Forest Born

7/2/18 review, 4.5 stars
Like all the other books in this series, this book was a different experience for me the second time through. I don't connect with the characters on quite the level I did when I was younger, but that's okay—that just means I've overcome my adolescent fears, right? This is still a great series, with a unique magic system and strong, relatable female characters. I'll always appreciate that, and it'll probably keep me coming back to this series when I need a palate cleanser. This book still holds a special place in my heart because of how much of myself I see in Rin, and it's a very satisfying conclusion to the series.

6/30/12 review, 5 stars
Unlike the previous Bayern books, River Secrets isn't about a young show more character mastering his or her powers, whether that power be controlling the wind or spying. It doesn't attempt to create a female role model for young girls. There is no romance, and the plot isn't as exciting as the other books. This book is all about learning who you are.

Of all the Bayern characters, I think I relate to Rinn the most. I know what it feels like to be surrounded by people that love and need you, yet feel so alone. I know what it feels like to be afraid to speak up, to be seen and heard. I understand the need to go away to "find myself" but to still not outgrow home. Rinn may seem weak when stacked up against characters like Isi, Enna, and Dasha, and all the other female protagonists in YA lit like Katniss Everdeen and Hermione Granger, but she felt very real to me, and underneath her insecurities lies a quiet strength.

I have always been fascinated by words, which is an important theme in this novel. Words can have a more damaging effect that fire. At the end of the novel we see Geric recovering from his fire wounds, but Isi is still troubled by the things Selia said to her. Words can be a terrible force for evil, but as Rin eventually learns, they can do more good than grand gestures and awesome powers.

My favorite theme of this novel, though, is that you can discover who you are at home; you don't have to travel to some exciting, strange place. Isi and Enna found themselves after leaving home, but Rin was able to go home to find herself after adventuring for many weeks. Razo spends the entire novel trying to come up with a new nick name for Rin, but in the end he sticks with her original nickname, Rinna-girl. Rin was Forest Born all along, even if she lost track of that for awhile. show less

{Fourth of 4: [Books of Bayern] series. YA, fantasy} (2009)

This book could be read as a stand-alone since each book in the series is an individual story but it helps to have read the previous books as there are recurring characters. This time the story is about Rinna, younger sister of Razo, and it follows her childhood growing up in the Forest which lies between the capital cities of the countries of Kildenree and Bayern.

After Razo and all his older brothers, Ma finally has her longed for girl and everyone knows she loves Rinna best. Rin grows up with a heap of nieces and nephews and her favourite brother Razo, who teaches her to climb trees. But when Razo goes off to the city and has adventures, Rin discovers she has a power in her show more but using it troubles her conscience. She doesn’t want to lose Ma’s love so she does her best to suppress the power and be as good as her Ma. And then when she’s fifteen, Rin goes to the city to join Razo and his friends in the palace with the royal family Anidori, Gerric and the Little Prince Tusken and have adventures of her own with the ‘fire-sisters’ who can control the elements.

I really like the way Hale describes the familial love and affection especially between Rin and her Ma and between Rin and Razo and the way Ma and Rin are central to their family, the Agget-kin.

He spent winter nights longing for a younger sibling, someone he could call runt, someone he could push and pinch.
Ma was longing too, but for a girl to share thoughts with, a daughter cut and sewn from her own soul.
When Razo was almost five, he and Ma both got their wish. The baby girl was born on a night so hot the wind panted and the summer moon blazed like the sun.
‘Rinna,’ Ma named her.
‘A girl,’ said the father.
‘Rinna-girl,’ said Razo, peering over the side of the cot.
The baby blinked huge dark eyes and opened her mouth into a tiny circle. All desire to push and pinch hushed right out of Razo.
He bent closer to her year and whispered, ‘I’m going to teach you to climb trees.’

I like the camaraderie and banter between the characters and the thread woven through the story of Enna’s wedding, delayed because Bayern is once more at war with only Isi and her friends to protect it.

4 stars show less

All her life, Rin has unquestioningly helped her Ma out with the many chores required of her to take care of her large family in the Forest. Rin has always found comfort within the trees, but when the trees seem to turn against her, Rin goes with her older brother, Razo, into the city, hoping to put an end to the unsettled feeling within her.

