Muti's Necklace

June 1, 2006
Gr 1-4 -Adapting and expanding an ancient Egyptian story, Hawes has created an original fairy tale about familial love and its power to thwart even the majesty of Pharaoh. Muti cherishes the necklace her father made for her when she was born, associating it with many happy memories. After turning 13, she leaves her beloved family to work as a servant in King Snefru -s palace. Pharaoh, impressed by her beauty and grace, makes her the leader of a cohort of female rowers for his pleasure boat. When her necklace breaks and falls into the lake, she refuses to row or to accept a replacement. It is so important to her that she stands up to Pharaoh, who is now even more impressed by her determination. Where the story contrasts sharply with traditional fairy tales is in the climax: when Snefru asks Muti to become his queen, she declines, preferring to be reunited with her family. The writing style favors the more fleshed-out manner of a short story than the leanness of a folktale. Guay -s lush watercolor-and-gouache paintings incorporate elements of Egyptian art and culture, including jewelry motifs, decorative geometric patterns in the scenery, and headdresses and hairstyles. The characters - faces and gestures are expressive and dramatic, and the surrounding landscape teems with life." -Coop Renner, Hillside Elementary, El Paso, TX"

Copyright 2006 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 14, 2006
Hawes (The Vanishing Point) adapts one of the three Egyptian "Tales of Wonder" set during the reign of King Snefru, with a modern twist. Muti is never without the lovely turquoise and carnelian necklace carved by her father upon her birth. At 13, she finds work in the Pharaoh's court and attracts the leader's attention. He orders his ship's captain to train 20 servant girls as rowers, with Muti at the bow. When her beloved necklace snaps and falls into the Royal Lake, Muti stops rowing and refuses to resume until the Pharoah finally summons the royal magician, who parts the lake's waters, so that Muti can retrieve the necklace. Hawes smoothly assumes a staid, folkloric omniscience, adding a touch of irony with the litany of hyperbolic praises accorded the Pharaoh (e.g., "Owner of Oxen and Cattle Past Counting"). The author's feminist embellishments peak when Pharaoh, his "Royal Head" filled with nightlong thoughts of brave, beautiful Muti, suggests she be his Queen. Muti declines and heads back to her family: "I prefer my own life to any other, no matter how fine." Guay's ravishing, jewel-hued illustrations combine ancient cultural details and a lithe, idealized physical beauty. Coupled with the sensual art, Muti's audacity in refusing King Snefru, and her freedom to return home (details absent from the original tale, as Hawes attests in an endnote) give the story relevance for today's readers. Ages 4-8.

Copyright 2006 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2006
Gr. 2-4. In this folktale categorized as fiction, the author of the YA historical novel " The Vanishing Point "(2004) tells a story culled from ancient Egyptian papyrus manuscripts. Carved of "turquoise, blue as a dragonfly's wing, and carnelian, red as the inside of a pomegranate," the necklace given to palace servant Muti by her father is a sentimental talisman. When she loses the necklace while rowing the royal barge, Muti risks mortal punishment by pausing to retrieve it. Far from enraging the pharaoh, her courage wins her an offer of marriage that she declines in order to reunite with her family: "I prefer my own life to any other, no matter how fine." Although Guay's figures (especially wild-haired, limpid-eyed Muti) often seem like posed portraits, her lavish paintings will satisfy demand for picture books featuring lovely young women in lush, romantic settings. At the same time, the retelling's feminist angle (which an endnote acknowledges was far less prominent in the original) offers a refreshing change from the typical equation between plucky heroines and lucrative betrothals.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2006, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2006
When Muti, an Egyptian serving girl, loses her necklace while rowing the Pharaoh on the lake, she dares to stop her task. The royal magician parts the waters, and she retrieves the gems. The original tale, from the ancient Westcar Papyrus, ends here, but the author adds Muti turning down the Pharaoh's marriage proposal. The paintings are overly romanticized and lush.

(Copyright 2006 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)