"Crispin": Junior Fiction Worth Reading

Crispin: The Cross of Lead by Avi

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Crispin is set in the 14th century. It's the story of a boy who is known only as Asta's son, and discovers his true name after a series of sometimes cruel and sometimes strange events. He is pursued on every side for reasons that are not clear to him. In all his 13 years he has never been treated with kindness, but only with contempt or dismissal. In the beginning the language seemed a little stilted to me, and some of it put me off, in that 14th century language isn't that smooth I guess. Before long though, I was wondering what misadventure was going to happen next, and how the story would be resolved. I strove mightily not to read the end before finishing the book, but alas, I can rarely resist that temptation. It never ruins the story for me though, and I just picked up where I left off and read through to the end. I'm thinking this has something to do with my impatient nature, which is sometimes an advantage, and sometimes not. One thing that struck me was the picture of people as souls. Rather than saying "150 people can fill this building" the book would say "150 souls can fill this building. I like that. I think we should have kept that language, because when I think of you as a soul, I value you so much more.
Crispin: At the Edge of the World by Avi

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
The day after I finished Crispin: The Cross of Lead I went to the library to get this book. I wanted to know what was going to happen! I enjoyed this book as much as the first. Crispin has grown in his sense of daring and right and wrong. His loyalty to his friend Bear is strong. His curiosity though, seems to get him into a little bit of trouble. I'm disappointed that the 3rd part of this trilogy is not out yet. Now I'm left hanging until it's published!

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