The Wonder-Smith and his Son, retold by Ella Young

This book is a compilation of Irish folk tales collected by the author, about the Gubbaun Saor. The book was a bit tricky for me because it generally lacked description but had a lot of action, so it felt as if I was lacking some necessary background information to really connect with the story. Additionally, the Wonder-Smith's son is not technically his son. He had only a daughter (and the book fails to tell us how he acquired her, so we can only assume that Mrs. Gubbaun Saor was short-lived and of little significance). One day while lamenting that he had only a daughter to whom he could pass on his wisdom and skills, a woman upon the road was weeping likewise for her fool of a son. Each thinks the other to be in a better position than himself, so they decide to trade. The Wonder-Smith does regret his rash choice- his daughter was both beautiful and wise, and his new son is rather lazy, refusing to learn and only playing music to charm the animals. However, he does eventually marry the Wonder-Smith's daughter, reuniting the family. This was the tale that I enjoyed the most from the book.

Interestingly, this volume is illustrated by the same fellow who did the fabulous black-and-white illustrations for Gay Neck, Boris Artzybasheff. It does seem a little unfair that this guy got to do two of the three 1928 Newbery books, but hey. He's clearly very versatile- Gay Neck's illustrations put me in mind of Russian folktales, while the Wonder-Smith illustrations were much more Celtic and suited to this book. But unfortunately, as is common with many older books, after a point the illustrations fail to align with their proper place in the plot, often falling quite a few pages before the depicted event occurs in the text. Quite a shame!

190 pages but still quick- the story doesn't begin until page 23, and each of the 10 illustrations takes up at least 3 pages between the image itself, its caption, and additional white pages. Also printed in very large font.

Gay-Neck: The Story of a Pigeon, by Dhan Gopal Mukerji

This novel takes place in India, and chronicles how an unnamed boy raises his pigeon, Gay-Neck (an English rendering of his name, which could also be rendered "Iridescence-Throated"), so named for the distinct and bright colors at his throat. The boy was there at Gay-Neck's hatching, and describes how the pigeon was trained to fly, to navigate long distances to return home, and how to be fearless in the sky and avoid predators. The book paints a rich picture of various regions of India- the city, the jungle, and the Himalayas in particular.

As World War I begins to impact the British (and by extension, India) Gay-Neck's owner trains him to carry messages for the British in Europe. Gay-Neck ends up distinguishing himself quite well in battle, and has a well-earned recuperation at home with his wife afterward.

In order to tell the parts of the story that the boy could not have been witness to, the author occasionally permits Gay-Neck to tell his own story. However, the voice of the narrator in both cases is so calm that I didn't feel like I was truly impacted by the threats Gay-Neck (and his human counterparts) experienced in the war, which is unfortunate. So the last third of the book really failed to hold my interest. But until that point it held my attention very well!

Perhaps I'm still a bit enamored of Dencey, but I think she might have been a better winner.

Downright Dencey, by Caroline Dale Snedeker

When I first saw the title of this book, the picture I had in my mind was that of an incorrigible tomboy who gets herself into neighborhood scrapes. I was so completely wrong! In the context of the publication date, the word "downright" is actually used in its obsolete form, meaning "forthright".

Of the books I have read for this blog thus far, this one is my favorite! It's charming and easily-readable.

The book takes place in 1800's Nantucket, when whaling was still the island's primary industry and a great number of the island's inhabitants were Quakers. Young Dionis Coffyn ("Dencey") lives with her parents and a large number of cousins. Her aunt died in childbirth while her uncle was away at sea, so her mother, Lydia, took in all of the children so they would still be a family when their father returns. Also in her life, if not in her home, are her Congregationalist grandfather (who gives whippings in her father's absence, and scares her with hellfire and brimstone sermons) and her aunt Lovesta (who is attentive and loving, unlike Dencey's own mother, who is severe and distant).

While walking home from school with a group one day, she sees a group of boys taunting the island outcast, Sam Jetsam. Sam has no proper last name- his father found him shipwrecked during a voyage and brought him home to his Indian wife. He abandoned the family shortly after that, but life with Indian Jill is also no picnic- she is cruel and violent. Sam is also unruly and uneducated- and perfectly scornable by those of more elite parentage. Although she was only a witness, Jetsam assumes Dencey to be one of his tormentors and calls her a "nigger-face, portugee girl". To be honest, I would have chosen to omit the "n-word" from my summary of this book, but I found it interesting that in this time and place, it indicated Portuguese origin (this is corroborated elsewhere in the book), which was utterly shameful.

Dencey, with her dark complexion and brown hair, has always felt a bit touchy about her appearance when compared to the other Coffyns and Coffins, and immediately gives chase. She eventually succeeds at striking Jetsam with a thrown rock, but when she sees the cut in his shirt and the blood on his back she is immediately remorseful. She knows that she has injured some one much less fortunate than herself, but when she tries to apologize, Jetsam pushes her away and assaults her with a barrage of epithets and foul language.

Dencey knows that she must receive Jetsam's forgiveness, and her mother agrees to go to Injun Jill's home with her to ask for it. However, Lydia becomes preoccupied in helping caring for a woman whose husband's ship has just sailed into port (unfortunately, with the husband's dead body aboard). Dencey picks out her favorite keepsake, a gift from her father, as a peace offering, and slips off herself to speak to Jetsam.

Jetsam is still angry and breaks her gift, but when he sees Dencey's persistence, he tells her he wants her book. The Pilgrim's Progress is the only book that she owns all to herself, and she often uses it at school to instruct the younger pupils. But she is willing to make the sacrifice and agrees to give it to Jetsam, to her great sadness. After a while, Jetsam admits that the book is of no use to him, as he cannot read. He offers Dencey a bargain: he will forgive her, but not until she has taught him to read, using the book.

Dencey agrees, but finds herself having to sneak off and lie perpetually to her mother, as she knows she would never be permitted to associate with Jetsam in public, let alone in private. These sins are extremely troubling to her, but after time she is found out by her mother and forced to confess everything.

I won't spoil the remainder of the book for you, but there's a whoooooole other half beyond what I've described. It's such a fun and easy read, and the characters, even the peripheral ones, are well-developed and three-dimensional. I fully recommend this one!