East

Harcourt

East
Edith Pattou
2003

The Summary
"Rose is the youngest of seven children, meant to replace her dead sister.

"Maybe because of that, she's never really fit in.  She's always felt different, out of place, a restless wanderer in a family of homebodies.  So when an enormous white bear mysteriously shows up and asks her to come away with it--in exchange for health and prosperity for her ailing family--she readily agrees.

"Rose travels on the bears broad back to a distant and empty castle, where she is nightly joined by a mysterious stranger.  In discovering his identity, she loses her heart--and finds her purpose--and realizes her journey has only just begun.

"As familiar and moving as Beauty and the Beast, yet as fresh and original as only the best fantasy can be, East is a bold retelling of the classic tale, 'East of the Sun and West of the Moon,' a sweeping story of grand proportions."

The Good
East is a curious story that pulls directly from the Norwegian fairy tale, "East of the Sun and West of the Moon," but it seems to draw on everything from history, Beauty and the Beast, Greek mythology--and much more.  It's intriguing and fascinating and strangely beautiful.  Truthfully, it's quickly become one of my favorite books for young readers.

I loved the imagery of East, especially when Rose weaves her stories.  Don't get me wrong, I liked reading Neddy's and their father's narratives, because they both offered insight into Rose's personality as a child and gave some perspective to her unexpected journey.  However, I enjoyed Rose's narrative best because she had a way of looking at the world that impressed upon me the beauty of the far north, a way of chronicling sensations and thoughts that allowed me to better envision her adventure.

She loved to see the world, and she loved beautiful things in nature.  She knew how to capture and convey their appearance, their subtle ferocity and their ethereal beauty, which I absolutely loved.  She weaves a beautiful story, literally and figuratively.  Rose creates beautiful works of art in the cloth she makes, the tapestry she weaves, and she has a similar talent for stringing together words to create a narrative that's both evocative and fascinating.

I loved it.

I also loved its originality.  Yes, I realize it pulls directly from "East of the Sun and West of the Moon"; however, Pattou manages to give the story an added depth by crafting complex characters and expanding upon the goblin myth.  Moreover, I liked that she pulled from all sorts of European myths, drawing out aspects of Beauty and the Beast (an originally French fairy tale) and the story of Cupid and Psyche.  It was interesting to see all these different influences come together.

East was a wonderful book.  I was pleased by the pacing, the imagery, the complexity and depth of the story, the variety of characters.  It had all the best qualities in a book, and I loved it almost immediately.

The Bad
Pattou manages to convey a sense of elapsing time.  Many months pass as Rose sets out with the White Bear, and many more months pass as she journeys to a place "east of the sun, west of the moon" to free him from the clutches of the wicked Troll Queen.  It makes for a rather long book, but, at least, the pacing is spot on and the story merely feels like a natural progression of the narrative.

The Ugly
Superstition and curses.

It can only lead to tragedy.