Silver on the Tree (The Dark Is Rising Sequence) (Paperback)

~ Susan Cooper (Author)
Key Phrases: high magic, three from the track, crystal sword, John Rowlands, Lost Land, Old One (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

Psychology Today "Susan Cooper is one of the few contemporary writers who has the vivid imagination, the narrative powers, and the moral vision that permit her to create the kind of sweeping conflict between good and evil that lies at the heart of all great fantasy. Tolkien had it. So did C.S. Lewis. And Cooper writes in the same tradition." -- Review --This text refers to the Mass Market Paperback edition.

Review

Psychology Today

"Susan Cooper is one of the few contemporary writers who has the vivid imagination, the narrative

powers, and the moral vision that permit her to create the kind of sweeping conflict between good and

evil that lies at the heart of all great fantasy. Tolkien had it. So did C.S. Lewis. And Cooper

writes in the same tradition."

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: McElderry (May 8, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416949682
• ISBN-13: 978-1416949688
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (34 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #411,589 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A well-written, bittersweet ending to a great series, October 12, 2000

By	Joy Kim (New Haven, CT USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Silver on the Tree (Mass Market Paperback)

_Silver in the Tree_ is the fifth and final book in the Dark is Rising series by Susan Cooper. It tells the story of the final confrontation between the Light and the Dark. Here the threads from previous books come together: Will Stanton, Merriman, the Drew children, Bran Davies, the Rowlands, the Stantons, and more. Cooper also introduces new characters, like Gwion, who leave lasting impressions both on the characters and the readers. In this book, the Light tries to find the last thing of power--a crystal sword--that will help them in the last and greatest rising of the Dark.

On a more serious level, this book addresses questions such as: what does it mean to *belong* to a family or a place? What right do people have to make decisions for others? The answers are neither simple nor easy. The disappointment of some of the other reviewer here shows that. (Warning: Some of them give away the ending, so reader beware). Personally I thought the novel's conclusion was fitting--it went well with the message of the other parts of the series. Cooper's prose style meshes well with her story.

Fantasy buffs, especially those with an interest in Arthurian legend, will love this series. I recommend this book very highly to middle school readers or advanced late-elementary school readers. But read the series in its proper order! This book gets its much of its poignancy from what comes before it. The order of the series is: _Over Sea, Under Stone_, _The Dark is Rising_, _Greenwitch_, _The Grey King_, and _Silver on the Tree_. The first two books can be read in interchangable order; I might even recommend reading _The Dark is Rising_ before _Over Sea, Under Stone_, but don't read _Greenwitch_ without reading the first two.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fabulous ending to a magnificent sequence., May 7, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Silver on the Tree (The Dark is Rising, Book 5) (Hardcover)

A couple months ago my very dear friend said "You have to read these books by Susan Cooper" Since she usually likes the same books I do, I checked out the first one. I was hooked! Just a few days ago I finally finished the last book, Silver On the Tree. Fantastic. Really, if any adult doesn't read this because they think it's a kid's book, think again. I know many kids my age (13) who wouldn't get the subtle hints that go throughout the series.

Susan Cooper is such an excellent writer. She can make totally realistic, everyday, family scenes, and then turn around and write about journeys through fantastic fantasy worlds. She is also really good about writing descriptive scenes that let you picture something so exactly.

I can't decide whether this ties with The Grey King as the best book in the sequence, or if Grey King is a bit better.

The ending wraps things up just right. Except, I don't think the Drews & Bran should have had to forget. That's was probably the only complaint I can think of.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "It's a Race Now. A Race Against the Rising...", November 20, 2004

By	R. M. Fisher "Raye" (New Zealand = Middle Earth!) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Silver on the Tree (Mass Market Paperback)

"Silver on the Tree" is the fifth and final book in "The Dark is Rising" series, and if you have never picked up the previous installments, then don't start here - you won't have a clue what's going on. If however, you have read "Over Sea, Under Stone," "The Dark is Rising," "Greenwitch" and "The Grey King," then here is the big finale you've been waiting for. Finally, all our main characters are reunited for the first and last time - Merriman Lyon, Will Stanton, Bran Davis, the Drew children, the Rowlands and the rest of the Old Ones who have come together for the final battle against the malevolent powers of the Dark.

