The Moon Over Crete - Softcover

Sreenivasan, Jyotsna

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0961940166 ISBN 13: 9780961940164

Publisher: Smooth Stone Press, 1996

Synopsis

The Moon Over Crete -- Novel for ages 8-12. Listed in Great Books for Girls. Lily, 11, goes back 3,500 years to ancient Crete, where women and men were equal. "Paints a picture of a society where equality is a possibility, a possibility children need to grasp." -- Women in Libraries Newsletter, ALA.

About this title

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-6-In this feminist time-travel adventure, Sreenivasan creates a story with positive role models for girls but fails to give it enough life to make it convincing. Lily, 11, accompanies her teacher back to ancient Crete and is surprised to find an egalitarian society in which women are respected, the goddess is worshipped, and a queen is the ruler. Crete is very different indeed from her normal life where a creepy boy shows her "dirty" pictures, where girls are routinely hassled and harassed by boys, and where dieting and obsession with clothing is all her friends discuss. At first, she wants to stay in this ideal society-even though she knows the country will soon be conquered by Greece-but then she realizes that she should return to try to make life better for girls today. Empowerment is certainly a commendable goal for a novel, but the author's message lacks subtlety, and her lesson overshadows her story. Also, Lily's world is unrealistically misogynistic. The character of Mrs. Zinn (the flute teacher who casually takes her student back in history and then leaves her there) is unbelievable and the writing is flat.
Anne Connor, Los Angeles Public Library
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

The Moon Over Crete is such a right-on book for everyone, but for girls in particular, because it calls attention to the importance of recognizing the powerful responsibility we all have in ourselves as girls, boys, women and men: to treat each others with respect and equality.

The Moon Over Crete is a well-written, timely piece of inspiration and definitely a book for everyone who wants to work towards partnership. -- Pacific Reader Literary Supplement, 1995

This book, for children of Lily's age, is simple and undemanding. Yet it paints a picture of a society where equality is a possibility, a possibility children need to grasp. Lily loves Crete so much that she wants to stay, but instead, she returns with a goal: she will do what she can to bring Cretan beliefs to modern life. This is a worthy first effort by author Sreenivasan, and a worthy book for children's collections. -- Women in Libraries Newsletter, American Library Association, 1995

Edition details

• Publisher: Smooth Stone Press
• Publication date: 1996
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0961940166
• ISBN 13: 9780961940164
• Binding: Paperback
• Illustrator: Gellman Sim
• Number of pages: 136