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Summary: Fascinating tale of a young girl and mysteries of Antarctica
Review: Troubling A Star The book Troubling A Star is a story written by Madeleine L'Engle, the same author who wrote A Wrinkle in Time. This book is about a young girl named Vicky Austin. Her life changes drastically when she is given a trip to Antarctica. She is really excited about not only taking this trip, but also about seeing her boyfriend who will be working at a station there. While she is on her way to Antarctica on the cruise ship "Argosy", Vicky stumbles upon something really big concerning Vespugia, a small country in South America, and some serious threats on her life. Slowly, Vicky realizes that not everyone on the "Argosy" is just there for a vacation. She makes choices about whom she can trust. Something big is going down on the "Argosy," and Vicky is the only one who knows. The mystery becomes more and more dangerous until it becomes a threat to her health... This book is both captivating and factual. I really enjoyed this book mainly because of the surrounding area in Antarctica. L'Engle describes Antarctica, as well as the other many stops along the way, so well that I felt as if I were part of the story itself. For example, when Vicky is left on an iceberg, L'Engle writes as a diary and describes every little detail she sees all the way down to the clothes she is wearing. The only real problem with this book is that it is written for certain people. Readers with a small background on the political aspects concerning Antarctica should enjoy this book. As well as those who enjoy mysteries. The language isn't a serious problem. Also, the believability of the characters is very good. Each one of the main characters has totally different opinions and attitudes; it shows the writers creativity and gives the reader a sense of each character's personality. By the end of the book, the reader will feel as if he /she knows everyone in it. There were two main messages in this book. The first one is the problem concerning the vast area of Antarctica. Since we still know little about it, many feel it should be left alone. But each country that owns a small section of it wants to use it for dumping of nuclear weapons or experiments. These contradictions cause many problems and debates between the competing countries. The other main concept is the danger of being in a strange place without trustworthy friends. This can be a very scary experience, as well as a dangerous one. This book is just one plausible story from that situation. This shouldn't happen if it could be avoided. This book is a great book for ages ten to fifteen. It captivates enough, and is also quite educational and interesting. Adults could also enjoy this book, but, it is aimed more towards teenagers. I truly enjoyed this book and I would recommend it to anyone who is fascinated with other lands and loves adventure.
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Summary: Beautiful.
Review: I've just finished reading this a second time, so that should be some evidence of how good this book is. Although, I think "Ring of Endless Light" was better, though not too much, and that's also saying something because I think AROEL is one of the best books I've ever read. Okay, okay, I'm biased because I'm a huge L'Engle fan. But this is really a good book. It is a bit long, compared to other L'engle books and other YA books, but it's worth the length. I loved reading more about Vicky, and I really hope there'll be more books written about her. The other smaller characters are equally good, and I loved the new characters that were introduced almost as much as I loved seeing my old favorites again. Aunt Serena is awesome, and she seems to be exactly the kind of person who would be related to Adam. Ah yes, Adam. That's one wish I have; that we could've seen more of Adam. Maybe next book. I loved the wonderful descriptions of Antarica, and even though I had no remote interest about the southern-most continent before, this book has sparked something. One more thing I love about this book (or rather, all of L'Engle's work) is the way all her books are inter-connected in ways, sometimes such little things, but I noticed them at the second reading. For instance, the mention of "El Zarco" and the part Vespugia plays. (both from Swiftly Tilting Planet, which is, BTW, a great book) And, (this is a really minor thing) but I loved the mention that Esteban was descended from Welsh immigrants (remember all the welsh people in STP?) and that the Vespugian dictator is named Guedder. (remember gudder from STP?) That wasn't even everything. But it just shows that this book is deep, much deeper than it first appears.
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Summary: James@ RICHVIEW MIDDLE SCHOOL
Review: This book is a very good book for some people but not for me. Nobody liked Vicky because they were smuggling drugs and dumping toxic waste. They didn't want anyone to know about what they were doing. So I suggest that you read it's a good book.
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Summary: A nice sequel...
Review: This summer I decided to read L'Engle's Time series so that Icould get my students enthused about reading them (I couldn't get intoWrinkle or Wind when I was in school) Then I decided to read the Austin series again. I'd read Meet the AUstins in junior high and Moon by Night and Ring of ENdless Light in high school or college. I'd never got around to reading Unicorns and hadn't heard of Troubling a Star. I read the first three in about two days. Then I started Endless Light (my favorite)around 9 o'clock one night and stayed up 'til 1 to finish it. The next day I started on Troubling a Star - and read for almost four hours straight until I had finished it. I enjoyed it almost as much as Endless Light, but as others commented, Vicky didn't seem to be as grown-up in Troubling a Star. But I loved the descriptions of Antartica - I've never thought much about that continent and the little bit about Adam that was included. I just kept wishing that Vicky would've called out to him, like she did in Endless Light, while she was stranded on the iceberg or that there had been some mention of the whole dolphin thing and Vicky and Adam's connection - that was my favorite line in Endless Light "I called you....and I came.
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Summary: what a letdown
Review: As other reviewers have said, 'Troubling a Star' was such a dissapointment after 'A Ring of Endless Light'. While the previous Vicky Austin novel was about the meaning of life and death, 'Troubling a Star' seems to be about an adventure in Antarctica. While that makes an interesting plot for a book, the story is out of place when compared to the other books about Vicky. While 'A Ring of Endless Light' has a relatable plot, 'Troubling a Star' seems unrealistic. Why would Vicky, a girl who loves poetry and music, travel to Antarctica? Certainly she's intelligent, but that seems more like something scientific Suzy would want to do.
Most of the familiar characters--the Austin family, Adam, etc--do not appear throughout the majority of the book. It seems odd that Madeleine L'Engle would step away from so many of her beloved characters and create a new cast that people don't care about as much. I missed the interactions between Vicky and her family.
One problem that I found in 'A Ring of Endless Light' was that Vicky seems too perfect. While she says that she's not as attractive as Suzy, there's always someone to contradict her. In 'Troubling a Star', this problem escalates out of all proportion. Why does every male have to find Vicky attractive and intelligent? It makes Vicky hard to relate to, particularly in this book while she's taken out of her usual element (writing) and succeeds in something she's never expressed a real interest in (scientific exploration).
Don't get me wrong, I love Madeleine L'Engle's work. I was just so dissapointed by the conclusion to the Austin series. It feels like L'Engle wanted to write about a girl traveling to Antarctica and didn't have time to think of a new main character. It would have worked much better as a solo novel, instead of the continuation of a series.
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Summary: A book that spans generations.
Review: I'm a college student, which I suppose means I should be reading college-type books. I do, of course, but every so often I will indulge myself in an old favorite from my adolescence. One of those is 'Ring of Endless Light,' and when I found that L'Engle had written a sequel I snapped it up eagerly. I simply HAD to know the fate of Adam (whom *I* have a crush on and am actively seeking at my school <grin>) and the pensive Vicki. I admit, it took me *three* reads to "get" the plot of this book. I'm not scientifically-minded and, to be honest, it bores me, so really, I didn't pay much attention to the nitty-gritty bits of the plot. Instead I focused on Vicki, who reminds me of myself at that age, when everything was simply *fraught* with meaning, whether it be a sidelong glance or a mysterious trunk thrown overoboard. I enjoy L'Engles writing style, which occasionally seems a bit posh, but that's coming from a fellow writer with minimalist leanings. <grin> I highly recommend Ring of Endless Light in conjunction with Troubling A Star as required reading for any teenager and/or adult looking for something a little different from the mundane soft-serve fiction offered in recent times. I especially urge all young women to read these books, because I believe it encourages logical thinking, emotional strength and curiousity in the people who need it most: girls. Thanks, L'Engle.
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Summary: Generates suspense and then maintains it
Review: Returning to tiny Thornhill, Connecticut after living for a year in New York City, Vicky Austin discovers that she no longer fits in there. After she gets an unexpected call from Adam Eddington, a marine biology student whom she met during the eventful summer just past, Vicky finds herself developing a warm friendship with Adam's great-aunt in a nearby village. The whole Austin family reaches out to this wealthy but lonely old lady, who astonishes everyone by giving Vicky an extraordinary sixteenth birthday gift: a trip to Antarctica. Adam will be there already, working at a research station named for his uncle - an explorer who disappeared in that area. Vicky's excitement is tempered by a series of apparent warnings, as she prepares to leave for Vespugia (a small South American country in turmoil), the Falkland Islands, and finally Eddington Station. She remembers those warnings, and wishes she hadn't kept them from her parents, as her trip unfolds and one mysterious event follows after another. I was a bit disappointed that Vicky's extraordinary experiences in A RING OF ENDLESS LIGHT, the book before this one in the Austin Series, play no part in TROUBLING A STAR. We hear about her beloved grandfather's death and her budding romance with Adam Eddington when Vicky thinks of last summer, but the dolphins with whom she communicated so remarkably seem forgotten. However, this book is clearly intended to stand on its own. It does so, very well indeed, as a mystery/thriller for a young adult audience. It generates suspense and then maintains it, with L'Engle's memorable heroine Vicky Austin taking more steps toward maturity while remaining solidly in character.
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Summary: Wonderful setting
Review: What I liked most about this intriging novel was the antarctic setting. Vicky is now 16 and travels to Antarctica to visit Adam, who has taken a research job there. Slowly, evidence suggests that someone doesn't want her on the continent. The danger mounts slowly and I thought the suspense was effective, but action was slow-moving. I always find the character of Vicky interesting, L'Engle has created a totally original teen-ager and to her credit doesn't try to make her a typical teen who readers might relate to better. Unlike her Wrinkle in Time trilogy, which crosses all age bounderies, I think here she was trying to write more specifially for teens.
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Summary: Icebergs and Stars
Review: This another stupendous book by Madeline L'Engle!!! It's about Vicky Austin who gets tickets to Atlanta for her birthday. The other good thing is that Adam Eddington is also going to be there, and Vicky likes Adam. She boards her small cruise ship, but when Adam's not there to greet her, she realizes that she's in icy dancer!!! It's a great book!!!
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Summary: All People Are Stupid
Review: K, if u don't know what this book is about your're stupid.
I'm writing this to set everybody straight. Your really don't get what thisis about, do you?
Vicky going to Antarctica was only a backdrop for the real theme. The theme was about good and evil, and doing wrong because yout think it's right, and learning to forgive and hope. And VIcky didn't attract everybody...Otto didn't like her all that much, and hello, she didn't have a date to the dance, remember?
Oh, and by the way--what happened to Zachary was he ran out on her when she needed him most. For God's sake, read An acceptable Time!
Thank you, Madeline L'Engle, for writing such a great book. And thank you, whoever's reading this, for letting me vent. Goodbye.
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