Call number
Series
Genres
Publication
New York : Tor, 2010.
Pages
268
Description
Sharp-eyed orphan Eliss and her half-brother make a new home on a river barge and clash with a teen assassin amid an escalating series of pirate attacks on riverside cities.
Awards
Locus Recommended Reading (2010)
Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year (Science Fiction and Fantasy — 2010)
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
2010
Physical description
268 p.; 9.4 inches
ISBN
9780765322968
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User reviews
LibraryThing member bluewoad
From raygunreviews.wordpress.com
There is a bit of sadness here: Kage Baker is one of my favorite authors, yet with her death this past winter, there are not going to be many new books coming from her. The Bird of the River may be one of her very last new books.
Up until now, her fantasy world of
This time out we follow the adventures of teenager Eliss whose drug-addicted mother has brought up Eliss and her half-breed brother, Alder, in poverty. Eliss has often had to take control of the family in order to keep them from starving. Eliss's latest adventure is to return her mother to her roots as a river diver. They become a part of the crew of The Bird of the River, a barge that goes up and down the river, removing snagged trees and harvesting its lumber. However, on her first dive, Eliss's mother encounters a corpse and dies from what appears to be a heart attack.
Eliss and Alder are left alone on The Bird. The crew takes them in and gives them jobs on the barge. Soon, Krelan, a young noble on the run from a family vendetta, joins them and he and Eliss strike up a friendship, even though there is more to Krelan than meets the eye.
The storyline for the novel is mostly about the origin of the body that Eliss's mother finds, but thematically, the book is about growing beyond one's upbringing, whether it's growing beyond poverty and despair, as with Eliss, or growing beyond familial obligation, as Krelan must do.
As is to be expected with a Kage Baker novel, the characters are all well-drawn and very fleshed out. As was evident from her first novel to this, her last, Ms Baker is able with just a few words to create believable and sophisticated characters. As I have done with all of Ms Baker's books, I first read this one aloud to my wife in the evening. And, as with all of her novels, we ripped through it at a much faster pace than other books, wanting to rush to the end, but being disappointed when we got there, knowing we'd have to wait for the next novel to come out. Sadly, there won't be any more 'next novels.' Still, Ms Baker left quite an opus in the short time she was writing, so there's still a lot to return to re-read over and over again.
You're already missed, Kage.
There is a bit of sadness here: Kage Baker is one of my favorite authors, yet with her death this past winter, there are not going to be many new books coming from her. The Bird of the River may be one of her very last new books.
Up until now, her fantasy world of
Show More
the Children of the Sun was enjoyable, but it paled next to her science-fictional Company stories. However, with The Bird of the River, I think she just might have, with her final novel, shown the great potential that that world always promised, but never fully delivered.This time out we follow the adventures of teenager Eliss whose drug-addicted mother has brought up Eliss and her half-breed brother, Alder, in poverty. Eliss has often had to take control of the family in order to keep them from starving. Eliss's latest adventure is to return her mother to her roots as a river diver. They become a part of the crew of The Bird of the River, a barge that goes up and down the river, removing snagged trees and harvesting its lumber. However, on her first dive, Eliss's mother encounters a corpse and dies from what appears to be a heart attack.
Eliss and Alder are left alone on The Bird. The crew takes them in and gives them jobs on the barge. Soon, Krelan, a young noble on the run from a family vendetta, joins them and he and Eliss strike up a friendship, even though there is more to Krelan than meets the eye.
The storyline for the novel is mostly about the origin of the body that Eliss's mother finds, but thematically, the book is about growing beyond one's upbringing, whether it's growing beyond poverty and despair, as with Eliss, or growing beyond familial obligation, as Krelan must do.
As is to be expected with a Kage Baker novel, the characters are all well-drawn and very fleshed out. As was evident from her first novel to this, her last, Ms Baker is able with just a few words to create believable and sophisticated characters. As I have done with all of Ms Baker's books, I first read this one aloud to my wife in the evening. And, as with all of her novels, we ripped through it at a much faster pace than other books, wanting to rush to the end, but being disappointed when we got there, knowing we'd have to wait for the next novel to come out. Sadly, there won't be any more 'next novels.' Still, Ms Baker left quite an opus in the short time she was writing, so there's still a lot to return to re-read over and over again.
You're already missed, Kage.
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LibraryThing member selfnoise
A coming of age story set in Baker's usually lighthearted fantasy world. There are some good characters here and it's an enjoyable read, but it feels like it covers fairly well trodden ground for the most part.
LibraryThing member clews-reviews
Girl finds her place in a colourful world; place is job, family, romance (that's order of importance, not chronology).
LibraryThing member meow9th
This is the third book set in the Children of the Sun world. I really love the world and all the previous books (with the second one, The House of the Stag, I re-read my favourite bits 2-3 times before finally giving the book back to the library), and I think the first one, The Anvil of the World,
I've come to expect comedy and lightheartedness from the characters, even if their enemies are terrible and the racial tensions are grimly realistic. Kage Baker makes you laugh and cry, sometimes at the same time. When the earth-shattering events come to pass, they sneak up on you because you've been too busy laughing at the antics of the characters to notice that, gosh, there is something serious going on.
