The Wind Singer by William Nicholson

The Wind Singer is a children's novel and so comes with all the pluses and minuses of that genre. The pace is quick with little room or time for digression or a lot of descriptive detail. The upside is that the book never once bogs down and keeps pulling the reader along. The downside, though how much of a downside will mostly depend on age and expectations, is that characterization suffers a bit and there are a few places where it would have been nice to have gotten a more full picture (both visually and in terms of plot context/background).

The story is a typical kids' dystopia but with more of a fantasy cast rather than a sci-fi one which is often the case. The city of Amaranth is the dystopia in question. Within its walls the people are strictly divided into castes (denoted by clothing color as well as assigned houses) based on their yearly performances... Read More

Slaves of the Mastery by William Nicholson

Slaves of the Mastery picks up several years after the events of The Wind Singer and in plot and structure is similar to its predecessor, though not as original in thought or imagery. Once again, the book examines a dystopic setting. In this case it is The Mastery, a city-state of slaves and masters, one of whose leaders has raided the Manth city and taken its inhabitants, including the main characters from book one, into slavery. The book once again focuses on the Hath family (including this time Pinto, the baby in book one, who is accorded more of a place here) and a small circle of friends as they first are first taken, then herded into a forced march from Amaranth to The Mastery, then attempt to escape.

Kestrel and Bowman, the two siblings and the main focus, are separated early on and as did the first book, t... Read More