Book-Reviews

Larklight, by Philip Reeve; Bloomsbury Children’s Books: New York, 2006; $16.95 Eleven-year-old Arthur Mumby, his sister Myrtle, and his dad live on an old spaceship called Larklight—until it is attacked by giant spiders. Larklight is an excellent book because you are never bored. Arthur and Myrtle encounter a new adventure at every turn, like being hunted by a huge baby moth or visiting a talking thunderstorm, but it isn’t hard to keep track of what’s going on. In Larklight, there are many beautiful illustrations of scenes and characters, brightening our understanding of what’s going on, but also taking away a little from our ability to imagine it. The cast of characters is memorable enough that you don’t need the illustrations. Larklight is told from the perspective of Arthur Mumby, an eleven-year-old not unlike me. As I read, I felt sympathy for Arthur, who was surrounded by people/creatures older than him, and enchanted by how he dealt with it. He manages to make friends in the foulest of situations. Some of Arthur’s new companions are other than human—such as Ssilissa the lizard being or Nipper the land crab—but I sympathized with them too. They were all very real people—for example Ssilissa is a tomboy but wants to be treated more like a girl—even if they did not seem that way at first. After escaping from their distressed ship, Arthur and Myrtle meet the notorious space pirate, Jack Havock, who is about as old as Myrtle. They take up residence in his ship and work for him as ship cleaners, as his boat, the Sophronia, is very dirty. Soon we learn that Jack and his inhuman crew escaped from the Royal Xenological Institute (which studies aliens) and, since they had no money, became pirates. Jack’s parents “died” of a horrible disease originating on Venus called Venusian Tree Sickness, which turns whoever catches it into a tree. As Arthur and Myrtle’s mom was believed to have been murdered a few years ago and their dad was seemingly killed by the giant spiders, they empathize with Jack, and befriend him. I think it’s interesting that Larklight is set in the 1850s, as most books today are set in the present or in the future. This was especially intriguing because Larklight is about futuristic things, like space travel. In addition, since Larklight is set in the 1850s, the language used in the book is slightly different from modern English. This slightly hinders your ability to understand it, but once you figure out what the words or phrases you don’t understand mean, it is fascinating to compare modern English with that used in an earlier time. My favorite part of the book was when the spiders were defeated. As Myrtle and Jack hug and kiss each other, Arthur writes, “It is one thing to write of giant spiders and man-eating moths, but there are some sights too stomach-turning for even the bravest British boy to contemplate, and the soppy way Jack and my sister ran to cuddle and kiss each other is one of ’em.” That is my favorite part because I identify with Arthur (I don’t like soppy scenes in movies) and also because I enjoy humor (the picture shows Myrtle and Jack hugging and Arthur covering his eyes but peeking out just a little). If you read this book, I hope you like it as much as I did! Elena Chalfin Milin, 11New York, New York

I Am Rembrandt’s Daughter, by Lynn Cullen; Bloomsbury Children’s Books: New York, 2007; $16.95 How many of you know who Shakespeare or Beethoven were? Many of you, probably, but how many of you know who Rembrandt was? I know who Shakespeare and Beethoven were, but I had no idea who Rembrandt was until I read the book, I Am Rembrandt’s Daughter. This book is not told through the eyes of Rembrandt, but through the eyes of his daughter, Cornelia. It is a wonderful book filled with romance and mystery that is based on real characters. Cornelia has always felt ashamed of her father, Rembrandt, or vader as they say in Dutch. She is ashamed because Rembrandt paints with rough brushstrokes that can be seen, unlike the other painters who paint with smooth, hardly visible brushstrokes. It is because of this style of painting that Rembrandt, her brother, Titus, and Cornelia have to move from their big house to a small house. The only reason they survive is because of Neel, the very quiet student who pays to take classes with Rembrandt. Cornelia doesn’t give much attention to boring Neel, and she doesn’t realize how many times she might have broken his heart. Cornelia has always wanted to learn how to paint, but Rembrandt has never offered to teach her. I can relate to this because, like Cornelia, I have always loved to paint, and I am always eager to learn new techniques with the brush. For Cornelia, there has always been a great emotional distance from her vader, Rembrandt, so she tries to find a companion for herself, such as the gold-mustache-man. When he is no longer a suitable companion because he doesn’t come to their house anymore, she finds a sweet boy named Carel. Cornelia falls head-over-heals in love with him. Her life crashes down when unanswered questions about her past become known. Also, what happens when Titus comes down with the plague that kills her mother along with many others? I liked this book not only because it had an outstanding ending, but it also has many important themes and conflicts, such as the difference between rich and poor. Cornelia has been ashamed of her status in her community. Some see her as the poor mad painter’s daughter, and she soon realizes that being rich is not always as good as people think. I also really enjoyed this book because of the different times that the book was set in. One time period occurs in the present when Cornelia is sixteen and the two other time periods occur in her past. The last reason that I liked this book is because it is a bit of a mystery. You want to try and figure out who she was literally—who were her real parents?— and who she was emotionally—is she really just the crazy painter’s daughter or is she more? The author proves that not every relationship is meant to be when you are confronted with a life-and-death situation, and that those who help are the ones you should really appreciate. I was horrified when Carel backed away from Cornelia when she needed him most. But I love who Cornelia chose in the end. This is an emotionally touching book that truly takes you into her past, present, and future. Stephanie Murphy, 12Baltimore, Maryland