**
Breath by Donna Jo Napoli
*Spoiler's below*
I was a tad disturbed by this book. I know that all fairy tales aren't happily ever afters but I was still hoping for some optimistic twist near the end.
Instead I found that every possible thing that could go wrong did. The story is tragic starting with the fact that the main character Salz (basically 'Salt') has cystic fibrosis a disease that makes it difficult for a person to breathe due to mucus accumulating in their lungs. That he survived into his teenage years during the medieval times is practically a miracle.
This affliction is not so bad in comparison to the rest of the plot but it makes the sorrows heaped upon Salz seem even more unbearable. Salz lives in the German hamlet of Hameln and during the spring the countryside suffered a rainy spring followed by a summer of dying livestock and an infestation of rats. Strange behavior by the townsfolk followed by disturbing symptoms makes the residents of Hameln think the rats are responsible for the disease. But despicable as the rats are, they are not spreading the plague. Desperate to relieve themselves of the disease the townsfolk seek out an end to the rats. At one point Salz is accused of witchcraft but manages to save himself. Eventually Salz recalls the strange piper that called the forest animals to him one day in the woods and somehow convinces the town to find this piper to lead away the rats. Thus the rest of the story is familiar. The piper is unpaid and leads the town's children (the only remaining healthy members) away leaving only Salz behind as he could not catch up due to his CF affliction.
As I stated before I kept hoping for some glimmer of hope but the story kept seeking out darker and sadder plotpoints. Salz's grandmother dies under a scythe meant for him and the little sister he had adopted and truly loved is taken from him by the piper. The illustrations on the front of the copy I read are disturbing at best and the naked death they display is a bit disturbing just like the story within.
Breath by Donna Jo Napoli
*Spoiler's below*
I was a tad disturbed by this book. I know that all fairy tales aren't happily ever afters but I was still hoping for some optimistic twist near the end.
Instead I found that every possible thing that could go wrong did. The story is tragic starting with the fact that the main character Salz (basically 'Salt') has cystic fibrosis a disease that makes it difficult for a person to breathe due to mucus accumulating in their lungs. That he survived into his teenage years during the medieval times is practically a miracle.
This affliction is not so bad in comparison to the rest of the plot but it makes the sorrows heaped upon Salz seem even more unbearable. Salz lives in the German hamlet of Hameln and during the spring the countryside suffered a rainy spring followed by a summer of dying livestock and an infestation of rats. Strange behavior by the townsfolk followed by disturbing symptoms makes the residents of Hameln think the rats are responsible for the disease. But despicable as the rats are, they are not spreading the plague. Desperate to relieve themselves of the disease the townsfolk seek out an end to the rats. At one point Salz is accused of witchcraft but manages to save himself. Eventually Salz recalls the strange piper that called the forest animals to him one day in the woods and somehow convinces the town to find this piper to lead away the rats. Thus the rest of the story is familiar. The piper is unpaid and leads the town's children (the only remaining healthy members) away leaving only Salz behind as he could not catch up due to his CF affliction.
As I stated before I kept hoping for some glimmer of hope but the story kept seeking out darker and sadder plotpoints. Salz's grandmother dies under a scythe meant for him and the little sister he had adopted and truly loved is taken from him by the piper. The illustrations on the front of the copy I read are disturbing at best and the naked death they display is a bit disturbing just like the story within.
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