In 1339, ten-year-old Juliet, the daughter of a gameskeeper, and her 12-year-old best friend, Marguerite, daughter of the lord of the manor, live in a small English town. One day, a stranger arrives and entangles the girls in an adventure which sees Marguerite betrothed against her will. Juliet's courage, loyalty and quick common sense save the day. Full color.
In fourteenth-century England, ten-year-old Juliet must recapture a ...
In 1339, ten-year-old Juliet, the daughter of a gameskeeper, and her 12-year-old best friend, Marguerite, daughter of the lord of the manor, live in a small English town. One day, a stranger arrives and entangles the girls in an adventure which sees Marguerite betrothed against her will. Juliet's courage, loyalty and quick common sense save the day. Full color.
In fourteenth-century England, ten-year-old Juliet must recapture a valuable falcon accidentally released by her younger brother.
The Girlhood Journeys Collection makes a lukewarm debut with these slim novels, set, respectively, in medieval England and Victorian San Francisco; two other novels, one set in Nigeria in 1440 and the other in 1775 Paris, are due for simultaneous release. While the series premise is derivative, the adolescent heroines, if not rendered with particular flair, are credible enough, and plots are suitably dramatic. Juliet retrieves an escaped falcon and discovers why a mysterious horseman has stolen the handkerchief of her best friend; Shannon rescues a Hong Kong orphan from a miserable existence as a slave to a Chinatown merchant. The girls' adventures are slated to continue-unfortunately, each of these two tales reads as a slice of a larger saga rather than a satisfying novel in itself, leaving the reader neither satiated nor, curiously, really hungry for more. The overall flavor is of an American Girls Collection wannabe, with an international reach added; the final page of each volume advertises tie-in dolls from Ertl Collectibles "available where quality toys are sold." However, the books' plots are significantly less compelling and the factual background skimpier than in the Pleasant Company's historical fiction. Ages 7-11. (Oct.)
Children's Literature
- Catherine Petrini
Juliet is a 10-year-old commoner in medieval England, 1339. Her best friend Marguerite, 12, is a noble. Marguerite complains that nothing interesting ever happens at "poky old Rosebriar." But when something does happen, she's horrified. Has she been betrothed to a man older than her father? Juliet has several questions of her own to ponder: Who is the mysterious nobleman she saw steal Marguerite's kerchief? Can Juliet find the prize falcon her little brother accidentally released? In fact, one of the weaknesses of Anna Kirwan's plot is the lack of a single central conflict. The most suspenseful sequence in the book describes the retrieval of the missing falcon. This is where Juliet shines as a courageous, resourceful heroine. But the book's key issue-both girls' futures-is resolved not by their ingenuity, but through adult intervention. Kirwan peppers the narrative with painstaking details of medieval life. But the big picture is less authentic. Hers is a curiously sanitized fourteenth century, peopled with benevolent nobles, happy peasants, and no sign of vermin or disease. A useful afterword does provide historical background on life in Juliet's time. This is book one in the "Girlhood Journeys" series.
School Library Journal
Gr 3-6These titles offer glimpses of a period in history through a young girl's eyes. Juliet's story, set in England, illustrates the limited number of choices available to a girl in 1339. Juliet exhibits unheard-of bravery and courage, especially when she rescues a trained peregrine accidentally set free by her younger brother. She envies her best friend, who comes from an upper-class family, but soon discovers that even wealth cannot insure happinessMarguerite's father betroths her to an unknown man. Shannon's story, set in San Francisco in 1880, begins with her family's move to America from Ireland. Deeply homesick, Shannon must recognize that America is now her home. While accompanying her father on a trip to a Chinese-owned pet shop, she observes a crying young girl who mysteriously disappears before Shannon can help her. Exhibiting courage and willfulness, Shannon enlists some of her newfound American friends to come to the girl's rescue. Yes, the plots are fairly predictable, but the books do have suspense, likable characters, and, without a doubt, a ready-made audience in readers of the "American Girls" series (Pleasant).Julie Shatterly, York County Public Library, Rock Hill, SC
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Overview
In fourteenth-century England, ten-year-old Juliet must recapture a ...