New and Noteworthy

Editors Note: Marilyn Apseloff has agreed to conduct this new column for the Quarterly. Members are urged to submit short reviews (50-100 words) of recent books, particularly those that should be brought to the attention of other ChLA members. We'll publish as many of these reviews as we have space for.

In the faith that the ability to read more complex literature depends less on one's age than on one's previous experience of literature, we've decided to try to categorize the books we review, not by age ranges, but in terms of the level of literary competence they demand. We suggest the following categories, and we suggest that reviewers not try to be too exact in applying them:

Early Reading: books requiring minimal literary competence, to be read to those new to literature and by those new to reading. This would include most picture books and easy-to-read books.

Middle Reading: books that can be read to those who have had a lot of literature read to them, and by those who have developed basic literary competence, enough to appreciate action and character. Novels like White's Charlotte's Web and Blume's Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing might qualify, as would many teenage romances and problem novels.

Later Reading: books for sophisticated readers who have developed some understanding of the subtleties of fiction and poetry, and some appreciation of qualities like imagery and diction. Novels like Hamilton's M. C. Higgins, the Great and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows would fit into this category.

Advanced Reading: books that are to all intents and purposes indistinguishable from reputable literature for adults. An example might be P.C. Hodgell's God Stalk. Adult reading that might be enjoyed by sophisticated younger readers might also fit into this category.

We want to emphasize that these categories apply only incidentally to the presumed psychological and social maturity of young readers; they are meant to define readability, not maturation.

Those submitting reviews should send them to:

Marilyn Apseloff
Department of English
Kent State University
Kent, Ohio
USA 44242

Marilyn will do her best to acknowledge all submissions.

The Legend of the Bluebonnet: An Old Tale of Texas, retold and illustrated by Tomie dePaola (Putnam's, 1983). A Texas legend about the origin of the blue-bonnet or wild lupine flower is simply but movingly told. She-Who-Is-Alone, a Commanche Indian girl, sacrifices her most treasured possession to save her people from famine. DePaola's full-color paintings glow and capture mood beautifully. An author's note explains the legend and how dePaola became interested in it. Early Reading. Marilyn Apseloff, Kent State University.

The Dream Stealer, by Gregory Maguire (Harper & Row, 1983). When an evil wolf threatens the little town of Miersk, two children, helped by Baba Yaga, succeed in routing him. Maguire has woven fantasy with Russian folklore to create a highly imaginative, witty tale that should delight both young and old. Middle and later reading.

Ratha's Creature, by Clare Bell (Atheneum, 1983). In a tale set 25 million years ago, Ratha, an outcast from her band of highly intelligent felines called the Named, joins her band's enemies, the Unnamed, only to be cast out from that band, too, when she conquers fire. The tale is absorbing, gripping, rich in texture and imagination. Later reading. M. A.

Pelican, by Brian Wildsmith (Pantheon, 1982). A young boy on a farm finds a pelican's egg. Paul must take it to the river and teach it to fish, not an easy task. Eventually the pelican returns to the wild and provides the reader with a bit of a surprise ending. The lavishly-colored illustrations move from full to half pages like John Goodall's, but this is an over-sized book, a feast for the eye. Early reading. M. A.

Prince of the Godborn (Greenwillow, 1982) and The Children of the Wind (1983), by Geraldine Harris. These books, Parts 1 and 2 of a projected "Seven Citadels" quartet, are a rich mosaic of characters and events set in a fantasyland. In the first book, Kerish-Io-Taan...