Module 8 – Seraphina by Rachel Hartman

Module 8 – Seraphina by Rachel Hartman

 

Book Summary

In a world where dragons and humans coexist in an uneasy truce and dragons can assume human form, Seraphina, whose mother died giving birth to her, grapples with her own identity amid magical secrets and royal scandals, while she struggles to accept and develop her extraordinary musical talents.

APA Reference of Book

Harman, R. (2012). Seraphina.  New York, NY: Random House.

My Impressions

I picked this book up because it was about dragons and I’ll read almost anything with dragons in it. Hartman has created a world where humans and dragons co-exist under an uneasy peace treaty.  Very few humans actually like dragons - they find them to be monsters.  And for the dragons - well, they can take human form.  Usually the people around them know that they are dragons - but not always.  The dragons could also wipe the humans out if they chose to do so - but they are very logical, mathematical creatures that feel they can learn something from the humans. 

The story revolves around Seraphina Dombegh who just happens to be part dragon and part human. But Seraphina does not look like a dragon.  In fact, she looks like any other 16 year old girl. Except for a few scales on one arm.  It's what goes on in her head - and her extraordinary musical talent - that set her apart from others. She tends a garden full of “grotesques” in her head – other half-human/half-dragon individuals that inhabit her world. If left untended, they would drive her mad.  Her father is at a loss what to do with her, so the majority of her growing up years are spent with her maternal Uncle Orma.  He is a dragon - but maintains human form as a music instructor.  Because of her musical abilities, Seraphina is chosen to be music mistress at the royal palace and teach harpsichord to Princess Glisselda.  Thus the book includes not only dragons but court intrigue, romance, and a murder!  The setting is medieval in tone and Hartman has done an amazing job with world-building.  You will want to walk the streets of Goredd, listen to Seraphina play her oud, and catch a glimpse of the dashing Prince Lucian Kiggs!

What the Professionals Say

KIRKUS REVIEW

The dragons could destroy the humans, but they are too fascinated by them. As musician Seraphina describes it, attempting to educate the princess, humans are like cockroaches to dragons, but interesting. As the anniversary of the treaty approaches, things fall apart: The crown prince has been murdered, anti-dragon sentiment is rising, and in the midst of it all, an awkward, gifted, observant girl unexpectedly becomes central to everything. Hartman has remixed her not-so-uncommon story and pseudo-Renaissance setting into something unexpected, in large part through Seraphina’s voice. By turns pedantic, lonely, scared, dryly funny and fierce, Seraphina brings readers into her world and imparts details from the vast (a religion of saints, one of whom is heretical) to the minute (her music, in beautifully rendered detail). The wealth of detail never overwhelms, relayed as it is amid Seraphina’s personal journey; half-human and half-dragon, she is anathema to all and lives in fear. But her growing friendship with the princess and the princess’ betrothed, plus her unusual understanding of both humans and dragons, all lead to a poignant and powerful acceptance of herself.

Dragon books are common enough, but this one is head and talons above the rest. (cast of characters, glossary) (Fantasy. 12 & up)

2012, May 9. [Review of the book Seraphina by R. Hartman]. Kirkus.  Retrieved from https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/rachel-hartman/seraphina/

A Suggestion for Use in a Library Setting

To celebrate the upcoming Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them movie (to be released next November), I would host a fantastical creatures program for ages twelve and up. We would start by reading a chapter from the book – “A Brief History of Muggle Awareness of Fantastic Beasts”.  We would then explore some of the Fantastic Beasts that inhabit Harry’s world but also appear in other literature.  There would be a dragon table and Seraphina and its companion book Shadowscale, would be used to compare how dragons are presented in Cressida Cowel’ls How to Train Your Dragon series and in the Harry Potter series, among others.  The youth would have ample opportunity to look at dragons, read about them, and draw them.  For snacks, we would have a sample of spicy treats and plenty of water. The teens could decide which of the spicy treats was truly dragon-breath worthy. I would also have a table devoted to Fairies; Werewolves; and Unicorns – for a total of four stations for further exploration of fantastic beasts in the world of Harry Potter and other literature. 

