Victory

[I wrote this review in 2010]

**First-rate children's historical fiction**

It's heartening to see Susan Cooper return to prime form with this first-rate story of a boy's life aboard HMS Victory in Nelson's time. Her writing is excellent - fluent and engaging, with just the right amount of words to tell the story at a good pace. The historical elements are well-researched and she brings life aboard the ship vividly to life, skilfully linking present and past, making accessible to young readers a significant battle of modern naval history, The Battle of Trafalgar.

Told in two parts, we simultaneously have the story of Molly, a young girl in the present day uprooted to Connecticut from her friends, grandparents and everything she's ever known show more in London when her mum re-marries an American; and we have the story of Sam, a young boy about the same age unwillingly press-ganged into serving aboard the HMS Victory in about 1803, a couple of years before The Battle of Trafalgar. The lost and displaced Molly feels a connection to this boy Sam aboard the Victory, and sets her mind to finding out more about this famous ship.

Susan Cooper draws some well-thought-out characters to go alongside the likable Sam and Molly and writes with feeling and sensitivity about the themes of loss and loneliness, and re-adjustment for children. Highly recommended for ages 8+ - ***** 5 stars. show less

Historical / modern fiction with a hint of time slip to it. I found both the historical and the modern threads of the story absorbing. The link between them is slightly tenuous, given that one is living the experience of the British navy, and the other is reading about it, but that actually works well. Some slightly contrived details, and some of those overly coincidental details that actually are the way that life works.

Lots of thematic parallels between the two sections, of young teens being somewhere they weren't expecting and having to adjust. Sam's (historical) story is the more physically challenging, Molly's (modern) much more emotionally challenging -- or at least that was the way that i read it.

Victory by Susan Cooper is a children’s book and one that my grandson wanted me to read. He read it a couple of years ago in school in it obviously made an impression on him. This is an interesting story that jumps in time from present day to 1805 and the months leading up to the Battle of Trafalgar. The main characters are two children, English Molly trying to overcome homesickness and get used to living in America, and Sam, a young boy who is pressed into naval service and becomes a powder monkey aboard Nelson’s flagship, the HMS Victory.

This isn’t a time travel book, the two children are linked by the fact that Molly purchases a older book, a biography of Nelson and finds an envelope glued under the cover. Inside this envelope show more is a piece of the flag that flew from the Victory. The story moves quickly, alternating between the two children and I confess I found Sam’s story far more interesting, as, I suspect did my grandson. The author’s descriptions of life aboard this navy vessel and the actual battle were well done. That Molly and Sam have another connection becomes clear at the end of the book, and this connection helps Molly to realize that wherever her family is, that will always be home for her.

Victory is meant for children around the ages of eleven or twelve and so as an adult reader it was too simplified for true enjoyment. I did appreciate both it’s message and how it was delivered in an adventure story. I also liked that the main characters were both male and female and can see this fact, along with it’s lesson in history, would make this a good book for the classroom. show less

http://tinyurl.com/me6dq3
In 1805, 13 year old Sam Robbins and his Uncle Charlies are kidnapped and forced to join the English Navy on the prized and renown HMS Victory with Vice-Admiral Lord Nelson (whose statue graces Trafalgar Square in England). 200 years into the future, young Molly Jennings is trying to adapt to her new home in America, having left England once her mother remarried, but suffers bouts of homesickness. After coming into possession of a biography on Admiral Nelson at a bookstore, Molly’s life begins to change when she comes across a secret treasure buried deep in the book’s spine that links the two lives together.

Based on real people from England’s past, Newberry award winning author Susan Cooper has devised a show more wonderful time-shifting tale of adventure, youth, danger and loyalty. Chapters alternate between Sam’s point of view, and then third person for Molly’s chapters. It takes a while to really get to the link between the two characters. At first, Molly is hauntingly drawn to the book, keeping its treasure a secret from everyone except her stepbrother Russell.

I adored the chapters about Sam Robbins and the HMS Victory. At times I wished the entire book was about him and his experiences aboard such a well-known and valued piece of English naval history. The Molly chapters were usually shorter than Sam’s chapters, but her scenes were relevant in putting together their connection through time. Cooper also includes a glossary at the end for all the naval terminology used throughout the book. Her writing is sharp, clear and the story is well paced. The book was never boring, and even the secondary characters were as coloring and entertaining as the main.

This book is listed as Juvenile Historical Fiction. I would recommend it for both boys and girls about 10-13 years old. Boys will like it for the sea adventure, sailor talk and supernatural elements, girls will appreciate Molly’s character and probably end up with small crushes on Sam Robbins. show less

This is the first Susan Cooper book that I have personally read. My children have read her Boggart series and King of Shadows. I acquired this book at a public library sale and am saddened to think that it was withdrawn from the library shelves. I was caught up in the somewhat mystery, time-shifting element of this story. I believe one of the great benefits of historical fiction is to entice us to want to learn more about a specific event or time period in history that seemed either boring or unimportant to us, because we had no personal connection to it. I found Victory did that for me. It gave me a personal connection to Vice-Admiral Lord Nelson and hopefully in the near future I will pull my Landmark book off the shelf and read more show more about the Battle of Trafalgar.

This book also deals with love and loss of family members, remarriage and sibling conflicts. I do not recall when I read the book, finding anything objectionable to how this was dealt with. I believe this book could be a conversation starter, if need be, for helping a young person through grief and loss. show less

The first passages describing Nelson's funeral drew me in - they were gorgeous - and I was looking forward to a 4 or 5 star read. Sadly, the rest of the book didn't really live up to the promise of those first few pages.

I found the sections focussing on Sam's experiences on board HMS Victory to be the most compelling, while Molly's story was comparatively flat and uninteresting. Her character was reasonably rounded but the rest of her family struck me as being so many cardboard cut-outs.

Susan Cooper's reputation as the author of The Dark is Rising series led me to expect something other than what turned out to be effectively a fictionalised history book for kids, with very little made of the "supernatural" aspect. I think I would have show more preferred a book without the connection across the centuries sub-plot and just an exciting and moving story from Sam's point of view.

Oh well. show less

Molly is an English girl starting a new life in modern day America. Sam is an 11 year old country boy who is pressed into service upon HMS Victory at the turn of the 19th century. Two threads of a story that drift together when Molly finds a very special book in a second hand bookshop one wet day.

In the course of the book the reader is transported back to the Battle of Trafalgar. An enjoyable read with plenty of good historical detail and a mystery to resolve itself.

I am so glad that Susan Cooper is writing books again. I think I have read everything she has written, and every book is enjoyable and of a high standard. This book is no exception, and this is as ever a good young adult book.

But, in fact, when reading into this period of show more history, I would rater [Powder Monkey] by Paul Dowswell a little more highly. There is even more historical detail in that book, and the story was every bit as good. If you want to read just one book about life aboard a ship in Nelson's day, read "Powder Monkey". But if you want to read a very good story, this one is worth it too. show less