I'm Not Scared (2003)

It is 1978, and Italian youth Michele (Giuseppe Cristiano) lives what initially seems like the freedom-filled, idyllic childhood we wish we all had. But this life has dark implications, which reveal themselves when Michele finds a boy his age chained up in a hole, to his horror and surprise.

   The boy is Felippo (Mattia Di Pierro,) a boy Michele's age (nine), who is obviously confused and scared, but very much alive. Initially scared off by Felippo's corpse-like appearance, Michele finds himself  coming back to bring Felippo water and food.

   Reasoning that someone in his Italian village is Felippo's captor, Michele initially chooses not to tell anyone about his discovery, but when the perpetrators fall onto Michele's lap, he must decide what to do next.

A Golden Web by Barbara Quick

Alessandra Giliani has an unusually gifted mind and boundless curiosity about the natural world. Nothing makes her happier than being free to roam the woods around her father's estate, with her brother Nicco, unraveling the secrets of nature. In 14th century Italy, the medieval world is on the cusp of the Renaissance, an era of fertile scientific curiosity. And Alessandra is the daughter of  a stationer, a bookmaker, who holds a unique and important role a century before the invention of the printing press. He visits the great libraries of Europe, borrowing books that will be painstakingly copied and treasured for many lifetimes. With access to books, and with Nicco to help her explore the life all around her, Alessandra's brilliance flourishes, and she dreams of studying medicine.

However, narrow societal expectations and superstitions limit her possibilities for the future. As a woman, she must either become a nun or marry to a man her father chooses. And women who show uncanny knowledge and skill are often burned at the stake. Kept confined to her room by her stepmother, who resents her and is determined to protect her virtue until she can arrange a profitable marriage, Alessandra devises a plan to escape and pursue her dream.

Barbara Quick lovingly recreated this character based on an intriguing historical figure about whom very little is known. Alessandra's character is richly developed. I loved experiencing life in 14th century Italy through her eyes, feeling her quick mind, her longing, and her passions. I was also drawn in by the wealth of interesting historical details. We see different paths of knowledge converge: the teachings of ancient Greek thinkers like Aristotle and Galen, the work of Arab scholars, and the traditional wisdom of female healers, and we see Alessandra make an exciting discovery of her own.
This novel also offers fascinating descriptions of how medieval illuminations were created. And there is fodder for interesting discussions of the evolving roles of women during history, and the ways men have maintained intellectual and moral control in society.

Readers will also enjoy the Alessandra's romance, a relationship in which she doesn't relinquish her strength and independence. I wish her love interest, and their relationship, had been developed more fully. When we reached that point, it felt as if there were a rush to get to the story's resolution. And the story's closing -- though it had reached a logical ending point -- felt somewhat abrupt.

Despite these minor disappointments, I thoroughly enjoyed this vibrant historical novel. Alessandra's well developed character -- passionate, curious, brave, and vulnerable -- is what really made it shine. Both adults and teens will enjoy this book, which will especially appeal to teenagers. And the historical and geographic detail in this story is satisfying -- and enough to pique a reader's interest in further reading and discussion -- without weighing down the flow of the story.

About the Cover: It is becoming increasingly rare to find original artwork on book covers. I love seeing the front of a novel illustrated with a gorgeous original painting, and the cover of A Golden Web is beautiful. Visit the author's blog to read more about the cover art, and about the beautiful young woman whose face is behind the painting.

Many thanks to Barbara Quick and to HarperTeen for sending me a copy of this book for review.

Read More Reviews: Rebecca's Book Blog; Book Illuminations; Enchanted by Josephine


Rating: 4

5- Cherished Favorite	4 - Keep in My Library	3 - Good Read	2 - Meh	1 - Definitely Not For Me

Vivaldi's Virgins by Barbara Quick

Anna Maria was abandoned, as an infant, at the Ospedale della Pieta in Venice, a foundling home and music school, where she is being raised with the other orphans. Because of her remarkable musical talent, she is spared a life of drudgery and devotes herself to becoming an accomplished violinist. As part of the figlie di coro, "daughters of the choir," she performs for kings and nobles as well as priests.

The maestro, Antonio Vivaldi, "the Red Priest of Venice," takes a special interest in Maria and composes music for her to perform. At fourteen, yearning for a rich life and a sense of belonging outside the convent walls, she is determined to learn where she comes from. Who are her parents? Is her mother alive, and if so, why doesn't she come for her? Sister Laura, who has taken a special interest in Anna Maria and her music, encourages her to write to her mother, hinting that she might have a way to deliver the letters. Yet the secret of Anna Maria's birth remains a closed book.

This novel alternates between a epistolary story, as Anna Maria writes to her mother, and her memories and reflections as a 40-year-old woman. The two parallel voices -- the intense adolescent Anna Maria, longing for a different life, and the more circumspect lady, who knows who she is and has learned to find joy in small things -- work beautifully. And the author couldn't have chosen a more delicious setting for a historical novel.

Ah ... Venice. Someday, I'm going to be on a plane, heading there! Seventeenth-century Venice is lavishly beautiful, a place of gondolas, carnivals, and sacred architecture. It is a world of contradictions, both pious and decadent. Half the year is spent in an elaborate carnival, where masked people revel in the streets, but many live in poverty or in the crowded Jewish ghetto. The arts flourish, yet artists' patrons, the Venetian nobility, is like a collection of fruit, beautiful and vividly colorful on the outside but rotten under the skin. This is the decadent but beautiful culture that Napoleon will easily conquer at the end of the century.

Immersed in this setting, Anna Maria's story is an appealing coming of age tale about a gifted, passionate, spirited girl. It is enhanced by the mystery of Anna Maria's parentage, with some twists and revealed secrets that were not difficult to figure out, but kept me turning pages nevertheless.

 I also loved the music woven into the story -- Vivaldi is probably my favorite classical composer. This "freakish violinist and eccentric cleric" didn't enjoy real success until several centuries after his death. Barbara Quick included a discography at the end of the novel, encouraging readers to listen to the music in which she immersed herself while writing Vivaldi's Virgins. And although I don't usually pay much attention to book covers -- after all I'm not looking at the cover while reading the novel :-) -- isn't the cover art on Vivaldi's Virgins gorgeous? It is taken from several paintings from the time and place where this book is set:

Young Girl Wearing a Pearl Earring by Pietro Antonio Rotari, an 18th century Venetian painter (yes, the earring has been photoshopped out) and an 18th century painting of The Guidecca and San Giorgio Maggiore, Venice. Vivaldi's Virgins is a vibrant historical novel that will appeal to readers of both adult and YA fiction.

Other Reviews: Reading Extravaganza; Mostly Fiction; Violin and Books



Rating: 4.5

5- Cherished Favorite	4 - Keep in My Library	3 - Good Read	2 - Meh	1 - Definitely Not For Me