Gwinna

by Barbara Helen Berger

Book Overview

Longing for a child, the woodworker and his wife seek help from the Mother of Owls. She grants them a child, Gwinna, on the condition they send her back on her 12th birthday to fulfill the destiny her... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 039921738X
• ISBN13: 9780399217388
• Release Date: October 1990
• Publisher: Philomel Books
• Length: 126 Pages
• Weight: 1.56 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 8.3" x 10.3"
• Age Range: 7 to 12 years
• Grade Range: Grades 2 to 7

Customer Reviews

a tale about many things

I have fallen deeply in love with the stories of Barbara Helen Berger. She is a visual artist of stunning talent. Her pictures breathe with life and light. Her words are even more captivating. They are clear and precise...flowing like water from a mountain spring.Gwinna is, in my opinion, Berger's masterpiece. At just over a hundred pages, it is a longer work. While Grandfather Twilight, A Lot of Otters, and the Donkey's Dream are great books for children, I would have to recommend Gwinna to children who are a little older or more mature.Gwinna, at its heart, is a story of many things: it is a story about needing others, it is a story about giving, a story of love and faith and being true. It was a difficult story for me. I often suffer from knowing all too well were a plot is going to go before it gets there...to my delight, Gwinna kept me guessing. The highest recommendation I can give, I give to Gwinna. It is a fine thing to read a story where the character grows in wondrous and moving ways within the imagination. The reader (unless they miss the story completely) must grow in turn. Gwinna is such a story...get it today.

Wonderous!

When I was first given Gwinna as a birthday present(oh, I don't rember what birthday!)I must admit I thought....."Yuck! ANOTHER book, what are my parents thinking? I want a Barbie." Well, I got a Barbie as the next package, but Gwinna has stuck with me much longer. This book is one of the best I have ever read. The moving story is backed up by some of the most beautiful pictures I have ever seen. Gwinna takes you to a place that you always knew existed, you just didn't know it exited anywhere beyond you own heart. As you are spun from word to word, and page to page, you will really feel as if you are flying. Now, on the main "Gwinna review page" it says this book is for ages three to eight. Well, I am fourteen going on fifteen, and Gwinna remains a huge influence on my life and one of my favorite books. When I say influence, I mean the same influence you get from reading someone like Tolkien or hearing a beautiful peice of music. Gwinna is a book that makes you feel as if you can reach out and feel the breath of its chairicters. If that doesn't convince you that this is a good book, I don't know what will.

If only there were more stars!

Gwinna is, hands down one of the best books I have ever read. Its moving and beautiful text are backed up by brilliant, exhilirating pictures. When recently I needed to find a gift for my 10 year old cousin I remembered this book. By checking with my aunt and uncle I discovered (to my horror) that we had never sent her this book. Needless to say, I jumped on this as the perfect gift. If any of you are picky shoppers (like me) you will know how hard the perfect gift is to find. It is not just for a ten year old that I would recomed this book either, it's still one of my favorites. Gwinna is one book I can say, without a doubt influenced me. It is the most moving "flight of fancy" imaginable. I recomend this book to anyone who has ever wished for wing to fly out over the horizon. I recomend it even more strongly to those of you who have not, because after Gwinna, you will.

This book is magical, a true wonder.

I absolutely loved Gwinna after reading it for the first time in third grade. Now, in high school, I love to relax and just absorb the beautiful pictures and magical story. This book has left a lasting impression on me.

Gwinna is a wonderful and enchanting book.

Gwinna is a girl who was given to her parents by the mother of owls. Untill her twelth birthday, Gwinna never knew who her real mother was. Then, on her twelth birthday, her real mother wants her back and the real adventure begins. The pictures in this book are wonderful! Barbara makes it seem like everthing is glowing and enchanted in her pictures. The combination of the touching story and beautiful pictures will make an impression on you you never thought a book could give