Thank you for visiting.
This content is exclusive to subscribers only.
As a digital subscriber, you’ll receive unlimited access to Horn Book web exclusives and extensive archives, as well as access to our highly searchable Guide/Reviews Database.
To access other site content, visit The Horn Book homepage.
Log In
Don't have a Horn Book Account?
Register Now
Register Now
Harris, Robert J.
8 Reviews
(3)
YA
During the eighteenth-century Scottish Highland Clearances, Roddy's family is brutally evicted from the laird's land. Roddy risks returning to find a half-mythical family heirloom, but he must enlist the help of a thieving rogue to retrieve the jewels from the unscrupulous laird. Yolen and Harris keep the focus tightly on Roddy's first-person perspective as "apprentice rogue" in this fast-paced action-adventure.
Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam
(4)
4-6
Young Heroes series.
A youthful Jason of the Argonauts is here imagined to embark on a quest to retrieve a deadly poison, the Gorgon's blood, from a murderous band of centaurs. He must overcome monsters and natural disasters while learning leadership of his band of boys (and one girl). The characterization is somewhat formulaic, but the nonstop action-adventure will attract readers.
Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam
(2)
4-6
Yolen and Harris relate a story of thirteen-year-old Duncan, an eighteenth-century Highland boy burning with desire to go to war and prove his courage. The authors' skill at bringing the era's feudal and martial mindset to life gives the horrific mid-book battle scenes great impact in a gripping tale that will leave readers mulling over thoughts of war and peace.
Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
November, 2004
(4)
4-6
Young Heroes series.
Combining several of the Greek myths about Atalanta (her abandonment at birth, her bear foster-family, her participation in the Calydonian boar hunt), this novel adds new elements and changes the old (e.g., here the boar is a mantiger, a creature of the authors' invention). Some of the plot points are strained, but Atalanta's strong personality shines through.
Reviewer: Jeannine M. Chapman
(3)
4-6
Young Heroes series.
In choosing to rescue her baby brother from Artemis's sacrifice, Amazon warrior and princess Hippolyta brings down a curse on her people. At first thinking to substitute another brother, whom she barely knows, Hippolyta instead forms an alliance with him against the gods. Old myths become the foundation of engrossing, modern-feeling adventure stories in the authors' skilled hands.
Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam
(2)
4-6
In 1306, King Edward I of England ordered that three captured female relatives of King Robert the Bruce of Scotland, including his eleven-year-old daughter Marjorie, should be imprisoned in public cages. From this fact, the authors create a well-paced, high-energy adventure told from Marjorie's point of view. Despite her somewhat modern affect, Marjorie is a believable heroine with whom readers will easily identify.
Reviewer: Anita L. Burkam
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
January, 2003
(3)
4-6
Young Heroes series.
Thirteen-year-old Odysseus is brash and wily, and his zest for adventure helps him rescue his young comrades from danger after he, Mentor, Penelope, and Helen are captured by pirates, stranded at sea, and then thrown into the Labyrinth to be killed by a many-headed serpent. The fast-paced, action-packed novel is a good introduction to these characters from Homer's classic poem.
Reviewer: Anne St. John
(2)
YA
When the young Queen of France asks eleven-year-old Nicola to be her "fool," Nicola believes that her one duty to the Queen--always tell her the truth--will be easier than the rough life she has led as an orphaned street performer. But as the years pass, she must use all of her wits to avoid being caught in the political intrigue that ensnares Queen Mary. The authors have woven fiction and historical fact into a seamless tapestry.
Reviewer: Anne St. John
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
May, 2000
8 reviews
We are currently offering this content for free. Sign up now to activate your personal profile, where you can save articles for future viewing.