McDonnell, Kathleen. 1212; year of the journey.

McDONNELL, Kathleen. 1212; year of the journey. Second Story Press. 288p. maps. c2006. 1-897187-11-4. $7.95. JSA 

We don't generally have historical fiction this challenging for teenagers, at least not in the US. It tells of the Children's Crusade, in 1212, when a shepherd had a vision that inspired thousands of young people across France and Germany to walk to Jerusalem to convince the Moslems there of Christ's love. The historical facts are that such a youth, Etienne, urged children to follow him; when they reached Marseille, unscrupulous merchant sailors offered to take them for free across the Mediterranean to the Holy Land. Many children died at sea and those who survived passage were sold into slavery. It was a catastrophe.

McDonnell tells her fictional story using three French characters: Etienne, Abel (a Jew), and Blanche (a Cathar, or heretic). Abel is drawn to Etienne as a friend, and he yearns for adventure and for Olam HaBa, the Jewish vision of a world where all faiths get along. Blanche has lost her entire family in a massacre by Roman Catholic fanatics; she takes her musical instrument, disguises herself as a boy, and follows the crusaders because she is lonely and has nothing to lose. Etienne is wounded by his mother's desertion when she had a religious vision that took her into seclusion, away from her son.

The intolerance of the Catholic Church prevails, whether in the persecution of heretics and Jews, or the greed and savagery that inspired the Crusades endorsed by the Pope. (The Pope never approved of the Children's Crusade.) Francis of Assisi is an inspiring heroic figure who appears in this story; the connection is made that Blanche's faith, like that of Francis of Assisi, was based on a revulsion for the wealth and power of the Church. McDonnell tells about more than just 1212, the year of the crusade; she continues Abel's story and Blanche's story for 20 years into the future, with brief chapters that tell of Abel's fate as a slave connected to an enlightened Moslem ruler in Egypt, and Blanche's life linked once again to her people in southern France, hunted and persecuted by the Church. Readers interested in religious history and European history will appreciate McDonnell's fine work. Claire Rosser, WATT

J--Recommended for junior high school students. The contents are of particular interest to young adolescents and their teachers.

S--Recommended for senior high school students.

A--Recommended for advanced students and adults. This code will help librarians and teachers working in high schools where there are honors and advanced placements students. This also will help extend KLIATT's usefulness in public libraries.