The Woman Who Loved Reindeer - Softcover

Meredith Ann Pierce wrote The Darkangel, her first novel, when she was just twenty-three. She lives in Gainesville, Florida.

Grade 8 Up The two-mooned planet on which this magical fantasy is set is a cross between Yellowstone and Lapland. Caribou is the wisewoman of the title, and Reindeer is a trangl one who can take the form of deer or mortal. As a pre-teen, Caribou was brought the baby to rear by her brother's frightened wife, who conceived the child while her husband was away. Caribou grows attached to the precocious golden-eyed boy but never thinks of him as her own child. From early on he shows signs of being more than human, but Caribou's growing status as wisewoman and her apartness from the villagers help shield Reindeer from notice. But when the deer part of his nature calls him to run with the wild herds, Caribou grievesand rejoices when the man side compels his return as her lover. The author of the "Darkangel" series (Atlantic) convincingly and poetically portrays their lives and adventures, both together and in Caribou's attempts to save her people from the changing earth of quakes and eruptions and to find them safe passage away, aided by Reindeer's wild knowledge in his guise as stag. Her dealings with troll hedgewives and her visit to the Fireking's underground world are wonderfully realized. A promising new world for fantasy buffs. Ruth M. McConnell, San Antonio Public Library
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