Sky Song

September 15, 2020
Eska, a girl without memories, and Flint, an inventor boy, combine forces to fight the evil Ice Queen. In the kingdom of Erkenwald, a dark power is rising as the Ice Queen's reign takes hold. As the peace between Erkenwald's three communities--the Feather, Tusk, and Fur tribes--erodes under her control, adults are imprisoned in the queen's palace while most children hide. Flint, a child of the Fur Tribe who secretly uses magic, sneaks into the palace to save his mother but ends up rescuing Eska instead. She has no memory from before her capture and no known alliance to any tribe, but she knows there is something special about her voice that the queen needs in order to achieve immortality. The pair, along with Flint's little sister, Blu, must journey across the kingdom in search of the powerful Frost Horn to stop the queen. This well-paced story deftly interweaves topics such as community and trusting one's inner voice, but some elements are ill-conceived. Blu has unnamed physical and cognitive disabilities similar to Down syndrome; characterized as simple and loving, her existence centers others' responses to her as a reflection of their degree of moral goodness. The tribes draw on a jumble of elements that evoke Indigenous peoples: the dark-skinned, black-haired, cave-dwelling Feather Tribe; the light-skinned, caribou-dependent Fur Tribe who live in tipis; and the blond, blue-eyed Tusk Tribe who have shamans and live in igloos. A stand-alone fantasy with questionable diverse representation. (Fantasy. 10-14)

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