School Library Journal
Gr 5-8
Tally, 11, attends Delderton, a progressive boarding school in the Devon countryside, and though she doesn't want to leave her loving father, London in 1939 is not very safe. As it turns out, she thrives there, good-naturedly setting herself to solving the problems of students and staff alike. When Bergania, whose king has refused to let Hitler's armies march through his (fictional) country, announces an international children's folk-dancing festival, Tally convinces her school to attend. During their visit, the king is assassinated, and she and the Delderton troupe rescue 12-year-old Prince Karil and smuggle him to England. Kept virtually imprisoned by his snooty wellborn relatives, Karil longs for a normal life, and eventually finds a way to escape his royal obligations, attend the school, and be reunited with his friends. Tally has a bit of Sara Crewe about her; she is singularly compassionate and generous, beloved by almost all who meet her. Her worries and imperfections make her wisdom lovely rather than irritating. Prince Karil and several adults receive meticulous and fascinating character development, but many others remain one-dimensional, known mainly by their eccentric traits. The unsympathetic characters are easy to dislike, so unremittingly negative is their depiction. Although the battle between good and evil is painted with a broad brush, Ibbotson treats most issues with a wise, subtle, and humorous touch; her writing is sublime. The satisfying epilogue, set six years later, will have readers giggling through their tears.-Eva Mitnick, Los Angeles Public Library
Kirkus Reviews
Ibbotson's multi-stranded story begins in England at the start of World War II and ends six years later. Twelve-year-old Tally, a thoughtful and outspoken child, deeply loved by her widowed father and two maiden aunts, receives a scholarship to Delderton, a progressive boarding school. While at the cinema, Tally sees a newsreel about the small country of Bergania, whose King refuses to bend to Hitler's demands, so when Delderton is invited to Bergania for a dance festival Tally insists they attend. In Bergania the children witness the King's assassination. Horrified, Tally and her classmates help Karil, Bergania's young prince, escape from the now Nazi-occupied country to England. The third-person narration shifts among Tally, Karil and other key characters as they cope with the hardships of war. The book, based on the author's own childhood experiences, is a romantic tale of friendship, loyalty and heroism, and her fans will not be disappointed. (Fiction. 12 & up)
DECEMBER 2008 - AudioFile
Patricia Connolly and Eva Ibbotson are a match made in heaven. Tally is an 11-year old British girl sent to a progressive boarding school in the country on the eve of WWII to keep her out of harm's way. Connolly's spirited performance captures in crystal-clear fashion Tally's humor, fierce loyalty, and optimism. Tally organizes a ragtag folk-dancing group to attend a festival in the European country of Bergania in support of the king, who is defying the Nazis. Listeners will be swept up in Tally's adventures smuggling the lonely Prince Karil out of the country while fending off one-eared thugs. Connolly also expertly renders Karil, made miserable by "the scold" (an aunt) and his pompous, impossibly strict grandfather. A.B. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine
