Customer Reviews

Sang Spell

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

and read this book. I wasn't sure if it would be good or not, but I desperately needed something to read and ordered it from a book club. I was hooked from the first compelling sentence. Josh had to go to Texas to live with his aunt after his mother's death. Hitchiking to his destination, he got beaten up by a man who offered him a ride. Later, a woman in a horse and buggy took him to Canara, an alternate universe. He was confused about the unusual civilization, but time unraveled the mysteries and his grief. Soon, he made friends and developped loyalty towards the town. Will he ever be able to leave? Does he want to? I highly suggest you read it to discover what happens.

Josh is an average teenager with a good life, until his mother is killed in a car crash. He decides that instead of taking the bus down to Texas to live with his aunt, he wants to hitch~hike. When he decided to turn off the main highway onto an isolated road, he is picked up by a stranger who gives him a ride instead of walking out in the rain and cold. When he is attacked by the driver, he is left by the side of the road with no money, no food, and a broken rib. Josh is picked up by a woman with a horse and a wagon and comes to live with the people of Canara. When he heals and makes friends, he decides to leave Canara, and be on his way. The only thing is, there's just no way he can get out...

I really liked this book mainly because it kept you in suspense chapter after chapter. Every time Josh tried to leave Canara, he couldn't, and that left me wondering what would happen to him next. The author made his adventures easy to understand, but sometimes I had to go back and read a chapter, to search for key events or clues. I also liked the fact that there was a little romance tied into the story. It added a realistic touch to the plot. The ending was good, and would make a great plot for a sequel to Sang Spell.

I didn't like when Josh was back in Canara for days at a time. It got boring when there was no action, and the pages seemed to go on forever.

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who is looking for an adventure as well as a fast, easy read book.

I picked this book up for a book report after looking at the recommended books list. I wasn't expecting much because most of the books on the list aren't that great. Sang Spell was very suspenseful, and sometimes frusterating. It was a bit of a scary feeling to be trapped in an unknown world. The ending was good, and I wasn't sure what to expect. I'm not sure how I would have ended it. Another great story by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor!

When Josh Vardy's mother dies in a totally preventable car accident, Josh decides to go live with his aunt in Texas for the two years left until he is eighteen. He wants to have a sort of adventure, so he trys to hitchhike there, which is a long way from Boston. Somewhere between Tenessee and Virginia, he is picked up by a man who jumps him, takes his money, and leaves him on the side of the road to die. But then, some strange people with a horse and buggy come and save him. He is appreciative at first, until he realizes he is stuck in a world that time must have missed, a world where buildings come and go and the landscape changes daily. All Josh wants is his normal life back, but "to go foreward, you must go back," the Old One Who Remembers, Isobel, says. It turns out truer than Josh can imagine in this land of Canara where space is time, time is space, and your only jailer is yourself. I have read many books, but this one is different. It is a great book for teens and adults as well- I'm sure that each one of us is secretly trapped in our own, personal Canara, where we are the key to our own escape, the only decider of our future, and our past, for that matter. I strongly reccomend this book to anyone and everyone- you won't be disappointed.

I read Sang Spell, by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. It is a story of a boy, Josh Vardy, who recently lost his mother and is hitchhiking down to Dallas (from Boston) to live with his aunt. However, along the way something happens and he finds himself lost in the Appalachian Mountains, in a small, almost medieval, settlement called Canara. While in Canara Josh is put to work digging ginseng, or `sang as the natives call it, to earn his keep in the small establishment. Throughout his stay, Josh goes on somewhat of a spiritual journey to find his way out of Canara. He believes that the ginseng has something to do with him being stuck, hence the title of the book, Sang Spell. The plot is intriguing, yet confusing in parts. Aside from that however, I enjoyed this book. It had good character development, details and many twists. Overall, Sang Spell was very well written and had a truly original plot. It was the perfect cross between fantasy, mystery and suspense.
There are many fantasy elements in this story. One, for instance, is the fact that Canara moves throughout the Appalachians during the night. One day it'll be north the next it may be farther south. This element keeps the book interesting because you never know quite where they are or what state Canara is in. In the book, many times, this movement keeps Josh from escaping Canara, for before he can leave he needs to know where he is and what direction he needs to go. Another example of the fantasy elements in Sang Spell is the fact that when Josh first attempts to leave Canara, he ends up back where he started. The path he took had no fork in it nor a bend, so how is such a thing possible? Read and find out.

