Dark and Deepest Red
by
Anna-Marie McLemore
Edition
Hardcover edition
Publisher
Macmillan
Imprint
Feiwel & Friends
ISBN
9781250162748
POTENTIALLY SENSITIVE AREAS
Discrimination: Gender Identity, Discrimination: Racial Insensitivity/Racism, Sexual Content: Strong Sexual Content/Themes, Violence: General
Summer, 1518.
A strange sickness sweeps through Strasbourg: women dance in the streets, some until they fall down dead. As rumors of witchcraft spread, suspicion turns toward Lavinia and her family, and Lavinia may have to do the unimaginable to save herself and everyone she loves.
Five centuries later, a pair of red shoes seal to Rosella’s feet, making her dance uncontrollably. They draw her toward a boy who knows the dancing fever’s history better than anyone: Emil, whose family was blamed for the fever years ago. But there’s more to what happened in 1518 than even Emil knows, and discovering the truth may decide whether Rosella survives the red shoes.
Dark and Deepest Red pairs the forbidding magic of a fairy tale with a modern story of passion and betrayal.Author’s note.
POTENTIALLY SENSITIVE AREAS
Discrimination: Gender Identity, Discrimination: Racial Insensitivity/Racism, Sexual Content: Strong Sexual Content/Themes, Violence: General
Details
Format
Page Count
320
Trim Size
8 1/4" x 5 1/3"
Dewey
F
AR
5.9: points 11
Lexile
870L
Genre
Fiction
Scholastic Reading Counts
0
JLG Release
May 2020
Book Genres
Historical Fiction, Magical Realism
Topics
Romance. Fantasy and magic. Sixteenth-century history of France. Strasbourg, France. Romani people. Transgender people. LGBTQ. Dancing. Curses. Shoes. Hispanic and Latino Americans.
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Praise & Reviews
Starred or favorable reviews have been received from these periodicals:
Booklist*, School Library Journal
Praise & Reviews
School Library Journal
The story begins in the present day describing Rosella Oliva’s fifth-generation shoe-making family during their town’s yearly “glimmer”: a time of magical happenings one week every October. This time of year the shoes they craft overtake their wearers resulting in impulsive acts of love and desire. To understand why this occurs, readers will travel back to the summer of 1518, when an illness sweeps through Strasbourg, France, causing women to dance uncontrollably until death. Believing that witchcraft or demonic influence is responsible, the authorities blame an unassuming family of Romani descent and endeavor to cast out the evil in their midst. The stories and characters intertwine in short chapters of lush prose and two complex story lines. Rosella and her friend Emil must decide to what extent their respective family histories and the event of 500 years ago will affect their present lives. The author uses Hans Christian Andersen’s morality tale “The Red Shoes” as the basis for an original exploration of hidden sexuality in times past to guide readers’ understanding of LGBTQ issues today. It is a powerful exposé of how differences are misunderstood, judged, and villainized by fear. References to Romani culture/language and early hints at a character’s sexual ambiguity are initially confusing but later clarified. The abrupt transitions back and forth in time become smoother as plotlines and personalities take shape in the author’s sympathetic, heartfelt storytelling. A bold contemporary journey into generational secrets and perceptions of evil and otherness. Not just for fans of fairy tale fantasies, socially conscious teens will find plenty to grapple with here.
School Library Journal
Gr 8 Up-The story begins in the present day describing Rosella Oliva's fifth-generation shoe-making family during their town's yearly "glimmer": a time of magical happenings one week every October. This time of year the shoes they craft overtake their wearers resulting in impulsive acts of love and desire. To understand why this occurs, readers will travel back to the summer of 1518, when an illness sweeps through Strasbourg, France, causing women to dance uncontrollably until death. Believing that witchcraft or demonic influence is responsible, the authorities blame an unassuming family of Romani descent and endeavor to cast out the evil in their midst. The stories and characters intertwine in short chapters of lush prose and two complex story lines. Rosella and her friend Emil must decide to what extent their respective family histories and the event of 500 years ago will affect their present lives. The author uses Hans Christian Andersen's morality tale "The Red Shoes" as the basis for an original exploration of hidden sexuality in times past to guide readers' understanding of LGBTQ issues today. It is a powerful expose of how differences are misunderstood, judged, and villainized by fear. References to Romani culture/language and early hints at a character's sexual ambiguity are initially confusing but later clarified. The abrupt transitions back and forth in time become smoother as plotlines and personalities take shape in the author's sympathetic, heartfelt storytelling. VERDICT A bold contemporary journey into generational secrets and perceptions of evil and otherness. Not just for fans of fairy tale fantasies, socially conscious teens will find plenty to grapple with here.-Jane Miller, Nashville Public Library?(c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
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Interests
Diversity,Fiction,Mature Readers,LGBTQ+,Novels,Funny/Humorous,Realistic Fiction
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14 books per Year
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