by Donna | Nov 24, 2009 | Fiction
Rating: Lavinia, by Ursula K. Le Guin. Mariner Books (2009), 284 pages. Rome has not yet been founded; it doesn’t even have a name but is referred to at times as the village of Seven Hills, where only a few farmers and shepherds live. To the southwest, on...
by Donna | Nov 12, 2009 | Fiction
(This review first appeared in May 2003) Rating: Zel, by Donna Jo Napoli. Puffin Books (1996), 234 pages. This young adult retelling of the classic fairy tale Rapunzel follows the familiar storyline—a witch, a tower, a rope of hair, impassioned jealousy, a...
by Donna | Oct 31, 2009 | Fiction
Rating: People of the Book, by Geraldine Brooks. Penguin Books (2008), 386 pages. Geraldine Brooks is an exceptional writer of nonfiction (Nine Parts of Desire was shortlisted for a Gustine in 2008) and fiction set in the past (Year of Wonders, set during...