:

From Sea to Shining Sea
A great resource for teachers and others.
wonderful resource for home and classroom educators
A wonderful treasury for elementary age students.

From Sea to Shining Sea: A Treasury of American Folklore and Folk Songs

Manufacturer: Scholastic
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Textbook Binding

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ASIN: 0590428683

Customer Reviews:

From Sea to Shining Sea.......2003-11-28

This book is a treasury of poems, songs, and stories, from the great country of the US :) The songs are traditional, and, if you have a little skill in piano, flute, recorder, or mallet percussion, you can play them with ease.

The poems are okay, and they include Paul Revere's Ride, which is wonderful.

The stories are also interesting, and they probably aren't ones that you've ever heard before; all of them are 'G' rated, except for one that might be a little scary for little kids in the first section about a girl whose fingers were smashed off by her father and brothers (gross).

This book is okay, but it isn't the greatest thing out there.

A great resource for teachers and others........2003-03-14

I've used this book in my work as a substitute teacher in elementary school and as a Scout leader. It reflects the
diversity of American culture - good Native American tales, for example. The continuity of the illustrations - each illustrator does one section - is a nice touch.

wonderful resource for home and classroom educators.......2001-11-02

A beautiful book with a terrific variety of offerings. I homeschool and have used this book repeatedly through the years with a 10 year old and now a 5 year old. This book gives an excellent foundation for each of the subjects covered in its separate chapter. There are stories, poems, brief non-fiction pieces, and songs that include simple but nicely creative piano accompaniment. You'll find everything from scary southern folk tales to "Who's on First" to a brief, accessible and sad report of Isabel's "cleansing" of Spain. The writers and artists are incredibly diverse, and include Norman Finkelstein, Longfellow, and Leo and Diane Dillon. The fact that the above and many others can seamlessly exist is a wonderful testament to the talents of the editors, Cohn and Bang. Perhaps they could compile an equally terrific anthology of world lit for kids; I'd snap it up. My kids love it and will gladly pick it up on their own to pore over the beautiful artwork.

A wonderful treasury for elementary age students........1997-02-07

This is a wonderful book that is full of american folklore. It includes stories, poetry, folk songs, and illustrations. The illustrations are fabulous and are by well-known picture book artists including Marcia Brown, Barbara Cooney, Leo and Diane Dillon, Trina Schart Hyman, Chris Van Allsburg, and Ed Young. The folktale retellings are well-written and are appropriate for reading out loud as well as fourth grade reading level and above. The included folk songs have the musical score as well as the lyrics. I highly recommend this book for parents and teachers.

Folklore and the Sea (The American Maritime Library, Vol 6)

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Folklore and the Sea

Folklore and the Sea (The American Maritime Library, Vol 6)
Horace Beck
Manufacturer: Mystic Seaport Museum
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Folklore & Mythology | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0913372366

Book Description

A collection of the sea's folklore from Europe, North America, and the West Indies. Legends, songs, superstitions, and stories both true and apocryphal includes spectral ships, pirates, mermaids, and much more.

Customer Reviews:

Folklore and the Sea.......2000-05-09

I was researching folklore in the New England coastal region when I came across this book. It was wonderfully written and provided me with everything I was looking for. Horace Beck obviously knows what he is writting about. I give this book 5 stars!

How Night Came from the Sea: A Story from Brazil

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How Night Came from the Sea: A Story from Brazil
Mary-Joan Gerson
Manufacturer: Little Brown & Co (Juv)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: School & Library Binding

General | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0316308552

Download Description

"Can you imagine a world without night? No moonbeams? No stars? No time to rest in your bed? This story tells how night came to Brazil. Celebrating the rhythm of evening and morning, shadow and light, rest and activity, this lyrical fairytale is the story of the ancient African sea goddess Iemanji whose daughter marries one of the sons of the earth people who live in eternal daylight in Brazil. When her daughter longs to rest her eyes in the cool shadows of evening, Iemanji sends her the gift of darkness. Strong, intense, tropically colored illustrations vibrate with energy in this folktale that demonstrates the African connection to Brazil. An author's note explains the slavery connection between the countries and describes how a religion called Candomble (a complex set of African beliefs) is practiced in the northeast of Brazil. Mary-Joan Gerson has written four books for children. Her children's writing career began when she and her husband served with the Peace Corps from 1965-67 in Nigeria. Her books focus on how other cultures explain the world -- they are all what is referred to in folklore as ""creation tales."" Dr. Gerson is now a clinical professor of psychology at New York University, where she directs a training program in family therapy and teaches and does research in psychoanalytic development. Carla Golembe studied painting and printmaking in college and graduate school. She began illustrating children's books in 1992. Because her artwork has a tropical style, she illustrated a number of folktales from Africa, Latin America and Hawaii. "

Tales from the Odyssey: Sirens and Sea Monsters - Book #3 (Tales from the Odyssey)

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Tales of odyssous
tbreading@warsaw.k12.in.us
The best in the series!

