After the destruction of the English colony on Roanoke Island by hostile Indians forces the survivors to live with a friendly tribe, Virginia Dare finds her first love coming to a tragic and supernatural end.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
This little-known legend about the first English child born in America, Virginia Dare, is smoothly told and elegantly produced. It treats Virginia as a symbol of her Roanoke Island colony, whose inhabitants disappeared sometime between 1587 and 1590. Raised devotedly by Indians, Virginia was killed, the legend relates, when she and her lover fled his rivalmuch as the colony itself was destroyed by rivals. Ultimately, Virginia was reborn in the form of a beautiful white doe that lives eternally, "a ghost deer." Although the meaning of the story is perhaps too subtle some young readers, the plot is strong. Nolan's lush cover picture of the lovers depicts them in flight, hair streaming, against deep green. While most of the other pictures are statically composed, they add to the story's haunting quality. Ages 8-up.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
Grade 4-6 Hooks' story of Virginia Dare, the first English child born in America, begins with the basic historical facts. But from the point where history tells no more, Hooks constructs a fantastic story in which elements of magic and folklore are wildly blended. On Croatoan Island, where the colonists sought shelter from the enmity of Chief Wanchese, the young widow Eleanor Dare falls into madness and throws herself into the sea, leaving the baby Virginia to be adopted by Chief Manteo's mother, Lady Winona. Renamed Ulalee, the child grows up to be courted by two rivals, a handsome young brave and an ugly old medicine man. When the young lovers run away they are caught in a magic ring of fire, and the evil medicine man transforms Ulalee into a white doe. She is shot and becomes a ghost deer, visible even to this day, as she wanders the Great Dismal Swamp. The Legend of the White Doe is handsomely designed with generous margins and graceful print. Readers will linger long over the eight full-page paintings which dramatically illustrate the story. But the tale itself is over-romantic and too fantastic to be credible. It lacks the simplicity and logic of genuine folklore. Historical narratives such as The Lost Colony (Watts, 1972; o.p.) by Dan Lacy have more poignancy in describing the unknown fate of these early settlers than Hooks' elaborately constructed ``legend.'' Shirley Wilton, Ocean County College, Toms River, N.J.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
A story of the mysterious disappearance of Roanoke Colony,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Legend of the White Doe (Library Binding)
The book is set in the New World on an island. This book tells a story about a girl named Virginia Dare, who was the first English child born in the New World. Her mother died when she was five, and then she was adopted by an Indian woman who renamed her Ulalee. When she was grown, she was the prettiest girl. Every man wanted to marry her, but she only fell in love with one, whose name was Okisko. On their wedding day, her adoptive father said Ulalee had already been spoken for by Cipo, the ugly medicine man. Ulalee and Okisko decided to run away from Cipo, but they forgot he was a powerful medicine man. They also had forgotten how mad they had already made him.This is a good book, but the real excitement starts in the middle. It is a nice short book and I would recommend it to people who like suspense and like to read.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful,
This review is from: The Legend of the White Doe (Library Binding)
This is an EXCELLENT book thats very well written. Its a shame that so many people have no idea who Virginia Dare was.
2.0 out of 5 stars
Legend written in 1901,
By
This review is from: The Legend of the White Doe (Library Binding)
The White Doe: The Fate of Virginia Dare was written by Sallie Southall Cotten in 1901. Mrs. Cotten was a very active woman in North Carolina history. Her book is written in the form of poetry and is available from an antique books website. It is my understanding that the legend of the white doe has been around for a very long time. I don't know if Mrs. Cotten was the first to write the white doe/Virginia Dare connection, but this is a very old story and I have discovered several versions in just brief browsing on the internet. One of John Jakes novels was based on an old book Johnny Tremain. I haven't read the book I am reviewing, but how much can one borrow from previous authors?The Legend of the White Doe
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