Sang Spell is also full of is suspense. Many times in the book Josh is threatened by Kaspar, another young man whom, like Josh, stumbled into Canara and is also trapped. Kaspar often demands that Josh help him escape, threatening him with a jack knife. This always kept me wondering whether or not Josh would get out of Canara alive. In addition to this, near the end Josh is being chased at sundown as he tries to escape Canara. This kept me reading. I was curious to whether or not he would be caught. However I cannot tell you the out come of it, you'll have to read and find out.
Throughout the book the author continually refers back to one saying, `sometimes to go forward, you have to go back'. But what does this mean? It is the reason Josh cannot leave Canara, at least not until he's "ready", but what does it have to do with him leaving? I can't tell. This is one of the main mysterious elements in Sang Spell. Another particular example, is that Canara is repeatedly referred to as "a place of healing", but why? This as well, is not revealed until the end. A final example of this book's mysterious elements are, why some people, born in Canara, can go to "The Edge", and others cannot, or why only some who stumble upon the place find their way out. So, as you can see, there are many things that go unexplained until the very end.
Sang Spell is an adventurous story mixed with supernatural events, hidden answers and thrills. It's a winner, with a little mystery, a dash of suspense and a pinch of fantasy. All the twists thrown in keep your eyes glued to the pages. I would recommend Sang Spell to anyone who has ever felt like they have lost their way. This book is all about finding yourself and renewing your spirits. It is a truly inspirational tale and gave me a new view on society. I hope anyone who reads it will find it as entertaining as I did.

A few punches to the face and a kick to the ribs was all the thief needed to render him unconscious. As he wakes up, he is on a wagon entering a strange village where he can't escape from. Who are these people? Where is he? How does he get home? Will he get home? Author Phyllis Naylor wrote an extraordinary book. I guarantee you have never read anything like this. I strongly advise that everyone reads Sang Spell.

The title of this book was a little weak. In my opinion, Sang Spell doesn't really fit the book until the way end when everything is clear. Josh is trapped in a strange village that he can not find his way out of. He wanders what is holding him in this strange, hidden village. While he is staying there, he has to work with the farm people and pick ginseng. Once they harvest they sell their crop to Japanese traders. Readers find out three quarters of the way through the book that the ginseng has a lot to do with why Josh can't leave. This theme doesn't make sense to me. Why does the ginseng have a strange power to keep him in the village? The reader is not going to be interested in a book that has ginseng in the title. Sang Spell sounds like a weak book. There is nothing in that title that makes me want to pick the book up. The fact of the matter is that his book is a really good book. The title should be a little more attention getting. This would make readers want to pick the book up; something that grabs your attention from the start. Ginseng and spell are two dull words, and aren't that much brighter when they are put together. This is a really good book and the title takes away from that. The reason that I picked up Sang Spell is, a friend from Tolland had this book on a required summer reading list. I read the book and thought that it was really good. Her writing style kept my attention throughout the whole book. She wrote in a way to keep the reader guessing. For example, she didn't reveal the significance of ginseng until the way out. The reader wonders the whole time why Josh can't leave the village. Another aspect of her writing that amazes me is how she shows the characters emotions so clearly. The whole time I was reading the book I felt what Josh was feeling. I felt like I knew what he was going through. I felt the frustration that he felt. That makes the book really hard to put down. When you feel like your in the book and you can relate to what's going on this makes the book more interesting. Another reason that the book was so good was the fact that the story could never happen in real life. The story is like that thing you dread most and would figure would never happen, but then you say to yourself, but what if? It's interesting to read about something like that. She is a great author and has a really good writing style. Her writing is hard to put down and connect with her readers. To sum up, Sang Spell, was a great book. She is one of those authors that you never get sick of. The book was hard to put down. Full of suspense and assumption, this book isn't one to pass.

Stuck in Canara is the situation Josh finds himself in after trying to hitch his way to Texas. Josh's mother died a couple weeks before Josh starts his junior year of high school. He decides to live with his aunt in Texas. But before he got there, one driver who picked Josh up beat and robbed him and left him on the side of the road. That is where Leone, a mute woman, finds Josh and brings him to the village of Canara where to go forward, you must first go back.

Soon Josh discovers the people in Canara are all Melungeons - people of mixed races. He also discovers a kind girl named Mavis and befriends a boy named Gil. But Canara isn't where Josh belongs. He wants to go to texas, but can't seem to get out of Canara.

What is happening? Why can't Josh get out? And does he really have the heart to leave Mavis and Gil?

I really like Sang spell because it was a bit creepy, had a little bit of history, dealt with moral dilemmas, and was totally original. If you are looking for any of these qualities in a book, get Sang Spell.

Wow what a great read! I purchased this book to lend out to 4th and 5th graders who loved reading Shiloh as a class. I read it first. Unfortunately, there's a page and a half skinny dipping scene. It's tasteful and in context, but I can't send this book home in a book bag without risking parent complaint. School age appropriate: 16.

This book was so good just when you thought you had it figured something else happened. This book was what I call a page turner. It ws sooooooooooooooo hard to put down. YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK

I read this book about 3 years ago and LOVED IT. I was trying to think of books I've read in the past, and this book is still in my top 5. I don't remember the details very much, but I remember that I finished the book in three days, and that says a lot about it because I'm not a very good reader. I couldn't put it down!
Ever since, I've been looking for a book like this one; it kept me interested and eager to know what was going to happen next.

I recommend this book for younger and older readers. I'm going to read it again, I'm sure. =)