The Bird of the River differs from this model. It's much more plebian, restricting itself to just Children of the Sun and Yendri (no demons ... or is there?). There are no earth-shattering events (just life-shattering). It's still got funny bits and serious bits and I still laughed and cried, but more inside than out. I also felt that it was darker, a little less humorous in tone, the characters not so lighthearted (or comedic in their gravity).
That's okay. I still love this book, I just loved the other books more because they made me laugh and smile so much more.
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is perfectly hilarious.I've come to expect comedy and lightheartedness from the characters, even if their enemies are terrible and the racial tensions are grimly realistic. Kage Baker makes you laugh and cry, sometimes at the same time. When the earth-shattering events come to pass, they sneak up on you because you've been too busy laughing at the antics of the characters to notice that, gosh, there is something serious going on.
The Bird of the River differs from this model. It's much more plebian, restricting itself to just Children of the Sun and Yendri (no demons ... or is there?). There are no earth-shattering events (just life-shattering). It's still got funny bits and serious bits and I still laughed and cried, but more inside than out. I also felt that it was darker, a little less humorous in tone, the characters not so lighthearted (or comedic in their gravity).
That's okay. I still love this book, I just loved the other books more because they made me laugh and smile so much more.
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LibraryThing member epersonae
LOVE. Totally different from "The Company" books, except in the quality of the writing and the quirky realness of the characters. The main character's complicated relationship with her mother, her brother, and the rest of the world is delicately and thoughtfully drawn. Plus it's got just enough
(I almost cried after finishing, seeing "1952-2010" under her name. So very sad that there won't be any more of these.)
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plot to keep pulling you forward.(I almost cried after finishing, seeing "1952-2010" under her name. So very sad that there won't be any more of these.)
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LibraryThing member eaterofwords
Technically a 3.5. Likeable characters, good world-building and setting. But deus ex machina makes me feel tired and a little spiteful, and I kept expecting, and never quite getting, to get deeper into character motivations and emotional story arcs.
Still, an engaging read, and I plan on reading the
Still, an engaging read, and I plan on reading the
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other books the author has set in this world. Show Less
LibraryThing member AltheaAnn
I am so very sad that there will be no more books set in this world. Story aside, this is just one of those fantasy worlds that you want to fall into and live in for a while… maybe not permanently, as this story and the preceding two novels, Anvil of the World and House of the Stag, show, it’s
More so than the previous two books, this book is definitely YA – but also, less humor-oriented. A young woman, Eliss, is left orphaned and the sole caretaker of her younger, half-Yendri brother, Alder. The children have been victims of their mother’s poor choices for long before her death, and it’s a struggle for both of them to find and come to terms with their identity – and the facts that identity might not be the same for them both, and that their paths may lead in different directions.
I usually have a very low tolerance for books that bring up too many ‘issues’ – but while Bird of the River is quite chock-full of issues and definitely has strong (and positive) messages, they flow so naturally and believably out of the scenarios created here that I had not even a miniscule objection. The story is powerful and effective without being preachy.
Baker also draws a picture of daily life on a working riverboat which, although far from glamorous, is utterly believable (ok, except maybe for the mysterious magical parts). And, there’s also a murder mystery/adventure, and a bit of romance. Good fun on top, and a lot more to think about if you care to spend the time… I think if I had read this when I was 12 or 13, it would’ve been one of my all-time favorites. As it is, I really, really liked it. (And Penta, the cartographer, is amazing.)
I’d recommend this for all 13-yr-olds, all Kage Baker fans, and anyone who liked Robin Hobb’s Liveship books. (They’re not that similar, but something about the feel and the characterization, as well as the shipboard setting, reminded me of them…)
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not a perfect world. It’s gritty, and plagued by many of the same social ills as our own: racism, drug abuse, casual cruelty, the oppression of the poor by the rich… but there’s also a beauty and life to these that’s just pure enjoyment.More so than the previous two books, this book is definitely YA – but also, less humor-oriented. A young woman, Eliss, is left orphaned and the sole caretaker of her younger, half-Yendri brother, Alder. The children have been victims of their mother’s poor choices for long before her death, and it’s a struggle for both of them to find and come to terms with their identity – and the facts that identity might not be the same for them both, and that their paths may lead in different directions.
I usually have a very low tolerance for books that bring up too many ‘issues’ – but while Bird of the River is quite chock-full of issues and definitely has strong (and positive) messages, they flow so naturally and believably out of the scenarios created here that I had not even a miniscule objection. The story is powerful and effective without being preachy.
Baker also draws a picture of daily life on a working riverboat which, although far from glamorous, is utterly believable (ok, except maybe for the mysterious magical parts). And, there’s also a murder mystery/adventure, and a bit of romance. Good fun on top, and a lot more to think about if you care to spend the time… I think if I had read this when I was 12 or 13, it would’ve been one of my all-time favorites. As it is, I really, really liked it. (And Penta, the cartographer, is amazing.)
I’d recommend this for all 13-yr-olds, all Kage Baker fans, and anyone who liked Robin Hobb’s Liveship books. (They’re not that similar, but something about the feel and the characterization, as well as the shipboard setting, reminded me of them…)
Show Less