Review by New York Times Review
MODERNIZING LEGENDS CAN be a tricky business. One must find the resonance between ancient and contemporary, blending incongruous elements in a way that seems not only right but inevitable: telling the story of a founding father with hip-hop lyrics, as in "Hamilton," or presenting the myth of Theseus in the milieu of reality television as in "The Hunger Games." Kekla Magoon manages a similar feat of legerdemain in "Shadows of Sherwood," her compelling reboot of the Robin Hood myth. In an alternate present, in the city-state of Nott City, 12-year-old Robyn Loxley is an accomplished gymnast and an amateur tinkerer in electronics. One night, while she sneaks out to raid the local salvage yard for parts, Governor Ignomus Crown stages a brutal coup d'état, rounding up and "disappearing" all members of Parliament and their families. Robyn alone escapes the purge. Hunted by the military police, unsure of her parents' fate, she is forced to flee to the nearby district of Sherwood with its hardscrabble neighborhoods, tent cities and forests. So begins her transformation into Robyn Hoodlum. The narrative will keep young readers turning pages with its breathlessly short chapters, ample derring-do and engaging central mystery about Robyn's destiny as it relates to an ancient prophecy called the moon lore. Along the way, we are treated to car chases, buried treasure, secret hide-outs, and brazen acts of thievery for all the right reasons. You don't have to be familiar with Robin Hood's Merry Men to enjoy the supporting cast, but Magoon delightfully reimagines the identities of Friar Tuck, Will Scarlet and Maid Marian. The young minister Tucker lives in the abandoned Nottingham Cathedral, where he writes history treatises and offers sanctuary to fugitives. He is also not above knocking out the occasional policeman. "Some days it's easier to preach than to practice," he tells Robyn dryly. The spiky-haired teenage rebel Scarlet serves as Robyn's cyber-hacker when she is not borrowing Robyn's equipment without permission. Kindhearted Merryan, Governor Crown's niece, volunteers to help at Sherwood Clinic and becomes Robyn's most unlikely, most potentially dangerous ally. "Anyone can decide to be different from their family," Merryan insists. Robyn must determine whether she can trust that assertion. Like the original Robin Hood, Robyn Loxley straddles disparate worlds. A child of privilege, she rises to become a champion of the poor. As the biracial daughter of one of Parliament's few dark-skinned members, Robyn experiences the insidious connection between race and power. In one chilling scene, Robyn recalls meeting Ignomus Crown, the soon-to-be dictator, at a government function. When she asks Crown how he knows her father, Crown answers: "He stands out in a room like this, don't you think?" Robyn, defiant, thinks to herself that her father would stand out in any room for his intelligence, popularity and charisma. "But she knew enough to know Crown didn't mean those things. He was referring to Dad's dark skin." Robyn's racial identity becomes an elegant expression of one of the book's central themes - that darkness and light, while perceived as antagonists, are in fact symbiotic partners. Most appealingly, our protagonist takes on the persona of Robyn Hoodlum not because she wants fame for her exploits, but because she wants to spare the people of Sherwood from being punished for her actions. This is not Errol Flynn's swaggering celebrity outlaw, but rather a dispossessed girl who improbably becomes the face of a popular resistance movement. When people begin seeing her as the fulfillment of the moon lore, Robyn is incredulous that an ancient prophecy could apply to her. The local wise woman Eveline explains that Robyn is not the first child of the prophecy, nor will she be the last. "The verses have come true before, and they will come true again. ... The moon lore does not seek to predict, but to explain. ... Our world turns in circles." Literature also turns in circles. Certain archetypes and legends speak more powerfully to certain generations. The main issue Magoon explores in "Shadows of Sherwood" - that law and justice are not always the same thing - is as timely for 21st-century America as it was for Merry Olde England. Robin Hood is an appropriate hero for our time, and Robyn Hoodlum is a welcome iteration of the legend. The young heroine flees to a hardscrabble district and begins a transformation into Robyn Hoodlum. RICK RIORDAN'S latest novel, "The Sword of Summer," will be published in October.
