ISBN: 9781406310276
This is a dual narrative book that tells the story from two completely different perspectives. Firstly there is Zarita, a young woman from a privileged background, and secondly Saulo, from a desperately poor family. The perspectives only really come together at the end, during the dramatic conclusion. I won’t spoil it by giving details, but suffice to say that the two are forced to view things from the other’s perspective, and come to a mutual understanding.
The whole story is set against the backdrop of the Spanish inquisition, and it does not shy away from the grisly reality of that, although it is not overly graphic. Breslin is successful in getting across the fear and paranoia the inquisition brought about as well as a sense of helplessness. Along with the despair felt be those affected by the officers of the inquisition, is the despair of all those forced to watch the sentences being carried out. Citizens are prepared to do anything to get attention away from themselves, often informing on others. This book coveys all of this emotion and the reader becomes invested in the characters and the outcome.
There is a side plot about Christopher Columbus and his mission to prove that the world is round and not flat. He wants to prove that you can sail all around the world. He is labelled a blasphemer, and those with the knowledge he his after, commune in secret. The inquisition is a threat to these men. Saulo becomes good friends with Columbus, and learns a great deal from him. As Saulo learns about navigation and charts with Columbus, he grows and matures as a person.
Zarita also grows and matures as a person under the tutelage of her aunt, who has founded an order of nuns. This order is progressive for the times, and tolerant of others faiths. Nuns study educational texts from the east, and have learnt many things. The inquisition is appalled, and only the letter from Queen Isabella herself saves the nuns.
I view the whole book as a metaphor for progress in the form of knowledge and tolerance. Columbus represents knowledge that the priests of the inquisition were inadvertently suppressing. Focusing on the narrow prescriptive world that they dictated would mean that many things would not be discovered, and knowledge would not be advanced. The priests feared that they would loose their place of power and control, and thus tried to stop this type of progress. Similarly, the nuns used their knowledge to aid others, and when forced to stop, those in desperate need were left without that help. Zarita causes hardship to Saulo, and the death of his father out of ignorance, and the way she has been taught to behave. She is later appalled by her own actions. Saulo is angry and desperate, and not looking beyond himself. When the two of them begin to talk and look at things through each others eyes, their relationship becomes positive, bringing friendship and even love.
In short, the inquisition represents narrow intolerant thinking, and this gets in the way of knowledge, trust, respect, tolerance, and genuine understanding. When the inquisition is winning, all these values suffer, halt, or disappear completely. When the characters are free to act outside of the inquisition’s influence, all these values abound, and progress is made. Negative outcomes are seen to arise from inquisition thinking, and positive outcomes from independent thought and action. At no point does Breslin indicate that being Catholic is bad, in fact the opposite is true. It is only the inquisition that engenders that negativity.
This book is very clever, and the setting of the story in such a troubled period in history gives the characters plenty of scope. Breslin has produced well-rounded characters that have human fears and foibles, making them all the more appealing. I wanted to find out what happened to these two young people, and I was swept away on the tide of their journey. I was hooked right from the prologue, a short one page entry that has a woman being burnt at the stake. It is a very dramatic opening, and hooks the reader in. There is no way that I could put the book down and not find out what happened in the end.
Very enjoyable read, very clever book. 9/10 The one I would have picked as the winner (although I still haven’t read monsters of men, which did win)
What I have learned;
· The importance of a good opening to hook the reader
· That the setting can be used to develop character through the necessary things they go through.
· Setting and backdrop should be directly relevant to the story, and not just there for effect.
No comments:
Post a Comment