However, Rin soon finds herself in the midst of a mysterious political situation as she accompanies the “Fire Sisters”—Isi, Enna, and Dasha—to a neighboring country following the reports of strange magical occurrences. Little does Rin know that it may be up to her and her as-yet-unrealized abilities to save the day for them all…

FOREST BORN is a welcome return to the beloved world of Bayern show more as Shannon Hale shows again why she is one of the decade’s top YA fantasy writers. Featuring ever-lush writing, wonderful characters, and heartwarming character development, be prepared to step into Bayern once again!

With her timidity and extreme lack of self-esteem, Rin is a far cry from the other Bayern characters. However, Rin is never overshadowed by the other, more talkative, and more assertive characters, mostly because we are so invested in Rin’s well-being and watch with happiness as she grows into understanding herself. Rin’s quietness—not to mention her ability—makes her a careful and meticulous observer of people, and even when previous Bayern characters like Enna seem one-dimensional to the point of being caricatures of their former selves, Rin is reliably steady in her thought process and contemplation.

The Bayern fan within me really appreciated how FOREST BORN discusses an aspect of the world that has appeared in her previous books but has not been fully addressed until now. With the believable and shivers-inducing return of an old nemesis, the Bayern books seem to return full circle, and it delights me that Rin—gentle, unassuming Rin—is the one who wraps up the mystery surrounding this very curious recurring issue. To be more specific would be to spoil the goods for you, so fans of the Bayern books should definitely read this to better understand what I’m talking about.

Perhaps the best part of Hale’s novel is, of course, the writing. It’s gorgeous without losing sight of the plot and themes; poetic without letting the language direct the story. Hale’s language makes the world of Bayern a romantically mysterious place despite the truly malevolent terrors within, and it’s a world we want to sink into for a whole day’s worth of reading.

FOREST BORN may be the highly satisfying fourth book in Hale’s Books of Bayern series, but I think I am not alone when I say that I would not be loath to more books in the series. Shannon Hale proves once again that her writing abilities make sure that previously done worlds never get stale, and that you can always write a beautiful and memorable story out of old ideas. show less

Shannon Hale's Bayern books have gotten better and better with each instalment. Forest Born has been my favourite so far, well deserving a 4 1/2 star rating. I love the main character, Rinna. She is such a well-developed character, with so many attributes that readers can relate to. And the story of her journey to find herself was written with such vividness and compassion. I think this is the last of the Bayern books, which is disappointing as the world and characters have really come alive for me, and I'm going to miss them. However, she does have quite a few books other under her belt, so I'm looking forward to exploring them.

I have mixed feelings. On the one hand, I did stay up past 1 AM on a Sunday night to finish reading this. On the other, I never jived with Rin that way I did with the other, previously introduced, characters. Also bringing back Selia just seemed very contrived and a shoe-horned in plot element.

I am very sad to hear that Shannon Hale intends this to be the last book in the beloved Bayern series. Though she does claim it isn’t definite (after all, The Goose Girl was intended to be a stand alone book, and here we are with a four book series), she seems fairly confident. I will miss you Bayern. If you haven’t read any of this series, you really don’t know what you’re missing. Shannon Hale’s writing is unparalleled in my mind. Her descriptions are so delicate, and yet powerful all the same. Her characters come alive in your mind, and their stories stay with you forever. They have such great messages for young readers about overcoming obstacles, being true to yourself, gaining self-confidence, and more, as well as such show more beautiful and entertaining stories underneath.

In Forest Born, we see Razo’s little sister take the
stage, along with the entire cast of the first three books, in an exciting
adventure through the lands of Bayern and Kel. I don’t want to give away too
much of the plot, so I’ll leave my summary at that. Read it for yourself, you
won’t regret it. Rin's story is told flawlessly as ever, and having all of the original characters come together for one last book was a great way to end a fantastic series. Enna Burning and River Secrets held a more specific focus on Enna and Razo, and though Forest Born is Rin's story, everyone holds a substantial part.

The only negative thing I would have to say about this
book is I cannot stand the cover art. I probably wouldn’t hate it so much if
the other books in the series hadn’t had such unusually beautiful cover art,
but they do, and the changes they’ve made to the series is just terrible. I
first picked up The Goose Girl because I thought the cover was so perfect. It
is probably one of my favourite cover illustrations. I can’t stand the new art,
and I don’t know what the publishing company was thinking. Don’t let that stop
you from reading it, however =]

Though I am very sad to let Bayern go, Shannon Hale did a wonderful job of closing the series. show less

The part I found most interesting about this tale was the contrast of two women with the same power but the different attitudes they had towards their gift and the people they could control. Rin is frightened, but her experiences with other strong women who have learned to use their gifts without becoming evil helps her begin to do the same.