CCBC-Net Archives

"Crispin: The Cross of Lead" by Avi

From: Melody Allen <melody_allen>
Date: Thu, 13 Feb 2003 13:06:23 -0500

Avi excels in cliffhangers at the end of each chapter and that is evident in this page-turner. I appreciated Crispin's limited view of the world presented at the beginning, authentic to the time and his position in society, and his gradual expansion as he leaves his village and comes into contact with Bear. I thought this growth was convincing. We debated the ending at our Mock discussions as the "hero" does not return home. We assumed from the title that there will be a sequel. The killing of the bad guy (I can't remember his name) seems to symbolically mark a fulfilled cycle.

Frankly, I am growing tired of endless notes and appreciations (most are not as interesting as the ones in Number the Stars). I wanted to know if John Bull was a real person and just looked in an encyclopedia (he and his movement are real).

Melody Allen

It's time for us to turn out attention to the Newbery Medal books for 2003. Let's begin by opening up the discussion to winner of the 2003 Medal, "Crispin: The Cross of Lead" written by Avi and published by Hyperion.

If you've had a chance to read Crispin, please let us know what you think about it. We look forward to hearing from you about this book and the five Newbery Honor books over the next several days.

KTH

Kathleen T. Horning, Acting Director Cooperative Children's Book Center University of Wisconsin-School of Education 4290 Helen C. White Hall 600 North Park St. Madison, WI 53706

horning at education.wisc.edu Voice: 608&3721 Fax: 608&2I33 www.education.wisc.edu/ccbc/
Received on Thu 13 Feb 2003 12:06:23 PM CST