Tales from the Odyssey: Sirens and Sea Monsters - Book #3 (Tales from the Odyssey)
Mary Pope Osborne
Manufacturer: Hyperion
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

General | Ages 9-12 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books

ASIN: 0786807725

Book Description

Odysseus and his men have done what no other mortals have done: returned alive from the terrifying Land of the Dead. Armed with warnings and advice from the ghost of the prophet Tiresias, Odysseus is determined to finally sail home to Ithaca. But the enchantress Circe tells him that the Greeks will face even more horrors on their journey, including an encounter with Scylla, the six-headed monster, and Charybdis, the deadly whirlpool. Who will survive these terrors-and how? In this third of six books based on episodes from Homer's Odyssey, Mary Pope Osborne continues the exciting adventures of one of the greatest heroes of all time.

Customer Reviews:

Tales of odyssous.......2005-11-17

The Odyssey is about this man named Odysseus and his adventure to the island of the Sun God. It's based on the original book, Homer's Odyssey. He's got to go through some amazing things to get to the Sun God. He also has to keep his men safe, plus he has to deal with his men, because they want to slay and eat the cattle of the sun god.
Odysseus had to fight 3 monsters on his way to the Sun God. He had to fight the Charybidis, which is a giant whirlpool. He has to fight the three-headed monster that killed six of his men. The last thing he had to fight was the lady merchants that led you to their island and killed you or you drowned on the way before you got there.
Then Odysseus got to the land of the Sun God and he told his men that if they slayed and ate the cattle that the sun god owned their families would be cursed. Then when he goes to sleep they eat the cattle because they haven't eaten for a very long time.
The reason that I recommend this book is because it's a fun book for all ages and it is a pretty fast read. Another reason I recommend this book is because it's a fast paced historic fiction story. The last reason I recommend this book is because if you've read the other Mary Pope Osborn books, like the Magic Tree House books, you'll love it.

tbreading@warsaw.k12.in.us.......2005-10-21

I use this book for an ESL English class. It's much more comprehensible than reading the poetic version. The kids seem to enjoy it, where I think they would be lost with the poetic translation in our textbook. All of the students in this class are low level English speakers, so this gives them something interesting to read without a huge comprehension challenge.

The best in the series!.......2004-07-04

We read all these books in the series together as a family. This one was our favorite. My boys couldn't wait for bedtime so they could hear what would happen next in the story. These books offer enough action to keep one's interest, young and old. I recommend all the books in the series. We can't wait for #6!

The Routledge Reader in Caribbean Literature

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The Routledge Reader in Caribbean Literature
Alison Donnell
Manufacturer: Routledge
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Writing | Reference | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Literature & Fiction | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Reference | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
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ASIN: 0415120497

Book Description

b IThe Routledge Reader in Caribbean Literature /b is an outstanding compilation of over seventy primary and secondary texts of writing from the Caribbean. Locating key writers within a specifically Caribbean framework, editors Alison Donnell and Sarah Lawson Welsh demonstrate that these singular voices have emerged not out of disparate cultures, but rather a wealth of literary tradition which, until now, was unknown or critically neglected. All twentieth century selections, both famous and less well-known are given a voice in this remarkable anthology, which encompasses poetry, short stories, essays, articles and interviews. With accessible historical and cultural introductions to the writings, this volume is a fascinating collection for anyone interested in the literature of the Caribbean or post colonial studies, as well as an ideal teaching tool.

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For Mermaid Lovers

Mermaids: Sirens of the Sea
Kerry Colburn
Manufacturer: Running Press Book Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Museums & Collections | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Fairy Tales | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

General | Occult | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0762416327
Release Date: 2003-09-02

Book Description

Icons of the sea, pop culture seductresses, and mythical sirens-mermaids have been swimming in and out of our collective consciousness since the beginning of recorded time, and their images have graced folk-art pieces for centuries. Here's a gorgeous gift book about these legendary sea nymphs that gracefully combines full color art, including paintings, sculptures, and illustrations by Paul Gaugin and Gustav Klimt, with literary quotations and lore that span more than 2,000 years. Text includes selections from Ovid, Shakespeare, Goethe, Melville, and Poe, plus "The Little Mermaid" and "The Legend of Undine."

Customer Reviews:

For Mermaid Lovers.......2006-06-08

I think I have almost every Mermaid artbook available. This one is definetly worthy of your collection. It displays spectacular images, poems and literature. If you like this you will also love Mermaids by Elizabeth Ratisseau.

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