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15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
SASKIA HAS A LOT OF 'WORK' TO DO..., October 31, 2001
...meaning, in this case, quite a bit of self-healing and taking a good hard look at her life. It's hard enough to grow through the years of adolescence without the obstacles and hinderances that she encounters in this distrubing but well-written coming of age novel. Some books are more difficult than others when it comes to writing reviews and opinions without throwing out spoilers -- I'll give it a shot, because I feel this is an important book. Saskia is one the most unique, likable characters I've come across in literature. She's intelligent, incredibly imaginative, resilient to an amazing degree, and sensitive. She hasn't had it easy. Her mother is a well-meaning flake who is almost not there at all for her, and her long-absent father, who deigns from time to time to post brief, meaningless missives from the far corners of the earth to his abandoned family has issues of his own -- for the sake of those who have not read the book, I'll leave it at that. Saskia's imagination deserves special mention. Brian Hall has done an incredible job with this aspect of the book -- the language he has chosen for her complements and illustrates her thought processes to a level that I felt like I was privy to her thoughts as they were occurring. She is given a heavy load of responsibilities in caring for the other children who live on the run-down former commune in rural upstate New York, where most of the book takes place. She has been a loner for most of her life -- she is looked upon as an oddity at school. When a new student arrives, and she and Saskia form an almost instantly close bond of friendship, it's a life-chaging experience for her. It is especially admirable that Hall, writing as a male, has homed in so accurately and believably on the bond between these two young girls -- his skills as a writer are impressive, firm and confident, but never forceful. His use of language is extraordinary. Saskia's real trials -- and much of her real happiness -- begin with the arrival of her long-absent father. His return marks a turning point in her life, in her outlook on the world, in her understanding of life itself. As she and her new friend embark upon an adventure -- and quite an adventure it is -- with her father, we can almost feel the growth in her, both physically and emotionally, thanks to Hall's narrative and descriptive skills. Suffice to say at this point that Saskia's life takes a radical turn -- considering her upbringing, it's not too much of a surprise. One of the most uplifting aspects of this story is the strength of character and determination that the young heroine demonstrates. Despite the perils and pitfals that await her, we sense that she's going to come out of it stronger than ever. I suppose one thing that makes this book a bit disturbing to me in some ways is that I'm the father of a 15 year-old girl -- it's a little hard to watch someone so close to her age (Saskia is 12-13 during this story) go through so much. Life is sometimes harrowing. Overall, I must say that this is an uplifting story -- it's very well-written and voiced, compelling and entertaining. There were some characters of whom I was suspicious as soon as they appeared -- I won't identify them, but my suspicions proved correct. You should read this for yourself -- it's a journey you'll remember for some time.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
a strange metamorphosis, October 4, 2004
This review is from: The Saskiad: A Novel (Paperback)
This story begins by introducing the reader to Saskia White, a creative, intelligent 12-year-old with a rich inner life composed of imaginary friends from the past and an interest in a variety of fields from astronomy to history. She is unique among her classmates for being an unrepentant nonconformist, and as such is ostracized by everyone at school. Saskia's life begins to change when she connects with the more world-wise Jane and begins to explore more things external to herself: how suburban people live outside of her ex-hippie commune, the beginnings of sexual exploration, how to share herself with someone who she feels won't betray her. The story starts getting bizarre when Saskia's AWOL father Thomas reenters the picture. In his absence, Saskia has raised him to almost god-like status, a figure of goodness who will harm no one. Thomas indeed portrays himself as a gentle eco-savior when he takes Saskia and Jane on a trip to save a river from being dammed, but he soon reveals a darker side as he seduces 13-year-old Jane (which Saskia perversely encourages) and eventually turns out to be nothing that he's portrayed himself as. Upon their return home, Saskia breaks with Jane, who has become a blind devotee to Thomas even when he puts her aside, and begins a downward slide into disillusionment, ending up as manipulative a figure as Thomas. Along the way she starts conforming to the teen stereotype, losing many of the characteristics that endeared her to the reader in the beginning. Saskia travels to New York City on her own, where she becomes soulless as her inner life devolves into an ever-spreading patchwork of lies that devours others. Only in the end, upon returning home, does she somewhat come around, but by then she is a shadow of her former intelligent, uncompromising character. Perhaps this coming-of-age story does reflect the reality of life for many young people, but it makes for a rather depressing read by the end of the book. Hall's characters can be somewhat twisted (this was also true in his previous novel "The Dreamers"), which makes the reader question what his own inner life is like. His style of writing is unique, however, as he brings back potent, descriptive images from earlier in the story, as if they're cycling again and again through Saskia's brain. This draws the reader back again and again to the book (I have reread this book a number of times), each time piecing together more of the previously missed elements; this is truly what makes the book worthwhile, even given the repulsive qualities of some of the characters and Saskia's ultimate personal decline.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A triumph of style and sympathy, July 22, 2001
In the first part of _The Saskiad_, Brian Hall convincingly creates the internal world of a deeply dissatisfied, highly intelligent teenage girl. It's cliche-free, sophisticated, and amazingly complete, and Hall presents it in a marvellous third-person interior prose style that seems to flow straight from Saskia's head --- think of Joyce's _Portrait of the Artist_, but with a much more likeable main character. When Saskia's long-absent father suddenly returns to remove her from the isolation of her school and her mother's ex-commune, her fantasies of adventure and paternal companionship seem to be coming true; their sweetness makes it all the more wrenching for us when his selfishness and hypocrisy finally shatter them. Hall does not shy away from this destruction, but doesn't lapse into cynicism either. The result is a novel that neither crucifies its main character nor condescends to her; we love her, but we see what has to happen to her in the real world. It's natural for some readers to expect a novel with a plucky 13-year-old protagonist to be aimed at the "safe" moral instruction of young adults, along the lines of Harper Lee's _To Kill a Mockingbird_, but that really isn't Hall's intention here. This is serious, unsentimental literary fiction that doesn't censor, patronize, or flinch --- and, after all, why should a "coming of age" story be taken seriously if the characters and the narrative itself remain naive? Read _The Saskiad_ yourself --- it's brilliant, one of the best American novels of the 90s. And if you happen to have a teenage daughter or son who is sensitive and mature enough to appreciate it, by all means let them read it --- you should be proud.
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