Module Seven - Sorta Like a Rock Star

Book Summary

Amber Appleton lives in a bus. Ever since her mom’s boyfriend kicked them out, Amber, her mom, and her totally loyal dog, Bobby Big Boy (aka Thrice B) have been camped out in the back of Hello Yellow (the school bus her mom drives). But Amber, a girl of unyielding optimism, refuses to sweat the bad stuff. Instead, she focuses on bettering the lives of her alcoholic mother and her quirky circle of friends: Donna who is a lawyer and the single mother of Ricky, one of Amber’s close friends (who happens to be somewhere on the autism spectrum); Father Chee and The Korean Divas for Christ (soul-singing ESL students); a nihilist octogenarian (Joan of Old); a video-game-playing gang of outcasts; and a haiku-writing war vet (PJ). But then a fatal tragedy threatens Amber’s optimism—and her way of life. Can Amber continue to be the princess of hope? 

APA Reference of Book

Quick, M. (2010). Sorta like a rock star: a novel. New York, NY: Little, Brown & Company.

My Impressions

I believe Rock Star encompasses so many themes that are relevant to teens today  – abandonment; dysfunctional parents; homelessness; bullying; taking on responsibilities beyond your years; and befriending the underdog to name a few. Throughout all of these trials and tribulations, Amber Appleton has not only been able to maintain a stiff upper lip – she has responded with hope and joy. However, when life hands Amber a horrific, impossible circumstance that trumps all the others, Amber descends into a tailspin of depression that forces her to question all of her beliefs. She is surrounded by friends that do their best to help but she shuts them all out, one by one, and does her best to alienate those that love her.  What or who can save Amber from losing all of her hope?  

This book made more of an impression on me than anything else I have read in this class this semester.  It is truly thought provoking and makes you look at your own problems, stumbling blocks, and day to day speed bumps in a different way. You have to love Amber’s optimism and her questions about life. I still see comparisons to the movie The Wizard of Oz (which is mentioned briefly in the beginning of the book).

When I was reading the author flap, I realized that Matthew Quick also wrote Silver Linings Playbook. I honestly don’t know why I failed to connect those dots until after I had finished this book. I have seen that movie and after reading Sorta Lika a Rock Star, I will be checking out Silver Linings Playbook. I think (hope) I will find some similarities.  

What the Professionals Say

Gr 8 Up--Surreptitiously living in Hello Yellow, the school bus her mother drives as a part-time job, Amber Appleton is an upbeat Catholic who spreads joy and happiness while keeping her own difficulties at home very quiet. Her dog, Billy Big Boy, is her companion whenever possible. Routinely, Amber teaches ESL to the KDFC, dubbed the Korean Divas for Christ, with Father Chee on the piano; visits Private Jackson, a Vietnam veteran and haiku specialist; and regularly stops at a nursing home where Old Man Linder backs her corner in her ongoing war of insults with Joan of Old, a Nietzschean cantankerous grump who inevitably smiles in the face of Amber's upbeat humor. The teen and her friends comprise the Franks Freaks Force Federation, ostensibly a school marketing club, but really a place for them to gather. AA's unending optimism in the face of difficult circumstances is well depicted with snappy dialogue and inner musings. When real tragedy hits and Amber is unable to cope, the stark difference between the Amber of the past and the present is delivered in extensive white space and short paragraphs. Amber feels blank. Her reemergence is abrupt, but like a musical, it provides the feel-good ending that rolls on until every bow is tied, every bad guy is given a dose of the Amber spirit, and all of the people in her life are brought together. This book is the answer to all those angst-ridden and painfully grim novels in the shortcut lingo of short attention-span theater. Hugely enjoyable.

By Carol A. Edwards, Denver Public Library, CO

Edwards, C. A. (2010). [Review of the book Sorta like a rock star, by M. Quick]. School Library Journal, 56(5), 122.

A Suggestion for Use in a Library Setting

For a teen book discussion, I would hold a smack down of characters from literature modeled after Amber’s smack downs with Joan of Old on Wednesday afternoons.  We would pit the most hopeful characters against the most nihilistic characters.  And then we would see which ones would win in a battle against each other.

A list of possibilities for contenders for most hopeful characters might include Pollyana, Tintin, Mr. Weasley, Charlie Bucket, Lyra Silvertongue, Piglet, Lucy Pevensie, Sam Gangee, Tiny Tim, Dorothy Gale, and Cindy Lou Who.

The bad guys list could include Voldemort, Holden Caufield, Catcher in the Rye; Hamlet, Captain Ahab, Eeyore, Scrooge, the Wicked Witch of the West, and the Grinch.

I would let the teens come up with the characters they wanted to use and then we could have quotes from different characters and see if they could match the quotes with the characters.  We would, of course, also discuss the book. And we would have snacks. Ice cream sundaes would be an appropriate choice.