A Little Lower Than Angels
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Amazon.co.uk Review
Modern writers rarely reach back to the feudal era as the setting for their novels, but that doesn't mean there isn't rich material from the age. At least there is in the hands of Geraldine McCaughrean. Her 1987 Whitbread Prize-winning novel, A Little Lower Than the Angels, features a host of vivid characters, including Gabriel, a stonemason's apprentice who leaves an abusive master to play the part of an angel in a travelling play. He's so convincing that peasants shower him with coins, and Gabriel believes he's found his calling.
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Book Description
Winner of the Whitbread Children's Book Award
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I am increasingly fascinated by a narrow seam of so-called children's books that actually touch on universal themes so powerfully that they transcend categories. Alan Garner's Stone Quartet was the last book of this sort I read. Interestingly this one also starts with ancient stone-masonry, but swiftly moves in another tangent as Gabriel (the mason's miserable brutalised apprentice) encounters and runs away with a group of mystery players. The setting is mediaeval and the hand of god hangs heavily over the populace, scared of damnation, eachother and the plague in equal parts. I absolutely loved it and soaked up the gorgeous writing and powerful characterisation. As a writer, she is less terse than Garner, but matches his serious and sombre outlook - I will say (without giving anything away) that it has a much happier ending than I had feared.
Format:Paperback
This is an absolute gem and I agree with the first reviewer that this book will appeal to adults too. It is meticulously researched. I found the mediaeval voices convincing and the similes great. McCaughrean's choice of language as so good at times that I wanted to write it down. There are lots of great themes running through the book. It made me want to see another Mystery play, and the terror of divine retribution - directly or via the plague - really made me thankful that I live in a very different era.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
2 reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
A clever cross-over novel
5 April 2006
Format:Paperback
I am increasingly fascinated by a narrow seam of so-called children's books that actually touch on universal themes so powerfully that they transcend categories. Alan Garner's Stone Quartet was the last book of this sort I read. Interestingly this one also starts with ancient stone-masonry, but swiftly moves in another tangent as Gabriel (the mason's miserable brutalised apprentice) encounters and runs away with a group of mystery players. The setting is mediaeval and the hand of god hangs heavily over the populace, scared of damnation, eachother and the plague in equal parts. I absolutely loved it and soaked up the gorgeous writing and powerful characterisation. As a writer, she is less terse than Garner, but matches his serious and sombre outlook - I will say (without giving anything away) that it has a much happier ending than I had feared.
A great coming-of-age story
17 Feb 2011
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
A little lower than the angels by Geraldine McCaughrean is not a new book. In fact, it won the Whitbread Children's Novel Award in 1987. But I enjoyed reading it this week. The story takes place in the feudal era and features several likeable characters, including Gabriel, a stonemason's apprentice who leaves an abusive master to play the part of an angel in a traveling play group. His new master sets up a miracle cure hoax that has believing peasants showering Gabriel with money and gifts, and making him believe that he can produce miracles. His friend Izzie and her father Lucie try to warn him, to no avail. Gabriel will learn the hard way who he really is and who matters and doesn't in his life. This is a classic growing up story, albeit in a fascinating setting. The main characters are vivid, the atmosphere is heavy and real, and values of loyalty, honor, and even literacy are at the core of the book.
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