Books In Brief: Thornspell

Reviewer: Michele

The name of the book being recommended: Thornspell by Helen Lowe

Please give us five reasons why this book is awesome:
1. A retelling of the Sleeping Beauty folktale from the prince's point of view, combined with the Parsifal story from the King Arthur legends? Yes, please!
2. Strong characters, including the women and girls (which is as it should be).
3. The hero, Prince Sigismund, has a super-cool magical sword named Quickthorn.
4. Through their own experience, and also through the wisdom of the trusted mentors in their lives, the characters grow and change during the course of the story. Wisdom sample: his trainer Balisan tells Sigismund, "Frustration, anger, fear--they are all distractions that will kill you if you hold onto them, more deadly by far than any enemy."
5. This book has it all: adventure, fantasy, shape-shifting, evil faeries, visions, dragons, battles, romance, complex and colorful language, great storytelling.

How can I find this book in the library? It can be found in juvenile fiction under j LOW. Recommended for grades 5+ as a read-alone, grades 3+ as a read-aloud.