In this new story set in the world of The Anvil of the World and The House of the Stag, two teenagers join the crew of a huge river barge after their addict mother is drowned. The girl and her half-breed younger brother try to make the barge their new home. As the great boat proceeds up the long river, we see a panorama of cities and cultures, and begin to perceive patterns in the pirate attacks that happen so frequently in the river cities. Eliss, the girl, becomes a sharp-eyed spotter of obstacles in the river for the barge, and more than that, one who perceives deeply.
A young boy her age, Krelan, trained as a professional assassin, has come aboard, seeking the head of a dead nobleman, so that there might be a proper burial. But the head proves as elusive as the real explanation behind the looting of cities, so he needs Eliss’s help. And then there is the massive Captain of the barge, who can perform supernatural tricks, but prefers to stay in his cabin and drink.
The Bird of the River
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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Fans mourning Baker's death earlier this year will be comforted by this gentle conclusion to 2009's The House of the Stag and 2010's The Anvil of the World. Teen Elissa is left orphaned and guilt-ridden when her addict mother dies in a diving accident. She supports herself and her younger half-brother by odd-jobbing on a huge river barge, visiting colorful towns on their way upstream. As Elissa gradually becomes invaluable to the Bird's crew by spotting dangerous river snags, she also learns to see through human subterfuge while accompanying Krelan, lesser son of an assassin family, who's investigating the murder of one of his family's wealthy clients. Satisfyingly exotic local color, a boatload of convincing characters with a captain touched by the supernatural, and a realistic treatment of young love make this an unusually sensitive growing-up tale. (July)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From Booklist
Baker’s even, fluid writing perfectly complements this sensitive tale set in the same universe as The Anvil of the World (2003) and The House of the Stag (2008). Half-siblings Eliss and Alder encourage their drug-addict mother to sign on as a diver with the river maintenance barge, the Bird of the River. Although their mother dies before they can settle in, they stay with the barge, and Eliss quickly finds her place as an invaluable lookout. Her observational skills are particularly handy in aiding Krelan, a young assassin working undercover to find the murderer of a Diamondcut noble. Alder, however, longs to pursue his Yendri heritage and jumps ship as soon as he is able. As the barge travels upstream, Eliss and Krelan run afoul of bandits who seem to be one step ahead of the port towns they sack. With authentic characters, subtle romance, and convincing dual mysteries, a wandering life on the Bird of the River is a satisfying one indeed. Those mourning Baker’s death in January will be moved by this addition to her legacy. --Krista Hutley
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Sadly, Kage's last book...,
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This review is from: The Bird of the River (Hardcover)
Eliss is a teenage girl living an itinerant life with her drug-addicted mother and young brother. Her mother, formerly a successful diver, now has trouble keeping a job because her drug habit has damaged her lungs, but she's given a chance on the Bird of the River, a huge raft-like boat that travels and trades up and down the river on year-long journeys. Eliss shows some talent as a look-out, spotting blockages and snags upriver, and even her young brother Alder, who is half Yendri and has experienced discrimination before, feels at home with the more open-minded crew of the Bird of the River, so life finally seems to settle down... but everything changes when Eliss spots a snag that, upon further examination, proves to be a nobleman's sunken pleasure ship -- containing, among other things, the nobleman's headless corpse.The Bird of the River is the last novel by Kage Baker, who passed away earlier this year. The novel is set in the same fantasy universe as The Anvil of the World and The House of the Stag, but even though there are some references to the characters and events from the earlier novels, The Bird of the River can be read as a standalone without any knowledge of the previous books. One of the most distinctive characteristics of Kage Baker's style was her sly tone and dry wit. Unfortunately, this is mostly missing in The Bird of the River. Instead, large chunks of the novel have an almost YA-like tone. In the first half of the novel, the story flows and meanders gently, much like the river on which it is set, and mostly lacks the edge that I loved so much in the author's COMPANY novels, her other fantasies, and especially her excellent short stories. However, this apparent simplicity is deceptive, as the straightforward coming-of-age narrative also contains a dark, biting story of class and race discrimination that becomes more apparent later in the novel. Many of the characters are usually too busy to reflect on their lives or be aware of the world outside of their small circle, but there's actually a lot happening in this novel right from the start: Eliss' brother Alder struggles with his racial identity, and Eliss herself slowly learns that there's more to the world than the poverty and discrimination she grew up in. Right on the boat, there's the mysterious Captain Glass (who gets staggeringly drunk every time the boat pulls into a harbor), the intriguing and elegant cartographer Pentra, and of course Krelan, the passenger who comes on board incognito to track down the nobleman's killer. There are a lot of interesting things going on right from the start, but it takes a while for the otherwise very observant main character, who is still adjusting to massive changes in her life, to notice them. Part coming-of-age novel, part adventure story, part social commentary, part whodunit, The Bird of the River is a charming, enjoyable fantasy novel that's definitely recommended to readers who liked the author's previous fantasy novels. Reading it, it's hard not to feel sad that this is Kage Baker's last novel. I'm sure she had many more great stories to tell, and it's heartbreaking that we'll never get the chance to read them.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Absolutely Charming.,
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This review is from: The Bird of the River (Hardcover)
