One of the curious things about professional writing is that you work on a book for a year or more, but since it’s meant for readers, you need to wait longer to see what folks think of it. Only then can you gain a sense of what you have—or have not—wrought. That wait can be a fretful time.
The earliest reviews come from those who have those ARCs—Advance Reader Copies—sent out by the publisher for reviews, responses, a means to gauge public reactions, and no doubt add to marketing plans.
Because of the wide distribution of ARCs, sometimes a kind of unofficial review comes in very early. While my next book, Loyalty, is not scheduled to be published by Clarion until February 2022, here is an early reaction to the book from a blog called “Homeschool on the range,” something I never heard of before.
Homeschool on the range
I highly recommend this book as an addition to the history shelf of any middle school or homeschool!
Avi never fails to disappoint as a young adult author, and in this latest release, he does a fantastic job of making the old new again. Loyalty is a book of the American Revolution, told from the perspective of a teen from a Tory family. History is written by the victors, so it’s not often we have a children’s book of the Revolutionary War written from a Loyalist perspective, which is one of the things I love most about it.
As the book progresses, we see him grow and change into a young man, challenging his beliefs and questioning right from wrong. In the end, his loyalty is truly tested in a unique way. Avi also draws parallels from the past to the present in passages such as this: “Public shame. Boycotts. Physical violence. You saw that in your former home. The Sons of Loyalty oppose so-called tyranny with a tyranny all their own.”
That sigh of relief you hear is from me.
Stay tuned. Hopefully, more just as generous are to come. (You never know.)
2 thoughts on “Early Review”
“The Sons of Loyalty oppose so-called tyranny with a tyranny all their own” is a spectacular sentence.
Great to hear you are getting these positive early reviews, Avi. I have an author bias, to be sure. I love the accessibility of your work for my students and its balance between detail and story flow. Looking forward to your February 2022 release to help me beat the winter blues.
~ Karl, Tuckerton E.S.
Hopefully I’ll be able ot get this book when it comes out!