They have gathered in Wales, following the last lines of the Light's prophecy; "when the Dark comes rising, six shall turn it back", in order to find the last talisman of the Light. Whilst Will (the youngest of the Old Ones: guardians of humanity) and Bran (the son of King Arthur who was transported forward in time by his mother) travel across the Lost Land in search of the crystal sword, Merriman and Simon, Jane and Barney Drew face their own challenges when the powers of the Dark catapult them into different time periods. Soon it is a race to the finish line and the Midsummer Tree, but with a traitor in their midst and the forces of the Dark towering around them, it's hardly going to be easy to finally defeat the Dark.

Cooper again introduces several historical and legendary figures from England's past, including Owain Glyndwr, Herne the Hunter, Gwion/Talisan and of course King Arthur himself, and she invokes the landscapes and countrysides beautifully. By the end of the series, we are met with the inevitable sadness of farewells and life-changing decisions that place "The Dark is Rising" amongst the best of children's fantasy literature - this is not simply a hackneyed battle between opposing forces; it involves real betrayal, real heartbreak and real pain - where the climatic moment is not a sword-fight, but a decision that must be made by a human being that has just lost everything he's loved. Our characters have only half-won the battle: for as she points out in the beginning of the novel when a young Pakistani boy is targeted for bullying, the real enemy lies within humankind.

There are a few things that I'm not quite sure on, but before I start pointing them out I have to say that Susan Cooper is an extremely sensitive and subtle writer - if you don't read carefully you can miss half of what she has to say. As I have only read "Silver on the Tree" twice, (once when I was quite young, and once when I was in a hurry), I'm quite certain that I fall into this category. Her themes are deep, her writing is articulate, and she doesn't make it easy for insensitive readers. If you want to get the most out of these books, then you have to work for it.

In saying that, some things came across as rather puzzling. The sequence and timing of events are rather patchy, and often things happen that don't seem to make much sense (although keep in mind, I may be misinterpreting them - I'm sure Cooper knows more about writing than I do). The book is divided into four parts, and although the first provides a promising beginning, and the last an exciting conclusion, the two middle parts are problematic. The situation with the Drews, in which they are transported back into time seems a little unnecessary - they do not seem to learn or gain anything of value that justifies their presence there. Meanwhile, as Bran and Will traverse the Lost Land, they come up against several obstacles that are disposed of rather easily - such as the terrifying spectre of a moving horse skeleton: the boys are saved when the petals of a may tree falls upon it. Huh?

Furthermore, the powers of the Dark just didn't seem that scary this time around. Previously, they were one of Cooper's strongest inventions, whether they appeared as amiable siblings, sullen, half-crazed painters, sweet-faced farm-girls, haggard tramps, a malevolent mountain-presence or the terrifying visage of a Black-cloaked Rider. But here, rather than appearing as a truly foreboding threat, the bad-guys do little but tail our heroes, mock them, and generally come across as annoying. Cooper drives home the point that the Dark can do the good guys no physical harm so many times that we loose all fear for their safety. I had no doubts that they'd make it through with no causalities - but the emotional scarring that they'd been exposed to is also negated when all but one of the main characters loose the memory of their adventures.

As mentioned, Cooper's work is immensely subtle and there is too much to be discovered for me to give it all away. I'll just reveal just one: read the descriptions of the Old Ones in the ships carefully at the story's end - she does not give names but "a tall burly figure in a smith's apron, a small man in a green coat and an imperious grey-haired lady, leaning on a stick," are all characters that we've seen before. So read carefully and frequently if you want to get the most out of this particular book, as well of the rest of the installments in this award-winning, immensely rewarding series.