This is a melancholy book, both because of its subject matter and because it is likely the last Kage Baker book I will ever see published, given her death last January. The speculative fiction field is lessened by her loss, and this book is a reminder of exactly why.I suspect I will be in the minority in holding this opinion. It's a slight book, both in length and in that it is one in which not a whole lot happens. The heavy-duty world-building went on in the previous two novels, and this one is essentially nothing more than a gentle coming-of-age travelogue and romance. It has a likeable young protagonist, some light adventure, some not-very-dark secrets, and a happy ending. All of that is usually enough for a young adult audience, which is why I think it will work best when aimed at that reading level. But that's just the gloss, the stuff the publisher sees (based on the jacket description which, as always with Baker's novels, spoils some things better left unspoiled and gets other things completely wrong). At its core this novel is just as subversive as the two that came before in this gloriously zany fantasy world -- unlike 95% of fantasy written today, it is a novel about the commonplace events that make up the lives of the vast majority of people inhabiting any world, real or imagined. It very gently paints a portrait of the lower classes, the working (and non-working) poor, whose lives are counted so negligibly by the characters portrayed in most fantasy novels. It's about the everyday tragedies of a hard life, and the way small lives get swallowed up by large ones, and the difference that creates in perception. There is a beautiful passage between Eliss and Krelan where they talk about the way they see the universe. Krelan, living amongst the nobility his entire life, waxes on about how ordered the world is, the strict hierarchies keeping everyone in balance, in their place. And Eliss, whose idea of luxury is eating at a Red House (an establishment Krelan thinks terribly declasse) breaks in to say "But there isn't any balance. That's just made up. A Diamondcut can end up dead in the river mud, and a demon can fall in love with a goddess. Things just happen. Sometimes they're even good things." That viewpoint is exactly the viewpoint so often missing from fantasy worlds. This loosely related trilogy, no matter its outer trappings, has always been about the value in seeking happiness, in forming families, in striving to be true to individuals rather than principles, and in enjoying life today, because it is a fragile thing. And that message, when delivered in such a gently beguiling way, is one I hope resonates with everyone who reads it.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A moving book suitable for both teens and adults,
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This review is from: The Bird of the River (Hardcover)
The Bird of the River seems at first glance to be a YA novel, given the inferred but never stated ages of its protagonist Eliss (who may be about 15 when the book begins) and her half-brother Alder (who may be about 10). Their mother Falena is in poor health and addicted to "yellow" (a transparent renaming of opium), leaving Eliss in charge of the family's daily survival. Falena is a sea diver, who since her sailor-husband drowned has sought support for herself, and fathers for her children, in a series of disreputable and/or transient "uncles" (some of them gang lords). Eliss pressures Falena into accepting a job on an enormous, colorful barge called "Bird of the River," a permanent home for numerous families and sub-communities. Falena drowns soon after rescuing Wolkin, the mischievous little son of Mr. Riveter, the first mate. The barge therefore becomes the childrens' home and community. Mr. Riveter and his family informally adopt them. Others keep an eye on them, especially the formerly high-class female cartographer Pentra and the enigmatic Captain (who may be at least partly a water god). As the children float up the river and visit various communities, they receive an education in the broader world. (I was at times reminded of Huckleberry Finn.) Alder is taken under the wing of Yendri passenger Mr. Moss, who puts Alder in touch with his half-Yendri heritage and encourages Alder to begin making his own decisions about his future.The action of the plot, intertwined with this coming-of-age story, begins with Falena's discovery of a corpse in the river (which brought on the heart attack that killed her). Shortly thereafter, a spindly, unattractive boy called Krelan, of about Eliss's age, seeks refuge on the barge. Some reviewers have described Krelan as a professional assassin, but in fact, he is clever but entirely inexperienced at such work. His family are hereditary servants of another very powerful family (and have become wealthy in their own right), whose job is to do whatever that family requires. Krelan has been charged with avenging the death of the Lord Encilian whose body was found, but he suspects it is not the real reason he was sent away. Nonetheless, he is firmly dedicated to what he has been told is his duty. Eliss is attracted to him and helps him to investigate Lord Encilian's fate, which seems to be connected with a series of recent pirate attacks on cities along the river. Despite its YA trappings of teen love and adventure, Bird of the River explores profound ideas about personal identity, whether a family is inherently biological, racial and social prejudice, whether wealth brings happiness and/or real security, education from books versus experience, and duty versus personal choice. Bird of the River also makes a moving statement about art as the definition of a life. The barge has its own group of musicians, one of whom composes a moving (and immediately popular) ballad called "Beautiful Falena," as a tribute to Eliss's mother. At first Eliss is distressed because the ballad romanticizes her mother's hard life, but eventually she sees the truth in many of its metaphors. At the end of the book, she thinks, "Only Alder and I will remember what [Falena's mistakes] were, and when we forget she'll still be a beautiful song." I do not know whether Kage Baker was yet fatally ill when she finished writing Bird of the River, but this could stand as a tribute to her. What we will remember is not the struggling writer who lived unglamorously in Pismo Beach, but her wonderful books. I only hope there are a few more of her stories still unpublished.
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