The Silver Cup

April 2, 2007
Leeds's first novel closely examines cultural tensions between Christians and Jews in the years leading up to the First Crusade. Anna, a 15-year-old German girl, tends to her father, Gunther, and cousin, Martin, doing her best to keep their house in order, though her critical aunt often makes her feel inadequate ("What are you doing you useless snail?... The chickens are hungry. The house is a mess!"). Anna dreams of journeying beyond her small medieval village, but in 1095, her options are limited. Amid widespread hostility toward Jews, Pope Urban calls for a Crusade to the Holy Land, and Martin decides to join ("Think of the riches and the glory!... I should love to see Jerusalem and kill an infidel"). Anna and her father travel to Worms days after an army of Crusaders obliterates the city's Jewish Quarter. Amid the rubble, Anna discovers Leah, the only survivor of the attack. Leah's sole reminder of her family is a small silver cup that belonged to her brother. Anna insists on bringing Leah home despite the consequences: Anna is shunned and mocked by family and friends, and Gunther fears for both girls' safety. Ultimately, Anna finds a true friend in Leah, and Leeds uses their friendship to great effect as the girls form a close bond, allowing a glimmer of hope to shine through the rampant prejudice. Other subplots, including the disappearance of one of Anna's cousins, factor in, but it is Anna's feisty nature and her determination to stand up for her personal ideals that should win her many admirers. Ages 12-up.

June 1, 2007
Gr 6-9-Sixteen-year-old Anna and her widowed father, Gunther, lead the life of a trading family in 11th-century Germany at the outset of the First Crusade. When her father takes her with him on a journey to the Jewish quarter of Worms, the teen encounters Leah, daughter of the spice merchant. Anna is intrigued by the differece in their lifestyles despite the prejudicial viewpoint of many of her fellow villagers, including her aunt and naively ignorant cousin, Martin. In search of excitement and glory, the boy runs away to join a Crusader army unit, while a renegade group of soldiers storms through the Jewish area in a rampage of destruction and massacre. Anna discovers Leah as the sole survivor, hiding and clutching her father's silver cup, used to bless wine for the Sabbath meal and other holidays. Ignoring the jeopardy she will cause herself and Gunther, Anna takes the girl home and eventually helps her to seek a new life in a distant Jewish community. This well-crafted novel juxtaposes historical events and the cruelty of religiously based politics with the human qualities of courage, fortitude, and, most of all, hope. Leeds provides mystery and authenticity about the period's lack of tolerance for the misfit or imperfect child through the disappearanceand implied murderof Martin's mentally slow, mute younger brother while on a walk in the woods with his mother, who had "often scared him into tears." An intriguing and suspenseful portrayal of Europe's early medieval days."Rita Soltan, Youth Services Consultant, West Bloomfield, MI"

Copyright 2007 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 21, 2007
Leeds's first novel closely examines cultural tensions between Christians and Jews in the years leading up to the First Crusade. Anna, a 15-year-old German girl, tends to her father, Gunther, and cousin, Martin, doing her best to keep their house in order, though her critical aunt often makes her feel inadequate ("What are you doing you useless snail?... The chickens are hungry. The house is a mess!"). Anna dreams of journeying beyond her small medieval village, but in 1095, her options are limited. Amid widespread hostility toward Jews, Pope Urban calls for a Crusade to the Holy Land, and Martin decides to join ("Think of the riches and the glory!... I should love to see Jerusalem and kill an infidel"). Anna and her father travel to Worms days after an army of Crusaders obliterates the city's Jewish Quarter. Amid the rubble, Anna discovers Leah, the only survivor of the attack. Leah's sole reminder of her family is a small silver cup that belonged to her brother. Anna insists on bringing Leah home despite the consequences: Anna is shunned and mocked by family and friends, and Gunther fears for both girls' safety. Ultimately, Anna finds a true friend in Leah, and Leeds uses their friendship to great effect as the girls form a close bond, allowing a glimmer of hope to shine through the rampant prejudice. Other subplots, including the disappearance of one of Anna's cousins, factor in, but it is Anna's feisty nature and her determination to stand up for her personal ideals that should win her many admirers. Ages 12-up.

Copyright 2007 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 15, 2007
In the year 1095, the world of German teen Anna upends: her mentally slow youngest cousin disappears, possibly at the hands of her hard-hearted aunt; mounting enthusiasm for a Holy War ensnares a favorite cousin; and, at Anna's insistence, her father takes in orphaned Leah, a Jew whose silver kiddush cup is all that remains of her massacred family. Leeds' patient story development convincingly informs her protagonist's choices, unpopular in a time and place that cast Jews as "devil's people," while meticulous details capture the seasonal rhythms of daily life--from winter's cabin fever to the brutal, disgusting process of preparing live eels for Lenten supper. Some readers may long for a more narrowly focused plot for this first novel, but YAs who gravitate to historical fiction will appreciate the author's research, obvious in the rich storytelling as well as in the thoughtful end matter. The tender friendship that develops between Anna and Leah will also speak to teens, who may recognize their own deep attachments in the girls' unlikely bond. (Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2007, American Library Association.)