Copyright (c) The New York Times Company [August 23, 2015]
Review by Booklist Review
Award-winning Magoon's futuristic alternate-universe reboot of Robin Hood marks the first title in a promising new series, Robyn Hoodlum. Biracial Robyn Hood is on the lam after her parents disappear from their well-to-do home in Nott City on the Night of Shadows, a raid ordered by tyrannical Governor Crown to rid the city of dissidents under the cover of darkness. Following the advice of her parents to head for the woods, she ventures into rough-and-tumble neighboring Sherwood City, banding together with other orphaned misfits who open her eyes to the tough conditions propagated by Crown. With the sheriff in hot pursuit and Robyn leading the cause, they work together to right the government's wrongs. Magoon's twist on the classic tale benefits from an engaging cast of characters and an intriguing mythology. Timely check-ins with Sheriff Mallet help with the pacing, which lags a bit in the middle. The episodic quests call to mind the Percy Jackson adventures and will inspire a new generation to connect with Robin Hood's timeless tale.--Barnes, Jennifer Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Robyn Loxley, the 12-year-old daughter of two members of Parliament, regularly sneaks out after dark to scavenge electronics at a junkyard in Nott City. One night, that habit saves her, when military police violently kidnap her parents and other government officials who oppose a power grab by Royal Governor Ignomus Crown. Robyn's father leaves her cryptic clues-about moon lore and gathering the elements-which suggest that he knew the family was in danger, and that he expects Robyn to play a role in toppling Crown's regime. Essentially orphaned, Robyn falls in with a (not-so-merry) band of other free-range kids and, like Robin Hood before her, becomes Public Enemy No. 1 when she daringly acts on the injustices she sees in how resources are distributed. Set in the future and paced with one death-defying escape after another, Magoon's (How It Went Down) story doesn't end so much as pause. Readers-and Robyn-must wait until at least the second book in the Robyn Hoodlum series to learn the fate of her parents. Ages 8-12. Agent: Michelle Humphrey, Martha Kaplan Agency. (Aug.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 5-8-This thrilling first book in a new series by award-winning author Kekla Magoon stars the rebellious spitfire Robyn Loxley, a 12-year-old girl whose destiny and heritage as a member of the underground Crescent Rebellion unfolds one night when after returning from a midnight adventure. She finds her parents missing and her home in disarray. Grabbing the secret items her father has trained her to take in case of emergency, Robyn flees into Sherwood Forest, launching headlong into an adventure, where aided by the help of a diverse set of loyal friends she meets along the way, Robyn sets out on a journey to find out the truth about what happened to her parents. Guided by the words of her father and by her internal compass that sways towards justice, Robyn can't help but to challenge the evil despot Ignomus Crown and his oppressive totalitarian state. Her adventure leads to her to unlock the mystery behind the secret words, "Breath, Blood, Bone," that seems to hold the key to her mission. Magoon deftly plays off the traditional folkloric Robin Hood narrative, with a contemporary twist that champions the ingenuity and bravery of the heroine Robyn in her charge to bring balance and rightness back to her home, Nott City. Shadows of Sherwood is on point with the popular trend of dystopian novels. What makes Magoon's book unique, however, is its accessibility to school-age and intermediate readers, who are sure to be enticed by Robyn's spunk and vulnerability. Magoon masterfully weaves in hallmarks of familial traditions by threading Robyn's beautifully braided long hair into an essential plot element. VERDICT This exciting page-turner will undoubtedly be a hit.-Lettycia Terrones, California State University, Pollak Library, Fullerton , CA © Copyright 2015. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
When twelve-year-old Robyn Loxley sneaks out in search of a voltage adapter for her latest project, she has no idea that the junkyards guard dog will be the least of her problems. She returns home to find her parents gone. Governor Crown has had all members of Parliament and their families kidnapped and has declared himself the sole leader of Nott City. Robyn, the only person missing from the roundup, finds herself on the run with just the three items her father left her -- a pair of fingerless gloves, a silver sphere with the words Breath Blood Bone etched on its surface, and an envelope containing a map. Convinced that her parents are alive, Robyn is determined to find them, but she realizes it wont be easy with the city in the midst of a rebellion and her description (5'7", black hair, last seen braided. Thin. Athletic. Light-brown skin) plastered all over it on wanted posters. With the help of her growing band of parentless outlaws, Robyn embarks on a mission greater than she imagined, one that will force her to explore her past and forge a new identity as a leader of the rebellion. Magoon cleverly weaves elements of the Robin Hood tale into this futuristic story about social justice, friendship, and identity. The wily kid heroes and thrilling adventures will appeal to young readers, and a cliffhanger ending indicates that this is the first in a series. celia c. perez (c) Copyright 2015. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Robyn is a fearless 12-year old who always seems to find trouble in this futuristic take on Robin Hood. "She would have preferred having a friend to join her from time to time, but she found it hard to interest the other girls in even the most harmless sorts of mischief." Her curiosity saves her life when she is out prowling in the Castle District as armed guards seize her parents, government officials, in a coup. Driven by fear and confusion, Robyn tries to learn what happened to her parents. She is joined by Laurel, a street-savvy orphan, and eventually Key, a boy who has made a home in a treehouse. As Robyn and her friends follow clues left by her father, her technical abilities and instincts help them avoid capture. However, Robyn's efforts to help the downtrodden of Sherwood make her most wanted by the new regime. This colorful adventure does not easily fit into a genre box, as it combines futuristic elements with fantasy and folklore. The novel's strengths are its compelling mixed-race protagonist and her growing band of friends. Robyn knows some were biased against her father's dark skin, but the differences between people in the story have more do with societal position than race. Although the action sometimes slows as series components are introduced, the adventure and cliffhanging ending will entice readers. (Adventure. 8-12) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
