Amber and Clay

Two children from vastly different backgrounds—one common as clay, artistic and bright; the other precious as amber, wild, and forceful—share stories of hardship and hope, life and death in this historical fantasy told as a Greek tragedy. Born a slave and considered a barbarian by the dominant culture, redheaded Rhaskos is taught to follow orders and never think for himself. Brown-skinned Melisto is born into an affluent Athenian household, but is abused and berated by a mother who wanted a son (or at least an obedient daughter). As the children grow so do their stories, until eventually the two become entangled through the work of the gods and Rhaskos's long-lost mother. Told from multiple perspectives, mostly in verse with some prose sections, Schlitz's latest novel is a beautifully crafted, complex masterpiece that unfortunately may be a tough sell for the intended audience. While the god Hermes acts as chorus, providing irreverent interludes as well as much-needed context, he cannot compensate for an often wide gap in the lived experiences of characters—at one point, Melisto's mother describes her pregnancy and labor—and that of the reader. VERDICT This is a thoroughly researched, epic tale, but one that may have limited appeal. Share with readers who enjoyed other works by Schlitz or Finding Wonders by Jeannine Atkins, or for whom Katherine Marsh's Jepp, Who Defied the Stars is perhaps too mature.—Kaitlin Frick, Darien Lib., CT

Copyright 2021 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

In a lyrical verse novel packed with ancient myths and well-defined characters, Schlitz (The Hired Girl) takes readers to ancient Greece to tell the saga of two children, virtual strangers, who form a bond extending beyond life. Wild and rebellious Melisto, "a rich man's daughter, and a proper Greek," is adored by her father but unloved by her mother. Enslaved, red-haired Rhaskos, who was separated from his mother at a young age, weathers torment until he is sold to Phaistus, a formerly enslaved potter who recognizes Rhaskos' talent for drawing but apprentices him without hope of freedom. Both children are desperate to escape their predicaments, but how and when they cross paths remains a mystery until the final chapters. Featuring insightful narratives from philosopher Sokrates and several Greek gods (Artemis, Athena, Hephaistos, Hermes) as well as illustrations of archeological items by Iredale (Myths and Legends of the World), the book is as meticulously researched as Schlitz's previous novels, as evidenced in detailed descriptions of settings and lifestyles. Her exploration of the human condition ("Nobody ever gets out of anything") delves into both characters' psyches through a pensive, contemporary-feeling narrative that easily propels readers along. Ages 10-14. Author's agent: Stephen Barbara, InkWell Management. Illustrator's agent: Alexandra Gehringer, the Bright Agency. (Mar.)

Copyright 2021 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

Schlitz ("The Hired Girl") is a Newbery Medal winner, and hops from one style to another with tremendous skill. The story is told partly in verse and partly in prose; the voice alternates between first person and third person, with the gods — Hermes in particular — stepping in as occasional choruses to the action. The text is complemented by Julia Iredale's delightful illustrations of imaginary archaeological finds: an ostracon (or pottery shard), a strigil (or scraper used to clean the body after exercise), some painted vases. They're accompanied by museum exhibit cards, to give the reader information about what they depict.
—The New York Times Book Review

An artistic enslaved boy, "common as clay," and a free-spirited girl, "precious as amber," become "linked together by the gods" in this drama of ancient Greece. . . Lyrically descriptive, surprisingly contemporary in feel, and laced with allusions to Greek mythology, history, and epic stories, the narrative offers a realistically diverse, colorful portrait of an ancient Greece in which slavery and warfare were prevalent. Black-and-white illustrations of archaeological artifacts add insight and depth to this meticulously researched story. A rich, complex, deftly crafted tale of friendship, creativity, and being true to oneself.
—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

Curation, historical fiction, performance piece—Schlitz brings a bundle of learning, artifice, and intentionality to this highly stylized tale of ancient Greece. . .Schlitz deploys many voices; Hermes, Rhaskos, Hephaistos, Artemis, Sokrates, and more have their declamations, strophes, and antistrophes, characteristic of a Greek chorus and fitting for oral performance. . . Ambitious and original, this is stuffed with food for thought, often sparkling with wit and appropriate strangeness.
—The Horn Book (starred review) 

Schlitz anchors this astonishing work of historical fiction in Greek tradition: ancient gods and philosophers narrate (Sokrates appears throughout); she makes use of epic verse and literary devices from Greek plays (described in the extensive backmatter); references to Homer are threaded through the text. She offers context for modern readers, elaborating on ancient Greece as a slave society, while Iredale's black-and-white illustrations give glimpses of artifacts. Like its two central figures, this luminous creation is far more than the sum of its parts.
—Booklist (starred review) 

This is an ambitious but tightly plotted tale, with narration spun in ancient Greek poetic and dramatic forms and familiar contemporary prose. . .YA readers who fondly recall bygone days curled up with Rick Riordan novels will be a prime audience for Schlitz's opus, particularly if they're up for a literary challenge.
—The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books 

This book tells a story of two young children growing up in ancient Greece, Rhaskos and Melisto, whose lives are unexpectedly bound together. . . . Schlitz has done meticulous research to create this story as a work of historical fiction interwoven with Greek mythology and told in the traditional epic style. Throughout the text are pictures of pottery with notes that enrich the story with background notes.
—School Library Connection

[T]he Newbery medalist Laura Amy Schlitz spins a tale of classical Greece with as many layers as an archaeological dig. Delving into this extraordinary book, children ages 8 to 16 will come across potsherds, votive offerings and terra-cotta toys. They'll hear from gods, citizens, slaves and philosophers. They'll encounter prose and poetry and passages shaped by the conventions of Greek drama. And through these unearthed riches of antiquity, given freshness and even modernity by a virtuosic writer, readers will enter the vanished worlds of two children.
—The Wall Street Journal