Module 5: Book of a Thousand Days

Module 5: Book of a Thousand Days

Book Summary:

After the death of her mother, Dashti leaves her home on the plains to seek work in the city. She is unexpectedly able to find work as a lady’s maid due to her knowledge of the Mucker healing songs and wide breadth of skills. She is assigned to the Lady Saren, who is soon to be shut in a tower for 7 years because she refuses to marry the man her father has chosen. Dashti voluntarily goes into seclusion with her mistress and keeps a log of their days in the tower. From temperature extremes to supply issues as well as the arrival of Saren’s suitors outside the tower, Dashti has a lot to contend with. She definitely was not planning on falling in love with one of the suitors. When the girls finally free themselves of the tower, only to find themselves in the midst of devastation, it is Dashti who was the willpower and fortitude to guide them to another land and accomplish great deeds in an effort to serve her mistress; when in the end, it is Dashti who vanquishes the tyrant who has oppressed their lands and marries the Lord who was originally courting Saren.

APA Reference:

Hale, S. (2007). Book of a thousand days. New York, NY: Bloomsbury U.S.A. Children's Books.

Impressions:

I was very impressed with the character of Dashti. I think she is an excellent role model for young girls. She may seem to be only a maid, but her thoughts are revealed through the entries in the journal. The reader can see how strong her convictions are and her constant struggle to do what is right, learning to balance her beliefs with her struggles in the world. When Lady Saren orders her to do things she is feeling scared about and/or not sure of, she attempts to be the obedient maid, but at times, she will take the necessary action to save their lives or ensure their survival. As the novel goes on, Lady Saren is revealed to be quite cowardly and has difficulty dealing with day-to-day life. Dashti attempts to bolster her mistress’ courage but instead ends up living for herself and shaping her own destiny, away from that of Lady Saren’s.

I was also impressed with Hale’s Eight Realms and her creation of Muckers and their culture. The healing songs that Dashti is so well versed in are important to key movements of the plotline but there are so many hints and anecdotes about Mucker culture throughout the novel that it is clear Hale has put a lot and effort into her world-building. When Dashti speaks to Saren’s suitor, Lord Khan Tegus, she accuses him of having skinny ankles, which is revealed to be a friendly insult among the Muckers. It is these moments in the novel where the Hale’s thoroughness in creating a culture, its traditions, its values and even its little just shines through. While the healing songs are not said to be overtly magical, Dashti’s are said by many characters, other Muckers included, to be more effective than any others they have heard before. This implies perhaps a subtle magic at work, but it is not overpowering

Professional Review:

Dashti, a poor, orphaned peasant girl with healing powers, is offered a choice on her first day as maid to Lady Saren: she can return to her life as a peasant, or she can agree to accompany Lady Saren on a seven-year imprisonment in a tower. Dazzled by the opportunity to serve one of the fabled Ancestors, Dashti chooses the tower, and the two women are walled up and left to their fate. Lady Saren's crimes include refusing to marry the vicious and foul Lord Khasar and making a clandestine engagement with Khan Tegus instead. Both men visit the tower, but Lady Saren refuses to speak to them, ordering Dashti to impersonate her. Dashti is mystified, but her conversations with Khan Tegus become too enticing to give up, and she ends up falling in love with her mistress' khan. After two years, the women manage to find a way out only to discover that Lord Khasar has laid waste to Lady Saren's city, and he is advancing on Khan Tegus'. Ever enterprising and determined despite the inexplicable passivity of her mistress, Dashti manages to get them into Khan Tegus' house as servants and eventually, through a blend of meek obedience and fatalistic courage, finds a way to defeat Lord Khasar and attain her heart's desire. Hale handily revises the Grimm brothers' "Maid Maleen" to create her own compelling story of a hard-working girl who gets what she deserves. The narrative is told through Dashti's illustrated journals, where her naïve virtue is immediately apparent and her wit, warmth, and good sense continue to charm readers as her story becomes more harrowing and suspenseful. Lord Khasar is revealed to be the stuff of nightmares, but Khan Tegus is straight 

out of a young girl's dreams, so readers will be drawn to the romance as well as the adventure.

Coats, K. (2007). [Review of the book Book of a thousand days, by S. Hale]. Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, 61(2), 88. Retrieved from: http://bccb.lis.illinois.edu/

Library Uses:

Add to a reading list of books written in journal form that aren't part of a series.

Add to a list of novels that are based on fairy tales.