Foiled

By Jane Yolen

Book Overview

A quirky, fast-paced urban fantasy by esteemed author Jane Yolen Aliera Carstairs just doesn't fit in. She's always front and center at the fencing studio, but at school she's invisible. And she's fine with that . . . until Avery Castle walks into her first period biology class. Avery may seem perfect now, but will he end up becoming her Prince Charming or just a toad?

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1596432799
• ISBN13: 9781596432796
• Release Date: April 2010
• Publisher: First Second
• Length: 160 Pages
• Weight: 0.86 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.3" x 8.5"
• Age Range: 12 to 15 years
• Grade Range: Grades 7 to 10

Customer Reviews

Defender of the World?!

Reason for Reading: Jane Yolen is a wonderful author, so versatile! though I am partial to her mythological/folk tales works. Seeing that she had written a graphic novel I was so excited to read this. Aliera Carstairs is a loner who doesn't fit in at school with any of the cliques; she doesn't even stand out enough to get picked on by anybody. She's rather a broody thing but she does have one passion and that is fencing. Everyday after school she goes to fencing class and is told she is very good and can go "far", which means The Nationals. Aliera has a rather strange practice fencing foil that her mother picked up for her at a Chinese lady's tag sale for $2. Not your typical foil, this one has a great big fake jewel wonder glued (she's tried to remove it) stuck to the end of the handle. Whatever, fencing is an expensive sport. Aliera is colourblind and the majority of the book has been drawn and coloured in black,white,and various greys going up to a bluish tint. This not only shows Aliera's colourless world but also her broody attitude. Aliera does have a secret dream, she plays this out in her imagination when she is fencing and when she plays RPG with her wheelchair bound cousin, it is here she becomes Xenda of Xenon, expert swordswoman. Imagination meets reality when Aliera puts her fencing mask on in the subway and suddenly she can see colour but not from our world, from the world which lives parallel to ours which is full of fairies, dragons, strange creatures and dragons and a queen who tells her she is a Defender of her world and gives her her first mission. I loved Foiled! The story within the book is completed and finalized by there are many hanging threads and an obvious ending to let the reader know there will be another book, perhaps even a series. Aliera is a great main character, one that is easy to relate to. She is somewhat shy (though I'd really just say she's quiet). She stays out of everyone's way but thinks a lot. She's got some great comeback's and oneliners in her thoughts. But push her too far and she'll let loose like nobodies business and tell you exactly what she thinks. Aliera is not to be messed around with. She may be broody a good part of the time but she is also bold and brave and the one that can be counted on in an emergency. A delightful book, which more than met my expectations. Certainly looking forward to the next one! Recommended!

A Fine Work

Aliera Carstairs' life is a series of routines: school and fencing practice during the week, fencing practice and gaming with her cousin Caroline on the weekends. She doesn't expect or, rather, doesn't dare hope for more than that. Until Avery Castle shows up at school--"Prince Charming all the way." She tries not to fall for him, but can't seem to help herself, and when he asks her on a date, it seems too good to be true. It's on their date, in Grand Central Station, that Aliera puts on her fencing mask and suddenly the world is a very different place, a world where Aliera just might be...important. Just as Mike Carey, Marc Hempel, and Sonny Liew did with their terrific Re-Gifters (Minx), Yolen and Cavallaro take a girl who plays a tough sport and tell the story of a cute boy who throws her off her game. In both books, though, the girl finds the inner strength to be more than just boy-crazed. She focuses her energies just as she's been taught in her sport and emerges from her experience a champion. The difference is that Foiled is written by Jane Yolen, one of the grande dames of fantasy. So Aliera's experience isn't something that can be completely contained by the world we know. This is not immediately evident, though. The strong part of Foiled is that Yolen takes her time to set up who Aliera is. She's the narrator, so we are given a clear look inside her head. By the time things go sideways, we're as baffled and intrigued as she is. It takes a strong, feisty main character to engage an audience like that and Aliera is both, though it takes some convincing before she realizes it. The secondary characters are mostly relegated to the sidelines in this tale, which seems to be the first of a potential series. But two of them stand out in their own way. One is Avery, the handsome young man. Like Aliera, we aren't sure whether or not to trust him or believe him. By turns creepy and gorgeous, he is a young man of contradictions. It isn't until Aliera begins to find her feet on her own that Avery begins to show his true colors. Caroline is the other interesting character. She's confined to a wheelchair with rheumatoid arthritis, but her upbeat personality is part of what Aliera respects about her. The two play role-playing games together, an element that seems likely to crop up in any later stories about Aliera. At first glance, the art seems dull and uninspired. The simple grayish teal color selection is so bland that readers might wonder at first why Cavallaro didn't choose a brighter or more dramatic palette. But there is a reason and once it is revealed the whole package of the book clicks together perfectly. Cavallaro knows just how to draw ordinary teenage girls and good-looking teenage boys and he's obviously done a lot of research in order to get the fencing moves correct. First Second has done a beautiful production job on this book, a fitting finish for a fine work. Give this one to the quiet teen girl voraciously reading urban fantas

American Manga at its Finest

Those who say that this feels like the beginning of something are absolutely right. It feels very much like the first tankoban volume of a manga series, and I hope that's exactly what it is. The heroine is strong and likable, and the story moves right into making her ready to deal with the challenges that any manga reader knows are coming. It's Shojo manga with an American / European fantasy twist, and that rocks my small, self-centered world.

not self-contained but an imaginative & clever beginning

most readers, especially fencers, will enjoy this comic book, though I agree with reviewer Pam T that this reads like the first part of a series and that the adventure doesn't really start yet in this installment. another way to put it: this comic doesn't really have much of a middle or end, but rather just a beginning - a cool beginning. not quite for those parents who want something strictly G-rated. as always, parents should pre-read before giving to their kids. the protagonist is a foilist. epee is not mentioned and saber is dissed, but in a way, I think, that sabreurs will not find off-putting.