Gypsy Rizka [Hardcover]

Lloyd Alexander (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 8 and up

Master storyteller Lloyd Alexander centers his newest tale around a clever, engaging gypsy girl who, with her feline sidekick, is always at the center of everything. Jaunty, outspoken, and unable to suffer fools, Rizka is the kind of person everyone in town has strong feelings about--she is either loved or despised. Since no one can ever get the better of her, certain "respectable" citizens of their small old-world hamlet want to rid the town of the troublemaker. If only someone had the brains to think up something that could do the trick. Laced with laughs throughout, the novel is told through episodically linked chapters about the absurd inhabitants of the town and their interactions with Rizka. Full of foibles, farce, fun-poking, and buffoonery, it is high comedy as much as a celebration of Rizka's brains and brassiness, her flouting of conventions, and her own brand of magic. Despite the foolishness, the book is infused with Alexander's recognition and respect for the rich and good heart of its main character and the human truth of accepting others' differences.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

"Skinny as a smoked herring; long-shanked, bright-eyed, with cheekbones sharp enough to whittle a stick," the half-Gypsy girl Rizka lives with her impudent cat, Petzel, in a dilapidated caravan just outside the town of Greater Dunitsa. On her own since her mother died, Rizka awaits the day when her Gypsy father will return to sweep her off with him to the traveling life. In the meantime, the sharp-witted urchin keeps busy deflating the pretensions of the town's most complacent burghersAand being a true friend to those few who appreciate her worth. Rich with comic exaggeration and the folksy cadences of a tall tale, Rizka's sassy escapades include outwitting the town's narrow-minded Chief Councillor Sharpnack, furthering two local romances, impersonating Greater Dunitsa's resident ghost and sharing the wonders of Ali Baba's cave with the dreamy, book-loving town clerk. The narrative brings to mind the author's lighthearted Vesper Holly books rather than his more serious-minded Westmark trilogy; a sweetly poignant conclusion draws together the various episodes while making a gentle point about the importance of family, home and friendship. Ages 8-12.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 5-8-Master storyteller Alexander has another winner in this story of Rizka, a young Gypsy living alone in her wagon on the outskirts of Greater Dunitsa while awaiting the return of her father. Her irrepressible and quick-witted style of helping the townspeople exposes their ridiculous foibles as she tricks them with ruses that create hilarious situations yet turn out for the best. Rizka has her finger in everything: runaway lovers; floods; magical caves; and the dreaded Zipple, a relentless breeze that drives the citizens a little crazy. While she evokes either adoration or aggravation in the town, at the book's conclusion, when the Gypsies finally return but with news of her father's death, Rizka learns the real meaning of family and community. Much in the novel is familiar in structure, characterization, style, and theme to previous works by Alexander: an imaginary land; an array of wonderfully exaggerated characters; events as a series of comic twists and turns; and humor that is farcical, satirical, tongue-in-cheek, and often derived from playing on words. But what is most quintessential Alexander is the creation of a strong heroine adept at triumphing by her wits. What is less familiar here is the plot. Gypsy Rizka reads like a series of vignettes, driven less by a strong story and a thematic wrestle between good and evil than earlier novels. Rizka is cut from the same cloth as the bright and brassy Mickle from the "Westmark" trilogy and the plucky star of the five titles in the "Vesper Holly" series. Fans will be delighted.
Connie Tyrrell Burns, Mahoney Middle School, South Portland, ME
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: Dutton Juvenile; 1st edition (April 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0525461213
• ISBN-13: 978-0525461210
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,471,116 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Few writers have inspired as much affection and interest among readers young and old as Lloyd Alexander. At one point, however, it seemed unlikely that he would ever be a writer at all. His parents could not afford to send him to college. And so when a Philadelphia bank had an opening for a messenger boy, he went to work there. Finally, having saved some money, he quit and went to a local college. Dissatisfied with not having learned enough to be a writer he left at the end of one term. Adventure, he decided was the best way. The United States had already entered World War II. Convinced that here was a chance for real deeds of derring-do, he joined the army -- and was promptly shipped to Texas where he became, in disheartening succession an artilleryman, a cymbal player in the band, an organist in the post chapel, and a first-aid man. At last, he was assigned to a military intelligence center in Maryland. There he trained as a member of a combat team to be parachuted into France to work with the Resistance. "This, to my intense relief, did not happen," says Alexander. Instead, Alexander and his group sailed to Wales to finish their training. This ancient, rough-hewn country, with its castles, mountains, and its own beautiful language made a tremendous impression on him. But not until years later did he realize he had been given a glimpse of another enchanted kingdom. Alexander was sent to Alsace-Lorraine, the Rhineland, and southern Germany. When the war ended, he was assigned to a counterintelligence unit in Paris. Later he was discharged to attend the University of Paris. While a student he met a beautiful Parisian girl, Janine, and they soon married. Life abroad was fascinating, but eventually Alexander longed for home. The young couple went back to Drexel Hill, near Philadelphia, where Alexander wrote novel after novel which publishers unhesitatingly turned down. To earn his living, he worked as a cartoonist, advertising writer, layout artist, and associate editor for a small magazine. It took seven years of constant rejection before his first novel was at last published. During the next ten years, he wrote for adults. And then he began writing for young people.Doing historical research for Time Cat he discovered material on Welsh mythology. The result was The Book of Three and the other chronicles of Prydain, the imaginary kingdom being something like the enchanted land of Wales. In The Remarkable Journey of Prince Jen Alexander explored yet another fantastic world. Evoking an atmosphere of ancient China, this unique multi-layered novel was critically acclaimed as one of his finest works. Trina Schart Hyman illustrated The Fortune-tellers as a Cameroonian folktale sparkling with vibrant images, keen insight and delicious wit. Most of the books have been written in the form of fantasy. But fantasy, Alexander believes, is merely one of many ways to express attitudes and feelings about real people, real human relationships and problems

