Customer Reviews

Curse of a Winter Moon

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

When Marius' little brother is born on Christmas Eve, the people in his 16th century French village are superstitious that Jean-Pierre is a loup-garou, a werewolf. This well-researched book relays so much detail about everyday life in a village 400 years ago that it's hard to believe Casanova wasn't there! However, it's the characters who make the book come alive. Marius, his father, Madame Troubene, Brother Gabriel (I hope we hear more about him in another book), the reprehensible Abbott, the all-too-believable butcher . . . these are memorable characters. And what a marvelous hero Marius is. I couldn't put this book down until I had finished it.

My daughter checked out Curse of a Winter Moon from our library and I was interested in the cool yet haunting illustration on the cover. After reading the book, I can say that the cover picture is enigmatic, dark, yet beautiful, and immediately captures author Mary Casanova's twin themes of danger and protection. Marius, a 12-year-old boy who lives in France in the 1500's must try to protect his younger brother, Jean Pierre from the fear and ignorance that often flared into violence in medieval Europe. Because Jean Pierre was born on Christmas eve, the people at that time believed he was cursed by the mark of the loup garou--the werewolf.

The book is filled with many interesting characters--the old woman who cares for the family, the quiet but strong blacksmith father who has more than one secret, Marius, who is so good at playing the lute (like an old form of guitar), and his uncle, Brother Gabriel, a monk who travels all around Europe and is now in the area.

Even after reading the book, I still wonder about some of the characters and what might have happened to them later. Did Jean Pierre stay safe? Did Marius become a professional minstrel? What about Brother Gabriel--did he continue to travel and have an influence on events during such a dark time in history? I hope author Mary Casanova will consider a sequel to this wonderful book. I am looking forward to talking with my 8 and 11 year old daughters about the book after we read it together.

This historical fiction novel is set in 16th century France, a time and place unfamiliar to most readers, yet the reader is immediately pulled into the historical tumult of that era. The characters, first met in a gripping scene of emotional turmoil in which Marius' baby brother is born on Christmas Eve, come fully alive and real and the reader immediately connects with them. The setting, full of sensory images, immerses the reader into time and place, not to mention predicament. An intricate plot builds with suspense and danger, as Marius must take responsibility for his baby brother, whom the villagers suspect is a werewolf because of his Christmas Eve birth. This is an outstanding story. I hope there will be sequels---I want to continue on with these characters!

In "The Curse of a Winter Moon", Marius deals with universal timeless issues of maturity by dealing with the unexpected death of his mother and consequently bearing the responsibility of his little brother, Jean-Pierre. That task wasn't going to be easy considering the townspeople had labeled Jean-Pierre as a loup garou (werewolf), cursed by his birth on Christmas Eve.

The plight of Marius and Jean-Pierre away from the ravage and hypocritical Catholic rule and superstitious villagers keep young adult readers at the edge of the page while dealing with age-old issues of good verses evil.

"Curse of a Winter Moon" is a historical novel set in 16th century France, a time when the Catholic church was ruling with an iron fist - condemning commoners who could read (and consequently think for themselves) as heretics, punishable by death. Marius displays to young readers a maturity that is able to discern right from wrong, strength to endure the villager's contempt for his family, and a hope-based survival mindset for a better future.

I used this novel as a read-aloud in my 10th grade classes. I strongly recommend this novel not only for its believable historical accounts, but also for the gripping story of Marius' eye-opening experiences to the harshness and cruelty of the world and the tenderness and loyalty of the bonds of family. My students would agree, this novel is truly a must read!

I have to admit that this was a book I bought under the excuse of "maybe my nephew will grow into this" when really what I meant was, "Ooh, a kids book with potential werewolf stuff! Mine!"

In actuality, this is a historically plausible book set during the birth of Protestantism (and Calvinism and Lutherism) in a part of France where such thought left one branded a heretic and burned alive. It is a darkly superstitious tale, and one where the main character's brother was born on Christmas Eve, and therefore considered, by local superstition, to be a loup-garou (werewolf).

The story focuses more on the elder son, our hero of the tale, as he tries to cope with his own fears about his brother, his duty to protect his brother (his mother's dying request), and the awareness that anyone different is in danger in this paranoid city. The deft touches of historical realism were well received by me (he wakes, at one point, picks a tick off from behind his ear, and throws it into the fire, in a very casual, 'this happens every day' sort of way).

Definitely a solid bit of work for any child interested in the way things were, and has a nice message tucked in there about blindly following a hateful dogma without question, and just how terrible a thing it can be to do so.

'Nathan

The Curse of a Winter Moon by Mary Casanova is about a boy Jean -Pierre, that is born on christmas eve. He is belived to be a Werewolf and his older brotherhas totake care of him.

The message of the book seems to be when life gets tough just keep your head high and try to get through life.
This book had alot of adventure twists and turns, as well as some scary parts. I didn't like the story's end very much. I though the story was sad.

An historical fiction book set in sixteenth-century France. Marius' mother dies in childbirth when his brother Jean-Pierre is born on Christmas Eve. Her last instruction is for him to take care of his brother. This proves to be a difficult task since peopled believed that those born on that day are loup garou - werewolves. When his father is found guilty of reading (the Bible no less) he is burned at the stake as a heretic. A lot of historical background is packed into this book. The subject matter is dark and serious. Marius' character is well developed and leads the reader deeper into the story. This is the type of book that will encourage readers to read on to find out what happens next. This is also a perfect companion book for units on the Middle Ages.

Predictably lame entry in the werewolf genre, similar to a B movie flick a la The Howling. The scares are few and far between after you've seen Howling V.

Curse of a Winter Moon
By: Mary Casanova

When I picked this book I was looking for a story with a lot of thrills and a mystery horror; now I know that I chose the right book. The book Curse of a Winter Moon is based in Sixteenth century France. The story is based around a child named Marius and he is in charge of taking care of his little brother Jean Pierre. In the story Marius must protect his little brother Jean because Jean was born on Christmas Eve; In the sixteenth century, people believed that if a child was born on Christmas Eve, he is marked with the curse of the Loup-Garou (werewolf). Of course we all know that there is no such a thing as a werewolf but in sixteenth century France there was a superstition and people all thought it was true. In a way Marius has a big burden because his mother's dying request was to protect his brother; Marius in the first part of the story believes his little brother might be a loup-garou. Because of Jean Pierre's curiosity about everything, he usually disappears somewhere. Then Marius starts to get worried that he might have turned into a loup-garou and ran off into the forest; but usually he finds him shortly. One of the scariest parts of the story is when Jean wonders off and Marius starts hearing wolves in the distance and he thinks the devil is calling to his brother. Marius is very worried usually in the story because if the suspicion of Jean Pierre being a loup-garou rises they will try to burn him alive. In sixteenth century France this is a world were heretics are punished by death by the stake. This book I would definitely put in a must read category. I would probably rate this book a 5/5 stars. This book is definitely a great thriller; if you want a story you can't stop reading you have got to read Curse of a Winter Moon by Mary Casanova. If you loved this book some good books you could read are Harry Potter (series) by J.K. Rowling, Wolf in the Door Way by Christine Warren; Scary Stories by Alvin Schwartz and the big bad wolf by Peter Fernandez.
Let me warn you though this story is not for the fain hearted. This book does have some big surprises like someone dies (maybe). This book however is creepy, very creepy so do not read it before sleeping (Warning: You will see wolves staring at you if you read this book at night). Well I hoped you like my review and don't forget to read Curse of a Winter Moon.

Marius is pulled back and forth between his father being a heratic and his brother supposedly a werewolf he tries to help them both but loses one to the law.