Sang Spell

By Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

Book Overview

Josh is hitchhiking from Boston to Dallas to begin a new life, trying to sort out the changes that have skewed his world since an accident killed his mother and made a mockery of his dreams. No longer... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0689820070
• ISBN13: 9780689820076
• Release Date: October 1998
• Publisher: Atheneum
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 0.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.7" x 0.7" x 5.6"
• Age Range: 11 to 17 years
• Grade Range: Grades 6 to 12

Customer Reviews

Come Under the Sang's Spell

This is one of the best books I have ever read. I'm not the type of person to pick up a sort of mystery-type book, but this one somehow caught my eye. Once I finished reading about Josh Vardy's escape from reality into a magical land called Canara, I was hooked. I have never read a book as many times as I have read this one. It doesn't matter how old you are to enjoy this book. I first read it in elementary school, now I'm sophmore in high school and I still enjoy it. I recommend it to those who enjoy a little bit of mystery, a little bit of eerie-spookyness, learning life's lessons, and of course, a little bit of a love story :)

A Great Book

Josh is an average teenager with a good life, until his mother is killed in a car crash. He decides that instead of taking the bus down to Texas to live with his aunt, he wants to hitch~hike. When he decided to turn off the main highway onto an isolated road, he is picked up by a stranger who gives him a ride instead of walking out in the rain and cold. When he is attacked by the driver, he is left by the side of the road with no money, no food, and a broken rib. Josh is picked up by a woman with a horse and a wagon and comes to live with the people of Canara. When he heals and makes friends, he decides to leave Canara, and be on his way. The only thing is, there's just no way he can get out... I really liked this book mainly because it kept you in suspense chapter after chapter. Every time Josh tried to leave Canara, he couldn't, and that left me wondering what would happen to him next. The author made his adventures easy to understand, but sometimes I had to go back and read a chapter, to search for key events or clues. I also liked the fact that there was a little romance tied into the story. It added a realistic touch to the plot. The ending was good, and would make a great plot for a sequel to Sang Spell. I didn't like when Josh was back in Canara for days at a time. It got boring when there was no action, and the pages seemed to go on forever. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who is looking for an adventure as well as a fast, easy read book.

Best book I have read in a while

When Josh Vardy's mother dies in a totally preventable car accident, Josh decides to go live with his aunt in Texas for the two years left until he is eighteen. He wants to have a sort of adventure, so he trys to hitchhike there, which is a long way from Boston. Somewhere between Tenessee and Virginia, he is picked up by a man who jumps him, takes his money, and leaves him on the side of the road to die. But then, some strange people with a horse and buggy come and save him. He is appreciative at first, until he realizes he is stuck in a world that time must have missed, a world where buildings come and go and the landscape changes daily. All Josh wants is his normal life back, but "to go foreward, you must go back," the Old One Who Remembers, Isobel, says. It turns out truer than Josh can imagine in this land of Canara where space is time, time is space, and your only jailer is yourself. I have read many books, but this one is different. It is a great book for teens and adults as well- I'm sure that each one of us is secretly trapped in our own, personal Canara, where we are the key to our own escape, the only decider of our future, and our past, for that matter. I strongly reccomend this book to anyone and everyone- you won't be disappointed.

Stuck in Canara

Stuck in Canara is the situation Josh finds himself in after trying to hitch his way to Texas. Josh's mother died a couple weeks before Josh starts his junior year of high school. He decides to live with his aunt in Texas. But before he got there, one driver who picked Josh up beat and robbed him and left him on the side of the road. That is where Leone, a mute woman, finds Josh and brings him to the village of Canara where to go forward, you must first go back.Soon Josh discovers the people in Canara are all Melungeons - people of mixed races. He also discovers a kind girl named Mavis and befriends a boy named Gil. But Canara isn't where Josh belongs. He wants to go to texas, but can't seem to get out of Canara. What is happening? Why can't Josh get out? And does he really have the heart to leave Mavis and Gil?I really like Sang spell because it was a bit creepy, had a little bit of history, dealt with moral dilemmas, and was totally original. If you are looking for any of these qualities in a book, get Sang Spell.

This is a compelling, wonderful novel.

I picked this book up for a book report after looking at the recommended books list. I wasn't expecting much because most of the books on the list aren't that great. Sang Spell was very suspenseful, and sometimes frusterating. It was a bit of a scary feeling to be trapped in an unknown world. The ending was good, and I wasn't sure what to expect. I'm not sure how I would have ended it. Another great story by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor!