A Little Lower Than the Angels

by Geraldine McCaughrean

Book Overview

Gabriel is worth twenty shillings as a stonemason's apprentice. It is an uncertain, dangerous life, until God himself reaches out a helping hand. But will the new life be any more secure, overshadowed by such dark figures as the Devil and his scowling daughter? In a world of illusion, people are not always what they seem -- even Gabriel.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0192715615
• ISBN13: 9780192715616
• Release Date: October 1987
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
• Length: 144 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.6" x 8.8"
• Age Range: 11 to 14 years
• Grade Range: Grades 6 to 9

Customer Reviews

A clever cross-over novel

I am increasingly fascinated by a narrow seam of so-called children's books that actually touch on universal themes so powerfully that they transcend categories. Alan Garner's Stone Quartet was the last book of this sort I read. Interestingly this one also starts with ancient stone-masonry, but swiftly moves in another tangent as Gabriel (the mason's miserable brutalised apprentice) encounters and runs away with a group of mystery players. The setting is mediaeval and the hand of god hangs heavily over the populace, scared of damnation, eachother and the plague in equal parts. I absolutely loved it and soaked up the gorgeous writing and powerful characterisation. As a writer, she is less terse than Garner, but matches his serious and sombre outlook - I will say (without giving anything away) that it has a much happier ending than I had feared.