Tam Lin - Hardcover

Margaret, daughter of the king of Scotland, longs for adventure. Tired of setting a good example for all the other young girls -- and of waiting to be married -- Margaret flings down her embroidery one day and runs out of the castle, over the fields to Carterhays, a wood that is supposedly haunted by Tam Lin, an Elfin knight. There, indeed, she meets Tam Lin, who is remarkably handsome. When she learns his story -- that he is human, not Elfin at all, and was stolen as a baby by the Elfin Queen -- she determines to help break the enchantment that holds him. Courageous and steadfast throughout one fearful night, Margaret defeats each dangerous and dramatic attempt by the Elfin Queen to keep Tam Lin. And when the morning sun rises, Margaret and Tam Lin ride together across the green fields of Scotland, back to the castle.

Grade 1-4-- Together again: the formidable Cooper and Hutton complete their Celtic trilogy that began with The Silver Cow (Atheneum, 1983). This third is from the ballad and story in which feisty Princess Margaret (usually Burd Janet or Jennet MacKenzie in other tellings) saves Tam Lin from the elfin queen. Hutton's masterful watercolors are dreamy and romantic, slightly more muted than in the companion volumes. The timing is unfortunate. This follows fast on the heels of the Yolen/Mikolaycak edition (HBJ, 1990), and his illustrations are vivid and wild; Hutton's are typically subtle. Mikolaycak's tartans are invented, while Hutton's Scots sport no plaid at all--defensible since these are lowlanders and there's some controversy as to who wore tartans and when, but unlike the Yolen edition, there are no notes. Also, when Cooper has Margaret change for the banquet, Hutton dresses her in the same peasant jumper and blouse she has worn and will wear for the entire book. Yolen's rich folk-style telling is predominately narrative and gives background, while Cooper's is alive with dialogue and offers no explanations. Both would be excellent additions to any folklore collection, but if choice is imperative, Yolen and Mikolaycak might win the children. --Helen Gregory, Grosse Pointe Public Library, MI
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.