Oh, I liked this book, too. It had a young hero I could follow, the plot was just complicated enough, good guys, bad guys, a beautiful girl (who was just a wee bit of a feminist) and a satisfactory ending. Something to get lost in.It’s a work of fiction leading up to an actual fire that destroyed much of Krakow in 1462. The trumpeters of Krakow, from the title, trumpet the hour with a traditional piece of music, from the spire of a church every hour, on the hour. The melody is unfinished at the end, as a reference to a brave trumpeter who — years before — trumpeted a warning for the city until his dying breath, as the city was attacked by Cossacks. Rotten Cossacks.Turns out that our Hero’s family (His name is Joseph) has been hiding and guarding a treasure for several generations — the great Tarnov Crystal. It has some mystical qualities and a lot of alchemists want to get their hands on it. The bad guys are pretty crafty, and one adventure follows another, but eventually the crystal is given to the king. This is where, I am led to believe, it should have been all along anyway, which of course made me wonder why the crystal hadn’t just been delivered by the family generations ago but I can’t ask the author. And besides, it makes for a good story so I just suspended disbelief and carried about my business of reading.So, yeah. Joseph’s family has been chased from their home and driven to Krakow by a fellow who wants to steal the crystal. His father gets the job as night trumpeter in the church — this helps keep him home during the day so he can’t be seen and recognized. Joseph, however, starts attending University, and he IS out and about and recognized, and as a result, he has a series of wild adventures evading these nasty scoundrels. I could say more, but let’s just say that all’s well in the end, and the story was wroth a read.I was troubled by a few things, and I suppose this is part of the time capsule effect of an older book. Jews are mentioned a few times, but only as a reference to the city where they live across the river. The mention is somewhat benign although I thought I could hear a little derision in what I read. Maybe I’m just sensitive. And another thing: the bad guys were always obvious because they were either ugly or deformed. Sometimes both. Now, anyone who watches politics or reads People magazine knows that liars and knaves are also quite beautiful and appealing, and that physically unattractive people are just as nice as anyone else.Finally, I want to mention Elzbietka, Joseph’s neighbor and later sweetheart. She’s a bright and wise girl who is quite likable. Like I would expect of women of that era, she is very dependent on adults (mostly men) and – in her instance -her grandfather, and one expects she always will be. Yeah, I’m writing in 2012, but it bugs me and I’m going to say it. However, there is a conversation she has with Joseph where she maintains that women could be taught to read and be educated like men, why not? Joseph at first starts to argue with her, but it seems he discovers no just argument and finally agrees with her. She also makes a (great) point that poetry is much better in the common language where everyone can understand it, rather than Latin which is understandable only by a few. She never goes to university, but her point is made. I hope she at least learned to read. One believes that Martin Luther would have liked her.
Louise Seaman Bechtel introduction begins with condescension and ignorance in her introduction but it suits what follows. If the words Ugly American mean anything to you, let's skip what she actually wrote and describe it thusly.Kellly claims to love the Poles but if so why mislead Americans about the country's history? The University of Krakow was the first to have a chair in Astronomy - in 1400! See Grazyna Rosinska's article in http://scribd.com/doc/38101197/Universities-Science-in-the-Early-Modern-Period-Feingold-Navarro-Brotons-eds-2006The university's head of Sacred Scripture was none other than Fr. Jan Kanty, St. John Cantius, a Catholic priest. His work on impetus contributed to Galileo and Newton's research. They both wrote their scientific work in Latin - the international language of scientists!!! Let's not forget Copernicus - who studied at the university less than 30 years after this story. He did so because the university was the first in Europe to have endowed a chair in Astronomy in 1400. Stanislav of Skarbimierz, first rector of the law department, wrote Sermones Sapientales, which laid the basis of human rights in modern international law. Grzegorz of Sanock, Archibishop of Lwow, was a pioneer in Polish history and professor of Italian literature and Graeco-Roman poetry. Here are a few more names: Wojciech of Brudza, Martinus Rex, Sacrobosco, John of Holywood. Bianchini, Sardivogoiu of Czechlo, Nemorarius. Scientists trained in Krakow taught elsewhere and Krakow welcomed internationally known scientists. "Krakow, site of the most important medieval university in central Europe, developed into a centre of academic and teachnological innovations and accomodated numerous distinguished humanist scholars." According to an exhibit entitled Europa Jagellonia Art and Culture in Central Europe under the Reign of the Jagelllonian Dynasty: 1386-1572 www.uni_leipzig.de/rgwzo/images/GWZO_... or www.europajagellonica.eu The university was renamed in 1817. It's official name when Kelly was there was the Jagiellonian University. He could of gotten the name of one of his researchers "right" too - it's Hélène d'Abancourt de Francqueville.
What do You think about The Trumpeter Of Krakow (1992)?
I must admit that I am very proud to be 100% Polish-American, and that my daughters are the same.That fact, plus the very strong characters, inspiring passages, and its 1929 copyright moved a possible four-star rating to five. This is excellent young-adult historical fiction for any era. An action-packed adventure book based on a true story, "The Trumpeter" inspires today with its examples of courage, wisdom, and fidelity to promises made.When you read the book, be sure it's the edition that begins with the tribute to the author, written in 1966. There we read an interesting history of the book, and also that "Trumpeter" was "the sort of book to pass on as a special discovery," and that "copy after copy had been 'worn to shreds'" when it was published, one librarian had reported. I hope that I (or my daughters? with my daughters?!) travel some day to Krakow to hear the "Heynal" and to celebrate the Trumpeter's courage.
—Kathi
Just to clear up the genre question: This is tightly researched historical fiction. Although one of the characters is an alchemist, there are no fantasy elements. There were actual "alchemists" in medieval Europe, trying the types of experiments described in the book.As far as the book itself- it's pretty good. The characters and plotting are ahead of their time (1928), but the pacing is still choppier than most post-1960 children's books. Kelly gets something going for a few chapters, then lets it fizzle and starts building up momentum from zero all over again.Let's face it: most of the people who will read this are taking the Newbery challenge. For those people, the presence of plot and character combined with the absence of racism will be a welcome reprieve from the other early winners.
—Phil Jensen
A beautifully written book, it has an amazing setting-15th Century Krakow-which is brought vividly to life by this author. Published in 1928, it's classified as a Young Adult book, but, as with any good YA books, adults can enjoy it. The story is about a family-the Charnetskis-driven out of Ukraine to Krakow, at the time the capital of Poland. In their possession is a great and valuable gem which a Tartar bandit chief is looking for.. in Krakow, the family gets involved with alchemists at a time when the great Scientific Revolution was just beginning...
—Jim
