The Missing Barbegazi

by H.S. Norup

Overview

Tessa has heard her grandfather’s stories about the fabled barbegazi since she was little. Now, after his death, she’s determined to see the gnome-like creatures for herself and prove her grandfather wasn’t just a confused old man.

When Tessa discovers Gawion, a young male barbegazi, she’s overjoyed. She can finally show everyone that her grandfather was telling the truth. But Gawion needs her help. His sister is missing and may have been captured by humans. As the two form a friendship, Tessa realizes that uncovering the truth about the barbegazi carries great responsibilities—and sometimes things have to remain a secret.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781631633775
Publisher:	North Star Editions
Publication date:	11/12/2019
Pages:	224
Product dimensions:	5.25(w) x 8.00(h) x 0.60(d)
Age Range:	8 - 13 Years

About the Author

Helle Norup grew up on a golf course in Denmark. Before moving to Singapore with her husband and two teenaged sons, she lived in Switzerland, where she worked on marketing strategy in senior management roles. For ten winters, she spent every weekend on skis, while her sons had ski race training. She will relocate back to Europe in 2018. www.hsnorup.com

Editorial Reviews

"A fun and fast-paced adventure filled with heart and hope." —Booklist

From the Publisher

2019-08-12
A young girl finds herself involved with the mythical barbegazi.

Eleven-year-old Tessa lives in a village in Austria and competes on an alpine ski racing team, but she is currently saddened over the ill health of her grandmother and the recent death of her grandfather. Before he died, Opa told her about the mythical, thought-to-be-extinct barbegazi—mountain elves—and she is determined to see one. When Tessa does encounter a barbegazi named Gawion, she eventually learns that Gawion's sister has been abducted, and Tessa determines to help. The thin, formulaic plot gets no support from its underdeveloped, inconsistent characters. Protagonist Tessa is sad about Oma's frailty, but there's no elaboration of their relationship, and for a ski racer, Tessa is extraordinarily uncompetitive. Plot developments are decidedly convenient: Adults are absent on flimsy pretexts, and Gawion speaks Tessa's language (and all others, including Dog). Important plot points are mentioned early and feel off-the-cuff, with no subsequent prompts, guaranteeing that readers will be confused later on. The subplot of what went wrong with a formerly close friendship is unexplained in both its advent and resolution. The backstory of the barbegazi overexplains its connection to the present story, and the barbegazi family interactions are too much like human parents and teenagers to be innovative. The cast seems to be all white.

A potentially interesting setting is undermined by a thin plot and underdeveloped characters. (Fantasy. 8-12)

Kirkus Reviews