| "OVER SEA, UNDER STONE"
Author: Susan Cooper
Interest Level: Middle Grades (4-8)
ATOS Reading Level: 5.4
AR Points: 12.0
Publisher Recommended Age: 12+
Publisher: Simon Schuster/Simon Pulse
Book Type: Trade Paperback
Book Description:
Three children on vacation in Cornwall find an ancient manuscript which sends them on a dangerous quest that entraps them in the eternal battle between the forces of the Light and the Dark.
In this tale, Susan Cooper introduces us to Merriman, a pivotal character for the forces of the Light and also ties him with the three young mortal children in a quest by the sea which will lead them over sea and under stone to find a grail of legend to help the Light in its struggle against the Dark.
Book Reviews:
School Library Journal: "This is an outstanding...classic tale that all young...and adults will thoroughly enjoy." Grades 5-7
About the Dark is Rising Sequence Book Series:
The Dark Is Rising is the name of a five-book series of children's novels by Susan Cooper originally published in the 1960s and 1970s. The series is written as contemporary fantasy, and depicts the struggle between the forces of good, called The Light, and the forces of evil, known as The Dark.
The series is based on the Arthurian mythos, and is written primarily for older children and young adults. One of the books won the Newbery medal, and another was a Newbery Honor book. The Dark Is Rising is also the title of the second book in the series, whose main character is an eleven-year-old boy who learns that he is an Old One, destined to wield the powers of The Light in an ancient struggle with The Dark. Children, both magical and ordinary, feature prominently in the struggle portrayed in the five books.
In 2005, following the successful motion picture adaptations of other fantasy classics, it was announced that the series was being developed as a major motion picture. The film adaptation The Seeker, which introduces significant plot and character changes from the book, was released on October 5, 2007.
About the Author
Susan Cooper is best known for her acclaimed sequence of fantasy novels known as The Dark Is Rising which includes OVER SEA, UNDER STONE; THE DARK IS RISING (1974 Newbery Honor book); GREENWITCH; THE GREY KING (1976 Newbery Award book); and SILVER ON THE TREE.
Her novels for young readers also include SEAWARD and DAWN OF FEAR. She has written three books for younger children as well: THE SILVER COW, THE SELKIE GIRL, and TAM LIN, all illustrated by Warwick Hutton. In collaboration with actor Hume Cronyn, she wrote the Broadway play Foxfire and -- for Jane Fonda -- the television film The Dollmaker, for which they received the Humanitas Prize in 1985.
Born in Buckinghamshire, England, Susan Cooper moved to the United States in 1963 and now lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts. |
