The Last Snake Runner [Hardcover]

Kimberley Griffiths Little (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 11 and up | Grade Level: 6 and up

Will Kendall survive his clan’s massacre and live out his destiny as the last Snake Runner?

Kendall can’t believe how quickly his dad remarried after his mom died, and he especially can’t believe his dad’s choice: Juanita is of Spanish descent. That feels like a slap in the face considering Kendall’s mom was Native American. This is all more than Kendall can handle, and he needs to get away to the desert where he can think. And especially where he can run. Running is his destiny: he’s the last member of the Snake Clan, the clan known for its long runs across the desert floor–until the Spanish arrived in the Southwest and destroyed the tribe.

When Kendall slips through a hole in time, he finds himself 400 years in the past, just as the Spanish, with their guns and armor, are starting to lay claim to the Southwest. Can Kendall survive the horrible battles so he can return to his own time? Will he become the last Snake Runner, as the spirits have told him he must? More importantly, what will he learn about himself in the process?

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 6-10-A sequel to Enchanted Runner (Avon, 1999), this book stands on its own as a work of historical fiction and a time-travel story. Kendall, 14, has rediscovered his Native American roots in New Mexico at the Acoma Pueblo, ancestral home of his mother's family. He is the last of the Snake Clan, a long line of warriors and mystics responsible for carrying out the yearly ceremonies that propitiate the gods and bring rain. In his modern existence, he is struggling to deal with the death of his mother. When his father remarries, the teen cannot accept the woman, and he flees into the desert. Transported back to 1598, he becomes part of the vibrant life of the Acoma people, who live on a mesa and farm the surrounding land. The tribe's interaction with a group of Spaniards outfitted in armor results in tragic and devastating consequences, with Kendall a participant, witness, and one of the few survivors. The violence and brutality are powerfully portrayed in this action-filled story. Details of everyday life on the mesa and the people's strong spiritual connection to the land are what make this book stand apart from many other time-travel stories. An author's note explains that the historical events described are based on an eyewitness account by one of the Spanish soldiers. The novel succeeds as a fast-paced adventure and as a meditation on the consequences of a clash of dissimilar cultures.
David Pauli, Hillsboro Public Library, OR
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Gr. 6-9. The author of Enchanted Runner (1999) brings back Kendall Drennan in this combination of historical fiction and time travel. Fourteen-year-old Kendall, half Anglo and half Acoma Indian, can't accept his father's remarriage to Juanita, a woman of Spanish descent. Hoping to sort out his feelings, he runs away to Enchanted Mesa, a sacred site for the Acoma tribe. But instead of sorting things out, he slips back through time to sixteenth-century Acoma, New Mexico, where he participates in a snake dance and observes the atrocities inflicted on the group by the Spanish conquistadors. Little's strength is her depiction of daily life among the Acoma, especially the ceremonies performed by the now-extinct Snake Clan, but the battle scenes are not for the squeamish. Less convincing than the home-life particulars is Kendall's time-travel turnabout: it's hard to imagine that, upon returning to real life, his new knowledge of Juanita's ancestors helps him to make peace with her. Kay Weisman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 11 and up
  
• Hardcover: 208 pages
• Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers; 1 edition (May 14, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0375815392
• ISBN-13: 978-0375815393
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,770,362 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

When I was a kid I always wanted to be one of those authors that "lived" inside the card catalog. Let me tell you, it's a fun place to hang out!

I adore Louisiana, Paris, Bulgaria, England, Scotland, Egypt, and anything old and musty and delicious.

I grew up in San Francisco, but now live in an adobe house on the banks of the Rio Grande. I think I've drunk so much Land of Enchantment water that some of that ancient magic got into my blood and now spurts out my pencil--I mean ergonomic keyboard.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gripping and Magical, December 5, 2004

By 

Carol (Albuquerque, NM) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Last Snake Runner (Mass Market Paperback)

This book has everything!!!! Time travel, suspense, Native American folklore and history, woven together in a story that sweeps you away from the first page to the last. Little's depiction of the Snake Clan and the Acoma resistance was mesmerizing, the brutality of the Spanish Conquistadors was haunting, and the struggle for Kendall to reconnect with his heritage was gripping. I felt myself carried back in time, just like Kendall. Buy this book, but be careful, because once you start reading, you won't be able to put it down.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Historical Fiction at its best!, December 23, 2002

By 

B. Matthews (Portland, OR USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Last Snake Runner (Library Binding)

This is a wonderful book that weaves together brilliant threads of a boy's search for answers to unacceptable changes in his life. His Native American heritage leads him to the reservation and a subsequent sci-fi journey through time back to his ancient ancestors. Little's handling of one of the more chilling chapters of Native American history -specifically the fascinating culture of the Snake Clan and it's tragic fate at the hands of the conquistadors-is powerful and beautifully written. A fascinating book not easily forgotten!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL REVIEW, October 22, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: The Last Snake Runner (Hardcover)

Gr 6-10-A sequel to Enchanted Runner (Avon, 1999), this book stands on its own as a work of historical fiction and a time-travel story. Kendall, 14, has rediscovered his Native American roots in New Mexico at the Acoma Pueblo, ancestral home of his mother's family. He is the last of the Snake Clan, a long line of warriors and mystics responsible for carrying out the yearly ceremonies that propitiate the gods and bring rain. In his modern existence, he is struggling to deal with the death of his mother. When his father remarries, the teen cannot accept the woman, and he flees into the desert. Transported back to 1598, he becomes part of the vibrant life of the Acoma people, who live on a mesa and farm the surrounding land. The tribe's interaction with a group of Spaniards outfitted in armor results in tragic and devastating consequences, with Kendall a participant, witness, and one of the few survivors. The violence and brutality are powerfully portrayed in this action-filled story. Details of everyday life on the mesa and the people's strong spiritual connection to the land are what make this book stand apart from many other time-travel stories. An author's note explains that the historical events described are based on an eyewitness account by one of the Spanish soldiers. The novel succeeds as a fast-paced adventure and as a meditation on the consequences of a clash of dissimilar cultures.-David Pauli, Hillsboro Public Library, OR Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.