12+ Rafe Martin, the author of this mythical and heroic tale, received a Storytelling World Award in 2004. A look at his website reveals his enormous love of traditional tales and how authors today can keep these stories alive and send them out to a new generation of readers. It is no surprise then, that he should write a novel based on the Brothers Grimm fairytale “The Six Swans”.
Starting where the fairytale ends, it quickly recounts the events of the tale about six brothers turned into swans by their enchantress step-mother. In order to break the spell, their sister must spend six years making shirts of the roughest and cruelest of materials, at the end of which her swan brothers will visit her so she can give each one the shirt she has painstakingly made. This she does except the left sleeve of one shirt and when the time comes, all brothers are restored to their human form, expect the left arm of her younger brother, which remains a swan wing. Interestingly, the author points out in an interview that “the left side is the heart side; the side of spontaneity and intuition”. His knowledge of such things offers much to the overall storytelling of the novel. http://www.recess.ufl.edu/transcripts/2005/1213.shtml (online audio interview using RealPlayer)
Written in the third person narrative, the author is able to capture the many different voices of the unique characters that populate the book, including horses. Ardwin, the winged prince, is our central character, show more an adolescent who is conflicted and uneasy about his life and where he fits in the scheme of things. When his father the king proposes to marry him off to the daughter of a neighboring king, who wants ownership of the wing, Ardwin decides it is time to take that journey he has always planned; his journey of discovery of what life has in store for him and where his rightful place may be. Thus this book is also a coming-of-age story that has so much relevance to contemporary readers. It is through this perilous journey and his encounters with many different people and animals that Ardwin learns self-acceptance. He learns that the wing is not a curse but a blessing and by loving himself, is then able to truly love another.
Here is the central message of the book. As the author states in his website "We all have a wing. Some hide theirs to fit in. Some cut theirs off to appear like everyone else. And some learn to live fully with their wing, just as they are, and, in fully accepting themselves and their own unique gifts, heal not only themselves, but the kingdom."
http://www.rafemartin.com/books.htm
The characters have multilayered personalities and we understand their motives and desires. The style of writing is poetic and lyrical, respecting the genre it is representing and there is enough lightheartedness sprinkled throughout to create a good balance. Young male readers will enjoy the fight scenes and all readers will be simply carried away on a fantastical journey. There is much to admire and events that stir the heart. For the reader, this book has it all. Adventure, good and evil, battles, friendship, courage, death, wizards, robots, belonging, enchanted animals and romance. After all, the novel was born from a fairytale and most fairytales have a happy ending. This is no exception, giving the reader a satisfying ending. show less
Starting where the fairytale ends, it quickly recounts the events of the tale about six brothers turned into swans by their enchantress step-mother. In order to break the spell, their sister must spend six years making shirts of the roughest and cruelest of materials, at the end of which her swan brothers will visit her so she can give each one the shirt she has painstakingly made. This she does except the left sleeve of one shirt and when the time comes, all brothers are restored to their human form, expect the left arm of her younger brother, which remains a swan wing. Interestingly, the author points out in an interview that “the left side is the heart side; the side of spontaneity and intuition”. His knowledge of such things offers much to the overall storytelling of the novel. http://www.recess.ufl.edu/transcripts/2005/1213.shtml (online audio interview using RealPlayer)
Written in the third person narrative, the author is able to capture the many different voices of the unique characters that populate the book, including horses. Ardwin, the winged prince, is our central character, show more an adolescent who is conflicted and uneasy about his life and where he fits in the scheme of things. When his father the king proposes to marry him off to the daughter of a neighboring king, who wants ownership of the wing, Ardwin decides it is time to take that journey he has always planned; his journey of discovery of what life has in store for him and where his rightful place may be. Thus this book is also a coming-of-age story that has so much relevance to contemporary readers. It is through this perilous journey and his encounters with many different people and animals that Ardwin learns self-acceptance. He learns that the wing is not a curse but a blessing and by loving himself, is then able to truly love another.
Here is the central message of the book. As the author states in his website "We all have a wing. Some hide theirs to fit in. Some cut theirs off to appear like everyone else. And some learn to live fully with their wing, just as they are, and, in fully accepting themselves and their own unique gifts, heal not only themselves, but the kingdom."
http://www.rafemartin.com/books.htm
The characters have multilayered personalities and we understand their motives and desires. The style of writing is poetic and lyrical, respecting the genre it is representing and there is enough lightheartedness sprinkled throughout to create a good balance. Young male readers will enjoy the fight scenes and all readers will be simply carried away on a fantastical journey. There is much to admire and events that stir the heart. For the reader, this book has it all. Adventure, good and evil, battles, friendship, courage, death, wizards, robots, belonging, enchanted animals and romance. After all, the novel was born from a fairytale and most fairytales have a happy ending. This is no exception, giving the reader a satisfying ending. show less