Valley Of The Wolves - Hardcover

Garcia, Laura Gallego

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0439585538 ISBN 13: 9780439585538

Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books, 2006

Synopsis

Dana attends a school of magic with only one other student. She has a great love only she can see. And only she can unravel these mysteries and become mistress of the Valley of the Wolves.

Ever since Dana was a little girl, Kai has been her best friend and constant companion--even though she's the only one who can see him. Then the mysterious Maestro comes to her farm and offers her the opportunity of a lifetime: the chance to study sorcery in the Valley of the Wolves. And Dana knows she must go, for the Maestro can see Kai too....
At age 27, Laura Gallego Garcia is already Spain's answer to J. K. Rowling, creating fantasies rich with magic and meaning. This is her most popular novel, a book for every kid who's ever felt set apart and everyone who finds a place all their own.

About this title

From School Library Journal:

Grade 6-9–Dana is isolated from others in her farm community because she sees and converses with an invisible boy named Kai. Her otherwise ordinary life is disrupted by the arrival of a gentleman who refers to himself as Maestro. He senses the girl's potential and takes her from her home to the Tower where he lives to train her in sorcery. The Maestro's rules are simple: she must never be in the forest after dark as she will be set upon by wolves, and she must never disobey him. Dana soon discovers that Kai (who has accompanied her) is not the only invisible person with whom she can communicate. To understand this mystery, she braves the wolves and risks the magus's anger by going into the woods–equipped with spells–in search of a unicorn. Dana's progression from a frightened farm girl into a courageous sorceress is superficially delineated. The initially benevolent Maestro is a one-dimensional figure who is abruptly revealed to be a murderous and power-hungry villain. While the story line is engaging, the novel is not entirely fleshed out and it is at best an additional purchase.–Heather M. Lisowski, Philip S. Miller Library, Castle Rock, CO
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist:

Gr. 5-8. Odd flashes in her sapphire-colored eyes at birth are the first sign that Dana is unlike anyone else in her impoverished farming family. Her only childhood companion, Kai, lies across "a perplexing abyss"; he appears to be a boy of her age, but he is visible only to Dana. After an elderly stranger offers Dana an education at his distant academy, Dana's journey to understanding begins. The stranger is a sorcerer, and as Dana works through her apprenticeship, Kai by her side, she begins to question her benefactor's motives and to explore the terrifying power of the magic she has inherited. As in The Legend of the Wandering King (2005), Spanish author Garcia creates a stirring, thought-provoking adventure steeped in ancient lore. The vivid world, both enchanted and treacherous, and the well-drawn characters will easily hold fantasy fans. But even readers with an aversion to spells and unicorns will see their own urgent, bumpy paths to self-discovery mirrored in Dana's struggles to balance her thrilling talents with the discipline and maturity necessary to harness them. Gillian Engberg
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

About this edition

• Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 0439585538
• ISBN 13: 9780439585538
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 336