Review:
Orion Children's Books, London, 2006
(11+) A fantasy thriller that had me hooked from the start, My swordhand is singing is a most original look at vampires and the dread they engender. Tomas and his son, Peter are itinerant, moving from one village to another in search of work as wood cutters, always avoiding company and friendship. But Chust is different; the small village adheres to old customs, designed to keep away the vampires, it shows a meanness to strangers, it is isolated and inward looking. Just the place for vampires to feed.
Peter is growing up and attracts the attention of a young woman, Agnes, while Tomas spends much of his time getting drunk. But there is a fear abroad which captures the imagination of the village. A wife is convinced that her dead husband returns to her each night, Agnes is chosen as the bride of a man who has died, and when gypsies call on Peter's father to bring out his sword, tension spills over.
A breathtaking and imaginative telling of a vampire story, this novel is infused with a plethora of stories gleaned from tales, myths and legends from Europe's forest regions, where people lived their lives in dark and gloomy places, where implausible things happened and were transformed into terrifying stories by scared peoples trying to make sense of it all. I couldn't put it down, and this book will easily find readers amongst all ages in high schools.
Fran Knight
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My swordhand is singing by Martin Sedgwick
Orion Children's Books, London, 2006(11+) A fantasy thriller that had me hooked from the start, My swordhand is singing is a most original look at vampires and the dread they engender. Tomas and his son, Peter are itinerant, moving from one village to another in search of work as wood cutters, always avoiding company and friendship. But Chust is different; the small village adheres to old customs, designed to keep away the vampires, it shows a meanness to strangers, it is isolated and inward looking. Just the place for vampires to feed.
Peter is growing up and attracts the attention of a young woman, Agnes, while Tomas spends much of his time getting drunk. But there is a fear abroad which captures the imagination of the village. A wife is convinced that her dead husband returns to her each night, Agnes is chosen as the bride of a man who has died, and when gypsies call on Peter's father to bring out his sword, tension spills over.
A breathtaking and imaginative telling of a vampire story, this novel is infused with a plethora of stories gleaned from tales, myths and legends from Europe's forest regions, where people lived their lives in dark and gloomy places, where implausible things happened and were transformed into terrifying stories by scared peoples trying to make sense of it all. I couldn't put it down, and this book will easily find readers amongst all ages in high schools.
Fran Knight
Home
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