Eidi: The Children of Crow Cove (The Children of Crow Cove Series) [Hardcover]

Bodil Bredsdorff (Author), Kathryn Mahaffy (Translator)

Book Description

Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up | Series: The Children of Crow Cove Series

Some years have passed since the Crow-Girl set off on a journey, met Eidi and her mother, Foula, along with a few others, and persuaded them to come live near the little cove where a brook runs out to the sea. But when Foula has another baby, Eidi feels there’s no longer room for her in the settlement. So she leaves Crow Cove to make her own way in the world, hoping to help her old friend Rossan with his wool out on the heath. Fate, however, brings her to a harbor town where she must find work, and she takes a position as a weaver in the household of a wealthy merchant. In town, Eidi faces disturbing reminders of her past. She also meets a neglected boy named Tink and soon makes a decision that changes the course of both of their futures.

The second book in the Children of Crow Cove series is beautifully written in Bodil Bredsdorff’s spare style and will deeply satisfy fans of The Crow-Girl and new readers alike.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 4–7—In The Crow-Girl (Farrar, 2004), Bredsdorff introduces readers to a group of characters composed of tattered remnants of families that death or pain have dissolved. That background is missing here, leaving readers a bit puzzled as to how they are related, but it soon doesn't matter as Eidi takes over the tale. The daughter of Foula, who has a new husband and a new baby, Eidi feels uncertain of her place in the household. She travels with a kindly neighbor, Rossan, to the city, where she finds a needy orphan, a young boy named Tink, cruelly mistreated by his stepfather. Eidi gradually grows to understand her own desires, abilities, and power as she nurtures Tink and fights for his survival and her own. The time and place are quite vague; the author brings to life a simply functioning world similar to that found in fairy tales—a place that is both specific and universal. Lyrically told, the narrative provides apt descriptions of events and of the natural world. Readers easily decode the motivations and inner thoughts revealed in the actions and words of the characters who are vividly and quickly delineated but possess lively complexities. An excellent follow-up for fans of the first book.—Carol A. Edwards, Denver Public Library, CO
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Review

“Like the previous book in the Children of Crow Cove series, this unassuming yet compelling story is notable for the simplicity and power of the storytelling, the clarity of description and characterization, and the humanity of the ideas at the novel’s heart.” —Starred, Booklist

“[A] heartfelt story of love and belonging.” —Kirkus Reviews

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR); First Edition edition (October 13, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0374312672
• ISBN-13: 978-0374312671
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,219,186 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Rutgers University Project on Economics and Children, October 31, 2009

By 

Yana V. Rodgers "econkids.rutgers.edu" (New Brunswick, NJ) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Eidi: The Children of Crow Cove (The Children of Crow Cove Series) (Hardcover)

After the birth of her baby brother, Eidi became convinced that her mother did not have as much room in her heart, or in the house, for her. Given Eidi's wandering past, it was not a difficult decision to leave the tiny Crow Cove settlement in pursuit of self-sufficiency and new opportunities. A brief stay out on the heath with her old friend Rossan, whom she had helped in earlier days to card wool from his sheep, led to a trip to the seaport town of Eastern Harbor in order to sell the wool.

This bustling town provided Eidi the opportunity to pick up some valuable bargaining skills in the marketplace as well as a paid job as weaver for the town's wealthiest merchant. Yet serendipity placed a young, vulnerable boy into her life, thus adding a whole new dimension to her decisions about independence, caring, and well-being.

Thoroughly intertwined in this engrossing short novel are some important economics lessons related to selling goods and services in the marketplace. Although the book comes as the second in the Children of Crow Cove Series, readers can thoroughly understand and appreciate Eidi without having read the first critically-acclaimed installment. A well-developed protagonist, careful story-telling, and a timeless setting all add to the charm and readability of this Danish contribution.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bright and Brave, November 12, 2009

By 

Kemie Nix "Founder, Children's Literature for... (Peachtree City, GA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: Eidi: The Children of Crow Cove (The Children of Crow Cove Series) (Hardcover)

Escaping from a harsh stepfather, Eidi and her mother Foula are brought to live at Crow Cove by Myna. They live there happily until Foula marries Fried, and they have a baby. A master spinner and weaver, Eidi, who feels that the cottage is now too crowded, decides to make her way in the world by working. She will start by going to her old friend Rossan to help him with his wool. He, however, has decided to take his baled wool to a harbor town to sell. He leaves his farm on the heath in the care of a nephew, and he and Eidi set off to a market in Eastern Harbor where they can stay with his sister. Rossan suffers a fall, and, by the hardest, Eidi manages to get him to his sister's house where he can recover in bed. Eidi learns
to haggle in order to sell Rossan's bales of wool, which she does successfully.


Once on the way home from the market, she hears a woman's scream. Running
between the woman and the man beating her, she receives a terrible blow to her head. The man is her stepfather, but, fortunately, he doesn't recognize her. This blow leaves her with a strange ringing in her head that occurs only when she is endangered. She learns to heed this inner warning. Eidi is eventually hired by Brandom, the richest merchant in town, and she weaves shawls for him to sell.

Eidi tries to protect and help a small boy who lives with Brandom in abject slavery and persecution. Finally, Tink is so abused that Eidi decides to rescue him. She cuts her hair, disguising herself as a boy, and dresses Tink as a girl. Knowing Brandom will search for them, she takes Rossan's horse and flees. Tink is almost catatonic with terror.

This author seems to writes a straight-forward story of a girl who lives a simple, rural life, but it resonates on a deeper level. Her prose may seem gentle,but it is also compelling and carries forebodings that can be quite frightening. Fortunately, her heroine is bright and brave and manages to rescue both Tink and herself.

5.0 out of 5 stars Heartwarming, June 24, 2011

By 

Erika - See all my reviews

This review is from: Eidi: The Children of Crow Cove (The Children of Crow Cove Series) (Hardcover)

I really liked this book. When I started reading it, I thought it started quite slowly as not much happened, but the more I read, the more I quickly started to like it. This is not an action-packed novel or a thriller, yet I still felt compelled to read it.

This is a heartwarming story of a little girl who goes on an adventure- not for the sake of an adventure but because she feels there is no room for her at home. The book chronicles the story of her personal growth. I feel that as the reader, you grow with the character.

I find it rare to read a book that gives you a sense of serenity and happiness as you are reading it, but this book certainly gave me those feelings.