Sandry's Book (Circle of Magic Series #1)

by Tamora Pierce

Overview

NEW YORK TIMES bestselling author Tamora Pierce takes readers to a world filled with adventure and magic.

In Book 1 of the Circle of Magic Quartet, gifted young weaver Sandry is brought to the Winding Circle community. There she meets Briar, a former thief with a way with plants; Daja, an outcast gifted at metalcraft; and Tris, whose connection with the weather unsettles everyone, including herself. The four misfits are taught how to use their magic, but when disaster strikes, it's up to Sandry to weave together four different kinds of power to save herself, her friends, and Winding Circle.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780545405898
Publisher:	Scholastic, Inc.
Publication date:	09/01/2011
Series:	Circle of Magic Series , #1
Sold by:	Scholastic, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	125,688
Lexile:	730L (what's this?)
File size:	3 MB
Age Range:	10 - 14 Years

About the Author

Tamora Pierce is the critically acclaimed author of more than twenty novels, including the Circle of Magic and The Circle Opens quartets, The Will of the Empress, Melting Stones, and, most recently, the New York Times bestselling Beka Cooper trilogy. She lives in New York State with her husband, Tim, and her seven cats and two birds. Visit her online at www.tamorapierce.com.

Editorial Reviews

First in a projected series by veteran fantasy writer Pierce (the Song of the Lioness books), this unfocused tale tells of four young mages who discover their magical abilities while living in a strictly disciplined temple community called Winding Circle. Each is from a different social class, and each is associated with one or more of the four elements. Naughty thief Briar, the only boy, has a special connection with plants and earth. Trader Daja is a smith mage, able to manipulate fire and molten ore. The most powerful of them all is homely Tris, a merchant girl, who masters both air and water to create storms and stop tides. Lady Sandry's talent is for needlework and fabrics; she binds the group of friends and weaves their magics together. Pierce's spunky children and their creative sorcery are as engaging as ever, but the story gets off to a shaky start. The narrative shifts the spotlight among each of the four characters (shown in separate environments) in all three of the first chapters, making it hard for the reader to find a through line with any of them. Once they meet, the characters' gradual mutual acceptance is painfully predictable, and the climactic group effort to escape from an underground cave during an earthquake is muddled and lacks drama. The results are less than magical. Ages 10-up. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Gr 4-7Sandry wants desperately to learn to spin and weave despite her noble birth; she finds that she can spin light into her threads. Tris comes from a family of merchants but has an uncanny feel for weather and hears voices on the winds. Briar, a former street urchin and thief, communicates with plants. Daja is a Trader, but metalworking calls her now. Sandry's Book focuses equally on these four children, all abandoned or orphaned and all equally unaware of being mageborngifted with a particular talent and magical abilities. The four meet at Discipline Cottage, part of Winding Circle Temple, where the powerful mage Niko has brought them to heal the wounds of their past and to learn to channel and control their abilities. Although the four have some conflicts with their new surroundings and with one another, they are united when misuse of magic at another temple puts everyone in mortal danger. A bit unfocused, the story features too many main characters with individual stories to tell and borrows too much from our own world to be surprising. The youngsters are appealing and the conflicts between them are logical and believable. However, while Daja's affinity for metals and Briar's for plants are well defined, it is harder to tell how Sandry will use her magical talent, or what Tris's abilities have to do with the crafts that are predominant throughout the book. In spite of its faults, this is an enjoyable fantasy for middle-grade readers, who will look forward to the next book in the series.Susan L. Rogers, Chestnut Hill Academy, PA

School Library Journal

In a fantasy set in mythical lands surrounding the Pebbled Sea, four young people come to terms with the pain that life has dealt them, the prejudices they've inherited, and the unrecognized magical powers they were born with.

The four come from varying backgrounds, but all have been misfits rankling against the restrictions that class and culture impose. Sandry (Lady Sandrilene fa Toren) feels "Good f'r naught but to be waited on and to marry." She longs to be useful and competent. Daja, the Trader girl, wants to be a metalworker, but making things is forbidden to traders. Briar, a streetwise thief, harbors a special affinity for plants, and Trisana, the Merchant girl, seems to have a direct line to the forces of nature itself. Mage Niklaren Goldeye brings all four to a disciplined temple community where their special gifts can flower. Pierce (Wild Magic, 1992, etc.) employs the trappings of magic, yet never invokes it as a convenient plot device imposed from without. Instead it appears as an inner strength that each of the fully realized, compelling young protagonists must discover and harness. Meditation and the Zen-like practice of hands-on crafts are their tools of mastery. First in a series, this is a rich and satisfying read.

Kirkus Reviews

First in a series, this is a rich and satisfying read.
--Kirkus Reviews

The action is swift, the fantasy world nicely defined, and the ending will leave readers wanting more. With a multicultural cast and enough gender role-reversal to make a lot of people happy, this is a promising first title in a series.
--Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

[T]his is an enjoyable fantasy for middle-grade readers, who will look forward to the next book in the series.
--School Library Journal

Pierce has created an excellent new world where magic is a science…and populated it with a cast of well-realized characters. Teens will eagerly await the planned sequels.
--Booklist

From the Publisher