Gathering Blue

Gathering Blue by Lois Lowry, 2000 Delacorte Press

     Kira was born with a deformed leg and, in a society which casts out any imperfection into the Fields to die of exposure and the Beasts, her leg is a liability. When Kira's mother dies the ruling Council of Edifice comes to her home in the slums and brings her to the ceremonial audience chamber so Kira may prove her worth before the Council sends her to the Fields and certain death.
     Jamison, a member of the council, defends Kira and her needlework skill using an old acquaintance with her long-dead father to find the girl work. Jamison and the council set Kira to work with aged Annabella on the embroidery of a beautiful robe which shows their history. The robe is worn annually at the Gathering where the history of the people's struggle is retold by the Singer and their belief in brute superiority is reinforced when imperfection drives their society from its glory of old to this new existence of bickering and infighting.
     Annabella teaches Kira the magic of dyes and helps her improve her needlework. Kira begins to believe the idyllic life she leads when the begins to make friends in her new home. Matt is a young orphan who lives in the elaborate palace with Kira and the other orphans. Thomas is a woodworker who helps repair the staff the Singer uses to remember the songs of their history. Jo is a young girl whose talent with song secures her a place as the next Singer.
     But Annabella doesn't allow Kira to believe her world is as she dreams. When Annabella dies her offhand comments and pointed remarks make Kira look deeper at the people and events around her. After the annual Gathering Matt disappears. When he finally returns he brings a strange blind man from the Village of Healing. This man's appearance brings the subtle injustices to the forefront and encourages not only Kira but also Thomas and Jo to use their exalted places to alter expectations.
     In his attempt to gather blue for Kira and her needlework Matt links Gathering Blue to The Giver and The Messenger in this post-apocalyptic world. Inability and physical weakness do not determine the fates of Kira, Matt, Thomas, and Jo. Readers of middle ages can easily access this story of hope despite the hard truths revealed.

Revolutionary War on Wednesday

Revolutionary War on Wednesday by Mary Pope Osborne, 2000 Random House Books

     Morgan le Fay has sent Jack and Annie to the Revolutionary War for an ingredient in her spell: something to send. The siblings find themselves in December 1776 in George Washington's camp as the Continental Army plans to cross the Delaware River.
     When the weather turns sour the General is hesitant to put his people in danger with an uncertain crossing. Jack and Annie have their own part in helping the Continental Army with their Christmas Eve push toward success in the Revolutionary War.
     The Magic Tree House series examines moments in history and different cultures. In easily accessible language, Revolutionary War on Wednesday is written for early readers.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling, 2000 Bloomsbury

     Harry goes to visit Ron at the Burrow in the summer after his third year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Harry, Ron, and Hermione travel to the World Quidditch Cup where all hell breaks loose. Death Eaters are more and more brash about their performances and the Dark Mark in the sky throws everything into confusion--Death Eaters attack wizards and witches and are not repelled by the Ministry of Magic.
     Back at school the Ministry has decided to revive the age-old tradition of the Tri-Wizard Tournament. A student from each of the three magical schools in Europe will participate in a three-tiered tournament for the honor of housing the Tri-Wizard Cup. Representatives from Beauxbaton Acadamy and Durmstrang Institute travel to Hogwarts hoping to be chosen.  With such a public distraction the Death Eaters and Voldemort's followers gain traction and progress toward bringing the Dark Lord back.
     Though the competitors must be of age--seventeen--fourteen-year-old Harry's name somehow makes it into the Goblet of Fire and Harry becomes the fourth contestant. Throughout the three challenges Harry is both aided and challenged by the people around him and his competitors. Not only are the adults around him taking sides, but his friendships seem to be cracking under the pressures of a competition Harry never wanted.
     Facing dragons, mer-folk, and a deadly maze all lead up to one of the most difficult experiences of Harry's life. He loses friends, gains enemies, and witnesses the rebirth of the most dangerous and terrifying wizard his world has ever known. Yet he persists and helps to unearth treachery in the most impregnable stronghold in the wizarding world: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
     Public opinion has never seemed to impact Harry's life, but when he transforms into the youngest competitor in the Tri-Wizard Tournament he is no longer just the Boy Who Lived--he becomes the hero and golden boy. Life has progressively gotten darker for Harry and his friends since they met their first year at Hogwarts yet they stick together and rely on each other for their strengths. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire is a story aimed at a teen audience, but one that has entertained readers of all ages since its publication.

The Queen of Attolia

The Queen of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner, 2000 Greenwillow Books

     In the sequel to The Thief, Gen has become not only a national hero, but also the Queen of Eddis's personal spymaster. Though he despises the job, he enjoys the hunt (and the power that comes from holding the king of Sounis at bay) and ventures repeatedly into Attolia's fortress. When Gen is captured, the Queen of Attolia decides to cut off one of his hands, a gruesome punishment, but one worthy of a thief.
     Gen is sent home, no longer a threat to either Sounis or Attolia. When he arrives he finds his home at war with her neighbors and his cousin, the queen, plotting to maintain the stability and strength of her people at the expense of the two nations.
     For a time, everyone worries about Gen's sanity. Eddis posts guards to prevent him from harming himself, and he is nearly imprisoned in his room. But part of it is an act: Gen continues his work as Eddis' spymaster and chief spy. He makes his debut in Sounis, sneaking into the megaron and stealing the king's Magus. Sounis is thrown into turmoil as the distraction Gen ordered destroys the navy and Gen himself rides away with the brains behind the operation.
     This small act turns the tide of the two-front war Eddis is engaged in, causing Attolia to look for help from some undesirable places. The Mede Empire hangs in the background, a shadow waiting to descend over the peninsular nations of Sounis, Eddis, and Attolia. Through some tricky finagling the Ambassador to the Mede puts Attolia in the position where she must choose between an alliance with Eddis, and an alliance with the Mede in which she would become a figurehead and the foothold for the Mede invasion.
   The story shifts from being narrated by and centered around Eugenides to a third person point of view. It has moments of gruesome violence, but is is a story about nations at war and trying to prevent further bloodshed. An appropriate age group wold be 13-15 years old, at the youngest, but even older readers can find a personal connection.