β Scribed by Shannon Hale
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
Grade 7β11βIn her fourth fantasy about the land of Bayern, Hale has created a strong stand-alone companion to The Goose Girl (2003), Enna Burning (2004), and River Secrets (2006, all Bloomsbury). Forest Born centers on Razo's sister, Rin, and her special abilities. The struggle that she goes through as she begins to recognize her talent of persuasion and her elemental connection to the forest brings the typical fantasy themes of good vs. evil to a place that makes them very personal. Rin discovered as a child that her words could be powerful. But that power left her feeling confused and wrong. Since that time, the wrongness has curled up like a snake inside her, making her doubt whether she can ever find peace. Rin encounters Isi, Enna, and Dasha from the previous Bayern stories and through them she finds hope; perhaps what makes her different could be a blessing, if she is able to find balance in her gifts. Lurking throughout the story is the tumultuous backdrop of diplomatic negotiations and threats of war. Everything finally comes to a head when Isi's nemesis from Goose Girl returns and kidnaps her son. All four women need to work together to defeat Selia, who has been completely corrupted and consumed by her people-speaking power of persuasion. Fans of the earlier titles as well as admirers of the genre will find Rin's journey a compelling read.β Genevieve Gallagher, Buford Middle School, Charlottesville, VA END
Hale adds a fourth entry to her Books of Bayern series with this exciting, stand-alone title focused on teenaged Rin, who follows her brother, Razo, from their forest home to the cityβs royal court. Characters from the seriesβ previous titles all hold major roles in the ensuing adventures in which Rin joins a battle to protect Bayern from evil forces. As usual, Haleβs vivid, poetic language; romantic and action-filled plot twists; and friendship themes create a rich, satisfying read. But itβs Rinβs sensitively drawn struggle to recognize and accept her own power that will stay with readers most. Grades 7-10. --Gillian Engberg
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### From School Library Journal Grade 711In her fourth fantasy about the land of Bayern, Hale has created a strong stand-alone companion to *The Goose Girl* (2003), *Enna Burning* (2004), and *River Secrets* (2006, all Bloomsbury). *Forest Born* centers on Razo's sister, Rin, and her special abilit
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