Goldclimbers - Hardcover

Nancy Luenn

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0689315856 ISBN 13: 9780689315855

Publisher: Atheneum, 1991

Living in a community that creates objects in gold, fifteen-year-old Aracco reluctantly sees no other future for himself but to be a master goldsmith like his father until he is selected to find a way to a legendary city whose streets are paved with gold. Living in a community that creates objects in gold, fifteen-year-old Aracco knows he doesn't want to be a master goldsmith like his father but sees no other future for himself until, when the supply of gold is threatened, he is selected to find a way to a legendary city whose streets are paved with gold

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From School Library Journal:

Grade 7 Up-- In this overwrought fantasy, 15-year-old Aracco, unhappily apprenticed to a goldsmith, labors under the weight of his father's reputation as the finest goldsmith in their town. He longs instead to be a goldclimber and seek new sources of ore for his village. Numerous story lines run through this book, ranging from Aracco's quest for self-actualization to the accidental death of his best friend to the potential appointment of a girl to the goldsmithing guild. Luenn's hallmark gentle and somewhat formal prose, while effective in her shorter works, here becomes dense and inelegant, distancing readers and lessening empathy for the characters. Further, Aracco's self-absorption, although possibly an accurate representation of some adolescents' behavior, can be offputting and frustrating, as he constantly fails to interpret the actions and motivations of others correctly despite heavyhanded hints from the author. While Luenn masterfully creates dramatic tension when describing her characters' actions, she is less successful at establishing their motivation. And in her efforts to flesh out fully her world of Meged, she has diluted her story's energy and impact. Imperfect but passable, and not on an emotional par with previous efforts. --Dorothy Houlihan, White Plains Public Library, NY
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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