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Title details for West of the Moon by Margi Preus - Available

West of the Moon

by Margi Preus
Jessica Almasy
Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
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1 of 1 copy available
Publisher Marketing: In "West of the Moon," award-winning and "New York Times" bestselling author Margi Preus expertly weaves original fiction with myth and folktale to tell the story of Astri, a young Norwegian girl desperate to join her father in America. After being separated from her sister and sold to a cruel goat farmer, Astri makes a daring escape. She quickly retrieves her little sister, and, armed with a troll treasure, a book of spells and curses, and a possibly magic hairbrush, they set off for America. With a mysterious companion in tow and the malevolent "goatman" in pursuit, the girls head over the Norwegian mountains, through field and forest, and in and out of folktales and dreams as they steadily make their way east of the sun and west of the moon.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Awards

  • Release date

    April 1, 2014

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781490615585
      • File size: 130909 KB
      • Duration: 04:32:43

  • Languages

    • English

  • Levels

    • Lexile® Measure: 810
    • Text Difficulty: 3-4

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Narrator Jessica Almasy provides a haunting delivery of a story that weaves historical fiction, Scandinavian fairy tales, and a coming-of-age theme. Thirteen-year-old Astri's life has taken a bad turn: After her father goes to America and her mother dies, her aunt sells her to a cruel, hunchbacked goatherd for two gold coins and a goat's haunch. Almasy voices the dark undertones of the story. She doesn't hold back in showing Astri's complicated character--an unsettling mix of kindness, conniving, and ruthlessness born from the need to survive. S.W. © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine
    • Publisher's Weekly

      Starred review from March 24, 2014
      Inspired by a few lines from her immigrant great-great grandmother's diary, Newbery Honor author Preus (Heart of a Samurai) spins the sometimes harrowing tale of Astri, a 13-year-old Norwegian girl sold into hard labor by her greedy aunt. With a dead mother, a father in America, an imperiled younger sister, and the foreboding goat-keeper who has bought her, Astri is like a girl out of a fairy tale, and the native folktales that Preus weaves through the narrative serve as guides, lessons, and inspiration for her. Determined to escape her cruel master, rescue her sister, and join her father in America, she learns firsthand the sacrificesâfinancial, physical, and emotionalâthat immigrants face. Astri is fierce and brave enough to bargain with Death, and not always innocent; likewise, the villain is also an agent of salvation. In the reality these folktales frame, there are no easy or absolute categories. A threat of sexual violence and a grisly death might be hard on sensitive readers, but this immigrant's tale would ring false without them. Ages 10â14. Agent: Stephen Fraser, Jennifer De Chiara Agency.

    • School Library Journal

      September 1, 2014

      Gr 5-8-Listeners who love fairy tales will be enchanted by this story. Set in Norway, West of the Moon tells of young Astri's quest to get to America to find her father. After being sold by her aunt to a cruel goat man, Astri works under dismal conditions, while never giving up hope of reuniting with her little sister and escaping to America. The two girls do manage to escape and travel on foot across Norway to the coast where they manipulate their way on board a ship. Once on the vessel, the girls experience more hardship with overcrowded conditions, little food, and rampant disease. The somewhat dark tone of the story is lightened by Astri's constant storytelling of Norwegian folk tales, which add a delightful touch of fantasy. Narrator Jessica Almasy does her usual stellar job with her energetic, youthful voice perfectly portraying Astri's emotions during the journey. The author's note at the end, narrated by Preus, adds a wonderful touch.-Julie Paladino, East Chapel Hill High School, NC

      Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

Levels

  • Lexile® Measure:810
  • Text Difficulty:3-4

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