∎ Libro Plain Kate Erin Bow Books

Plain Kate Erin Bow Books

Download As PDF : Plain Kate Erin Bow Books

Plain Kate Erin Bow Books

Plain Kate is one of the best books that I've read in a long time. The fact the novel is a debut book by a new author and a YA to boot just qualifies it as the best of those as well.

Erin Bow has a natural narrative voice and I fell in love with her character Plain Kate from the first page. The setting is eerie and familiar, and the story is based on Russian folktales.

Kate's mother died in childbirth and her father, an impoverished woodcutter, raised her and taught her his craft. Unfortunately, he too died and left Kate alone in the world without anyone to care for her. This is the way a lot of YA books begin, with children who are orphaned that have to make their way in the world, but Bow really brings the readers into Kate's dire straits and makes it a tactile experience for them. Some readers may think that the story is a tad slow at this point, but the pages just mire the character in the dismal future she has.

Kate breaks the law in order to survive. Instead of stealing things as several other orphan children do, she takes on illegal carving jobs. Since she isn't backed by the local woodcarvers' guild, she's not supposed to do any work of that kind. But she has no way of feeding herself if she doesn't. To her credit, and her dismay, her craft draws clients to her, but it also draws the attention of Guild members.

Her life seems a little brighter when she finds three kittens and raises them, often taking away from herself to care for them. One of them ends up staying with her, and Taggle - the cat - becomes one of the greatest animal companions I've ever read about, and I grew up on Andre Norton's Beastmaster books.

Kate's luck changes when she meets a fiddler who claims he can grant her heart's desire if she will only give him her shadow. The magic creeps into this book rather than coming in at a gallop. It's slow and eerie, and kind of creepy as Kate agrees to the bargain and slowly watches her shadow fade away. The situation is made even worse because the fiddler, Linay, forces her into the trade agreement by making her seem like a witch. That ends up driving her away from the small town that is all she has ever known. That turning point was skillfully delivered. You can see it coming and watch Kate avoid it for a time, but in the end she's given no choice.

Her heart's desire, as it turns out, is for Taggle to speak. And once he does, it's hard for him to keep his mouth shut. That gets Kate into more trouble and she ends up have to travel with a group of Roamers (gypsies) to another town where she isn't known.

The book settles comfortably into a coming of age tale filled with action and dark magic and betrayal. Bow slips in all the past history of her characters and what's really going on in nice doses that allows the reader to see what's coming. And the scenes with the Rusalka (ghost, demon) are downright frightening.

Can't wait to see this author's next book.


Tags : Amazon.com: Plain Kate (9780545166645): Erin Bow: Books,Erin Bow,Plain Kate,Arthur A. Levine Books,0545166640,Fantasy - General,Cats,Cats;Fiction.,Fantasy,Fantasy.,Human-animal relationships,Magic,Orphans,Witchcraft,Wood carving,Wood carving;Fiction.,Children: Young Adult (Gr. 7-9),Fantasy & Magic,Fiction,JUVENILE FICTION Action & Adventure General,JUVENILE FICTION Animals Cats,JUVENILE FICTION Fantasy & Magic,Science fiction (Children's Teenage),YOUNG ADULT FICTION,YOUNG ADULT FICTION Fantasy General

Plain Kate Erin Bow Books Reviews

To be honest, I'm not even sure how this book came into my hands. I can only say that I'm glad it did. I enjoyed this book a lot.

It tells the story of a young orphaned girl, Plain Kate, who has tremendous skills as a wood carver. Because of this, she is suspected of being a witch. Though she is not, she runs away from her home town when the suspicions make her life dangerous, and ends up being tangled in a powerful spell, a spell which she has to break.

Every novelist who creates a world in which magic is real takes risks. It is difficult to create a believable, truthful world of magic. But the world Ms. Bow creates has a solidity that comes from its grounding in what is, essentially, the European Dark Ages. And it has believability because using magic has a cost. Here, when a witch casts a spell, something must be given for the magic to be received. It's a clever, and truthful, conceit.

Of course, when I say I liked this novel, I mean that it moved me. Never to laughter. Sometimes to hope. Mostly, to tears. This is a brutal story, but not of violence on the order of The Hunger Games. Rather, it is the brutality of real life--loss, fear, pain, revenge--couched in a story of magical realism. I recommend it highly.
PLAIN KATE was marketed as a children/YA book, and judging by the cover, I thought it would be a fun and light coming-of-age type book. Well, it was very good and it's a coming-of-age book of sorts, but it's quite dark and not exactly "fun". I'm not sure I'd market it for kids.

Plain Kate lives and works with her father, a woodcarver. However, her life is dramatically altered when her father dies of the plague. Not only does she have nowhere to go, but there are rumours spreading that she is a witch. Friendless and alone, she tries to find a home among the gypsies (who are themselves shunned), but her vulnerability has caught the eye of a magician with a dark purpose.

The main story is rather melancholy, but the writing is intensely evocative and Bow takes you on quite a journey through a very simple tale. The characters are lovely, especially Taggle the talking cat - one of my favourite characters of all time. The ending is poignant on multiple levels.

Telling you any more would spoil the book, so I'll just say that it's highly recommended!
Plain Kate is one of the best books that I've read in a long time. The fact the novel is a debut book by a new author and a YA to boot just qualifies it as the best of those as well.

Erin Bow has a natural narrative voice and I fell in love with her character Plain Kate from the first page. The setting is eerie and familiar, and the story is based on Russian folktales.

Kate's mother died in childbirth and her father, an impoverished woodcutter, raised her and taught her his craft. Unfortunately, he too died and left Kate alone in the world without anyone to care for her. This is the way a lot of YA books begin, with children who are orphaned that have to make their way in the world, but Bow really brings the readers into Kate's dire straits and makes it a tactile experience for them. Some readers may think that the story is a tad slow at this point, but the pages just mire the character in the dismal future she has.

Kate breaks the law in order to survive. Instead of stealing things as several other orphan children do, she takes on illegal carving jobs. Since she isn't backed by the local woodcarvers' guild, she's not supposed to do any work of that kind. But she has no way of feeding herself if she doesn't. To her credit, and her dismay, her craft draws clients to her, but it also draws the attention of Guild members.

Her life seems a little brighter when she finds three kittens and raises them, often taking away from herself to care for them. One of them ends up staying with her, and Taggle - the cat - becomes one of the greatest animal companions I've ever read about, and I grew up on Andre Norton's Beastmaster books.

Kate's luck changes when she meets a fiddler who claims he can grant her heart's desire if she will only give him her shadow. The magic creeps into this book rather than coming in at a gallop. It's slow and eerie, and kind of creepy as Kate agrees to the bargain and slowly watches her shadow fade away. The situation is made even worse because the fiddler, Linay, forces her into the trade agreement by making her seem like a witch. That ends up driving her away from the small town that is all she has ever known. That turning point was skillfully delivered. You can see it coming and watch Kate avoid it for a time, but in the end she's given no choice.

Her heart's desire, as it turns out, is for Taggle to speak. And once he does, it's hard for him to keep his mouth shut. That gets Kate into more trouble and she ends up have to travel with a group of Roamers (gypsies) to another town where she isn't known.

The book settles comfortably into a coming of age tale filled with action and dark magic and betrayal. Bow slips in all the past history of her characters and what's really going on in nice doses that allows the reader to see what's coming. And the scenes with the Rusalka (ghost, demon) are downright frightening.

Can't wait to see this author's next book.