The Trumpeter of Krakow [Paperback]

Eric P. Kelly (Author), Janina Domanska (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 1992

For well over thirty years, Eric P. Kelly's Newbery Award winner has brought the color and romance of ancient times to young readers. Today, "The Trumpeter of Krakow" is an absorbing and dramatic as when it was first published in 1928.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Aladdin (April 1, 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0689715714
• ISBN-13: 978-0689715716
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #52,910 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #19 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > History & Historical Fiction > Fiction > Europe
  • #43 in Books > Children's Books > Literature & Fiction > Historical Fiction > Europe
  • #44 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Issues > Social Skills

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

73 of 77 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 1929 Newbery Medal--Wonderful, interesting for all ages., January 9, 2001

By 

Lisa Ebeling "laa-laa" (smalltown, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Trumpeter of Krakow (Hardcover)

In the 13th century (1241), a Polish boy was killed by the arrow of an invading Tartar from the East, silencing his trumpet a few notes short of completion of the "Heynal," the Hymn to Our Lady, as he stood on a little balcony of the Church of Our Lady Mary in Krakow, Poland. Ever since that event subsequent trumpeters have stopped at the same point in the Heynal as it is sounded four times on the hour, all day and night as a signal that all is well. This legend is based in history.

The story of Joesph Charnetski-Kowalski, set in 1461, is fictional. Joseph's father, Pan Andrew Charnetski is the guardian of the Great Tarnov Crystal, which has been in his family's safekeeping for over 200 years. When Tarnov fell to the Tartars, the gem was entrusted to a Charnetski to hide until such time as its whereabouts became known, at which time it was to be given to the the King of Poland (Kazimir Jagiello in the story).

Pan Andrew, his wife, and son Joseph are driven from their farm in the Ukraine by Tartars who burned their home and destroyed their fields. Fleeing to the city for safety, they assume a new surname in Krakow and Andrew becomes the new church trumpeter. The family lives in a house with alchemist Nicholas Kreutz and his niece Elzbietka. The crystal, a stone of tremendous importance and power, is the object of pursuit by Bogdan the Terrible (Peter of the Button Face). When he discovers the Charnetskis' location and tries to steal the Crystal from them, one-third of Krakow burns to the ground.

Danger and intrigue follow the Charnetski family; readers of all ages will enjoy this story. That there is a basis in fact/history for the novel makes it even more fascinating. Treat yourself or a pre-teen/teenager to this award-winning book!

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Tale Set in Medieval Poland, January 11, 2005

By 

Richard J. Brzostek (New England, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Trumpeter of Krakow (Paperback)

"The Trumpeter of Krakow," by Eric P. Kelly, is historical fiction set in Poland in the early 1460s. A family flees their estate in the Ukraine, then part of Poland, after being attacked by Tartars and takes refuge in Krakow. The Charnetski family is followed to Krakow as a bandit believes they hold a valuable treasure.

The father, Pan Andrew, takes up employment as a trumpeter at the church that is known for its trumpeter that plays at each hour. Joseph learns from his father how to play the heynal with the broken note. Some two hundred years prior, when the Tartars were invading Krakow, the trumpeter played this song in the tower, but was cut short by the arrow of a Tartar. To this day, in honor of this trumpeter, at each hour the same heynal is played and even cut short much as it was in the 13th century.

Joseph befriends an alchemist and his niece Elzbietka, who help them find a place to live in the city, on the floor just below theirs. As the story unfolds, the Charnetski's are sought out by the terrible Tartar bandit and unknowingly influenced by the world of alchemy.

"The Trumpeter of Krakow" is categorized as a children's book (ages 8-12), but the vocabulary level of the book would make me think otherwise. A motivated reader should not find this to be a problem. The story is entertaining, so I would not dismiss it simply because it is labeled a children's book.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars So good I didn't care it was historical!, November 10, 2003

By 

Raymond (Brooklyn NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Trumpeter of Krakow (Paperback)

This is the exciting story of Joseph Charnetski, a teenage boy in medieval Poland bound by an ancient oath to protect the Great Tarnov Crystal at any cost. The Great Tarnov Crystal at first seems to just be a huge diamond, but it has a secret I will not tell or it will spoil the story. In the story, a Tartar chief is after the jewel and will stop at nothing to get it. This story gives two ideas of what things were like back then: how dangerous life was, and what alchemists discovered while searching for a way to change base metals into gold. I liked this book so much I didn't care that it was history!