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another gem from the prolific Lloyd Alexander, December 18, 1999

By 

Jennifer Mo - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Gypsy Rizka (Hardcover)

Gypsy Rizka, the latest in a long line of wonderful books from the fantastic Lloyd Alexander, fully lives up to the whimsical quality and surprisingly moral value of its predecessors.

A deviation from Alexander's usual quest type fantasy (The Arkadians, The Chronicles of Prydain, The Iron Ring, etc.), Gypsy Rizka is not based on any sort of mythology and stays within one small and rather idiosyncratic town. Alexander's standard cast is also refreshingly changed; Rizka is certainly no Eilonwy, though she bears a little resemblance to Vesper in her quick wittedness and propensity for managing the business of others. Rizka is almost a sort of Robin Hood; helping the good and teaching the corrupt a lesson. There is no magic in Gypsy Rizka, save that of Rizka's extraordinary cleverness and the chapters are loosely connected and episodic with Rizka's extremely amusing antics as the uniting theme.

If I had one complaint about this excellent book (complete with several diverting allusions to Romeo and Juliet) it would be that it is somewhat difficult to keep the multitudinous townsmen straight. Most remain caricatures throughout the book. However, it is an easily forgiven flaw in such a fun story. Those who enjoyed Alexander's unique style in Gypsy Rizka may want to continue on with his Vesper Holly adventures and then move to his quest-type novels.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Great from Alexander, June 29, 2001

By 

John (United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Gypsy Rizka (Paperback)

Lloyd Alexander is probably the greatest children's author living today. Gypsy Rizka is another great book by the master. Alexander has always brought strong heroines to children's lit. Rizka is yet another great to add to the list: Eilonwy from The Prydain Chronicles, Mickle from the Westmark Trilogy, Isabel from The Marvelous Misadventures of Sebastian, and Vesper Holly from her own books (there are also a few more which I haven't gotten to yet). This novel, besides its excellent characters, has a lot of humor. Alexander displays his unbelieveable imagination with the unusual methods Rizka utilizes to get out of trouble. Nobody mixes high adventure with humor as well as Alexander. The prose in this novel is unbelievably polished also. Gypsy Rizka doesn't have as much depth as some of Alexander's other novels, but there are not very many childrens books that can entertain like this one can. Overall, Gypsy Rizka is an amazing novel.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Filled w/ Alexander's colorful charactor and witty satire., August 6, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Gypsy Rizka (Hardcover)

In his book Gypsy Rizka, Lloyd Alexander presents us with a town in which the well-meaning townspeople go about their business, as well as everyone else's, the merchants are only slightly corrupted, and the officials are only slightly honest. In other words, it would be a fairly average town; the townspeople looking out for each other and for gossip, the merchants passing off week old cheeses and fish as merely days old, and the official's purses steadily being replaced by larger ones, that is it would be an average town if it weren't for Rizka. Rizka is a gypsy, living on the outskirts of town in her wagon during the night but by day stirring up whatever mischief she can in town just like any other gamin. But it is soon clear that Rizka is no ordinary gamin. She'll stir up mischief a- plenty, but only that which will be a benefit to those living in the town. She cannot abide the mayor's silly feud that is tearing apart two love-struck individuals, nor can she stand the magistrate's tainted justice. She believes it her duty to help out her friends, so she does just that in the most comic scenarios all throughout Alexanders clever satire. And yes, Gypsy Rizka is a satire, though quite mild, it is no less amusing or witty than Shakespeare or Gogol. In the end, of course Rizka manages to clean up the town, or at least most of it, and finally has to face her own future. Gypsy Rizka is a wonderful book, filled with Alexander's zany incidents and madcap fun that is sure to adhere you to the story right up to the very last page.