Synopses & Reviews
Winner of the 2014 Monica Hughes Award for Science Fiction and Fantasy, from the author of PLAIN KATE
At the very edge of the world live the Shadowed People. And with them live the dead.
There, in the village of Westmost, Otter is born to power. She is the proud daughter of Willow, the greatest binder of the dead in generations. It will be Otter’s job someday to tie the knots of the ward, the only thing that keeps the living safe.
Kestrel is training to be a ranger, one of the brave women who venture into the forest to gather whatever the Shadowed People can’t live without and to fight off whatever dark threat might slip through the ward’s defenses.
And Cricket wants to be a storyteller -- already he shows the knack, the ear -- and already he knows dangerous secrets.
But something is very wrong at the edge of the world. Willow’s power seems to be turning inside out. The ward is in danger of falling. And lurking in the shadows, hungry, is a White Hand, the most dangerous of the dead, whose very touch means madness, and worse.
Suspenseful, eerie, and beautifully imagined.
Review
Praise for PLAIN KATE
Winner of the TD Canadian Children's Literature Award
YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults
"Plain Kate, [Bow's] first young adult novel, demonstrates a mature, haunting artistry... The plot unfolds with the swiftness and dramatic urgency of an adventure tale, yet each event has a measured gravity.... [An] outstanding novel." -- NEW YORK TIMES
"Bow seamlessly integrates ironic humor and existential distance, keeping readers, like Kate, quietly convinced that where there's life, there's hope. This sprawling landscape, dotted with superstitious villages and noble but equally uninformed gypsies, is superbly developed.... [U]nder the fantasy elements lies an effective and moving coming-of-age novel." -- BULLETIN OF THE CENTER FOR CHILDREN'S BOOKS, starred review
"[S]tunning debut fantasy." -- HORN BOOK
"If I were in charge of the Printz Awards, I would have found my winner this weekend.... What a mysterious, horrifying, sweet, sad, romantic, haunting, funny book, filled with poetry and magic. Really, all of those things... It's wonderful. If like me you are not a fantasy fan, you might like it anyway. And if you are, you will be mad for it." -- Karen Cushman, Newbery Medalist
"Finished PLAIN KATE by Erin Bow, am staggered by it. Beautiful in every way: gorgeous writing, imagination, storytelling, heart, heartbreak." -- Laini Taylor, author of LIPS TOUCH
Review
"Grief beats at the heart of adolescence in this fantasy version of North America.
For the free women of the forest, death is a complex, dangerous thing: The dead are bound, and some rise again as White Hands, whose touch brings madness and transformation. Bow’s lyrical writing, which beats like the storyteller’s drum Cricket and, later, Orca wield, tells a story both specific and timeless. The conflict between tradition and change, the tensions between mothers and daughters, and the journey west (itself both physical and metaphorical) all play a role. Within the grand thematic scope is a simpler story, reminiscent of the timeless hero’s journey: Otter, the binder’s daughter, untrained and called upon to face great threats, must use the tools of tradition and forbidden knowledge (a secret story echoes throughout the novel) to remake the world. Add to that epic scope two love stories, a genuine portrait of friendship, a nuanced exploration of loss and letting go, and a fine tracery of humor as well as plenty of tears, and you have a winner.A lovely gem, dark and quiet as the dead but glimmering with life as well. Not to be missed. " - Kirkus reviews
Review
The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books Starred ReviewAt the edge of Bow’s fantasy world stands Westmost, a small village of women who bind the souls of the dead and secure the knots of the ward to protect the living from the voracious White Hands, shadowy creatures whose mark means certain death. As the daughter of the most powerful binder in generations, Otter is next in line to inherit the power and responsibility of binding the dead, but one awful night changes all that when she’s cast out by her mother. Otter finds solace with her friends, Kestrel, a ranger, and Cricket, an apprentice storyteller, until it becomes clear that her mother’s power is no longer protecting Westmost but threatening it. As in her previous work, Plain Kate (BCCB 2/10), Bow displays the patient, rhythmic pace of a seasoned storyteller, and the spare elegance of her prose manages to inspire both chills and tears as the tale requires. Ruled by tradition and overshadowed by death, the snowed-in village of Westmost makes an evocative setting for three teens to wrestle with their fate, and the details of the vaguely North American, pre-industrial world are immersive without being overwhelming. The heart of this story, however, lies with Otter and her friends and their efforts to come to terms with the harsh realities of adulthood, the necessity of grief and mourning, and their realization that sometimes love does not translate into salvation. Dark but ultimately hopeful, this quiet fantasy will leave its mark on readers and have them contemplating shadows in a whole new way.
Review
Praise for SORROW'S KNOT
A KIRKUS Best Book of the Year
*"A winner. A lovely gem, dark and quiet as the dead but glimmering with life as well. Not to be missed." -- KIRKUS REVIEWS, starred review
*"Bow displays the patient, rhythmic pace of a seasoned storyteller, and the spare elegance of her prose manages to inspire both chills and tears as the tale requires.... Dark but ultimately hopeful, this quiet fantasy will leave its mark on readers and have them contemplating shadows in a whole new way." -- BULLETIN OF THE CENTER FOR CHILDREN'S BOOKS, starred review
Synopsis
At the very edge of the world live the Shadowed People. And with them live the dead.
There, in the village of Westmost, Otter is born to power. She is the proud daughter of Willow, the greatest binder of the dead in generations. It will be Otter s job someday to tie the knots of the ward, the only thing that keeps the living safe.
Kestrel is training to be a ranger, one of the brave women who venture into the forest to gather whatever the Shadowed People can t live without and to fight off whatever dark threat might slip through the ward s defenses.
And Cricket wants to be a storyteller -- already he shows the knack, the ear -- and already he knows dangerous secrets.
But something is very wrong at the edge of the world. Willow s power seems to be turning inside out. The ward is in danger of falling. And lurking in the shadows, hungry, is a White Hand, the most dangerous of the dead, whose very touch means madness, and worse.
Suspenseful, eerie, and beautifully imagined."
Synopsis
From the acclaimed author of PLAIN KATE, a new novel about what lurks in the shadows, and how to put it to rest...
In the world of SORROW'S KNOT, the dead do not rest easy. Every patch of shadow might be home to something hungry, something deadly. Most of the people of this world live on the sunlit, treeless prairies. But a few carve out an uneasy living in the forest towns, keeping the dead at bay with wards made from magically knotted cords. The women who tie these knots are called binders. And Otter's mother, Willow, is one of the greatest binders her people have ever known.
But Willow does not wish for her daughter to lead the lonely, heavy life of a binder, so she chooses another as her apprentice. Otter is devastated by this choice, and what's more, it leaves her untrained when the village falls under attack. In a moment of desperation, Otter casts her first ward, and the results are disastrous. But now Otter may be her people's only hope against the shadows that threaten them. Will the challenge be too great for her? Or will she find a way to put the dead to rest once and for all?
About the Author
Erin Bow was born in the Midwest and studied particle physics in college, eventually working at the CERN laboratory near Geneva, Switzerland. She then decided to leave science in order to concentrate on her love of writing. She lives in Kitchener, Ontario, with her husband James and their two daughters. Erin Bow can be visited online at www.erinbow.com.