Talon: Come Fly With Me
By Gigi Sedlmayer
Genre: Young Adult/Fiction
Rating: 4 of 5 stars
ABOUT THE BOOK
Nine year old Matica lives in a remote village on a dry plateau in the Andes of Peru. She moved to Peru when she was five with Australian missionary and schoolteacher parents. Because Matica is trapped in the body of a two year old, her growth handicap has caused her to be rejected by the local people and they would not accept her into their community or allow her to play with the children.
With patience and a sense of adventure Matica befriends a pair of condors. A strong bond and love develops between them.
Matica rescues the egg the condors, Tamo and Tima, are trying to protect from poachers and nurtures it to hatching. The egg hatches on her 10th birthday and she names the new fledging Talon.
Many adventures unfold, including her finally being accepted into the local community. And something totally unexpected…
This is the beginning of many incredible adventures with Talon and Matica. It is a story of hope, determination and love.
REVIEW
This book was given to me in exchange for an honest review.
Talon: Come Fly with Me is the first book of the Talon series by Gigi Sedlmayer and takes place in the remote little village of Pucara in the Andes Mountains where Matica and her missionary family live.
Matica is a unique little girl that I believe many readers will relate to because she is different, through no fault of her own. She has a growth disability that often leads to her being shunned by the locals simply due to her physical differences. But, this young girl doesn’t let that stop her. Instead, she becomes friends with a pair of condors; birds much like her who are often shunned due to their appearance.
When news comes to Matica that poachers are on the prowl she realizes her endangered condor friends are in peril and sets out to save the egg the pair have been incubating.
With help from Tamo and Tia (her condor friends) the egg hatches and Matica’s new best friend, Talon, is brought into the world. Who needs human children for friends when you can have such unique creatures adopt you into their family? It’s not long before they are all off on new adventures.
This story is heartwarming on many levels and would make a wonderful gift for any child with disabilities, deformities, or who simply feels left out and different in this world. Who of us hasn’t felt that way from time to time?
If I have to pick something to criticize constructively it would be this….head-popping. If you aren’t familiar with what that is it is when an author jumps in and out of one character’s head to another; telling the story from their perspective. Often this is not a problem when it is done from one chapter to another or even one scene to another with the author telling the story from a different perspective in each scene or chapter. But, when it is done several times within a chapter or scene it becomes a bit disconcerting for the reader and can interrupt the flow of the story.
Still, if this is the only thing I can pick out to criticize in this book for young adults and that is pretty minor. What bothers me may not bother you and over all I really did enjoy this little story. It’s fairly short, easy to read, and completely suitable for a young audience. It would make a great story for a parent to read to their child too; I know my son would have enjoyed hearing me read it.
Pick up a copy for yourself or a child you know. I think you’ll be glad you did.
I give this one 4 out of 5 stars.
Keep watching my blog; I’ll be reviewing the rest of the books in the Talon series over the next several weeks.
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