This book had an interesting premise and the historical details were fairly interesting. The book is written ans poetry and had some interesting weaving of two stories together. ( )

This book had an interesting premise and the historical details were fairly interesting. The book is written ans poetry and had some interesting weaving of two stories together. ( )

My VOYA rating: 5Q, 4P

This book was incredibly beautiful. The bond between the sisters folds the reader into its braid right from the start. The gentle lilting of the narrative verse is punctuated by what Frost calls "praise poems." The voice shifts from one sister to the next chapter by chapter. The story stands alone as a work of love and the unbreakable sisterly bond. It was only made more beautiful by Helen Frost's description of the form she invented for the novel. Inspired by the Celtic knot, Frost expertly weaves the lines in a way that leaves the reader realizing what a mad genius she is and respecting the novel on a newly discovered level. ( )

Helen Frost does a wonderful job at telling the story of two sisters Sarah and Jeannie. Their family was forced to leave their home in Scotland - each girl traveling to a different location. Their hardships and happinesses are told in an invented formal structure, comprised of narrative poems (told in alternating voices - from Jeannie, then Sarah) and in between, short praise poems. A short, yet satisfying read. ( )

The story is told mostly in free verse narratives alternating from one sister’s voice to the other’s. The author uses syllabic measurements in each line to indicate the age of each girl. Interspersed between the narratives are praise poems. The author creatively uses the concept of braiding, mingling of ideas, as the basis for her poetic rules she follows. Easy to read, despite the intricate detail of poetic rules, the story unfolds about two sisters who must decide by themselves the pathway to follow. Heartwarming and poignant at the same time, the story reveals the severities of survival and death in new terrain. Older teens would better appreciate the intensity and complexities, but a younger reader will still understand the family situation. ( )