From Publishers Weekly
One night, Gwyn asked his sister Bethan to go up the mountain and rescue his ewe; she was never seen again. Now he is 10, still blamed by his father for Bethan's disappearance, and wonders if his grandmother's hints that he is a magician could possibly be true. If he is, he wants to use his powers to get Bethan back. A girl, in fact, arrives in the village, so similar in her ways to Bethan that her presence acts as a salve on the family's wounds. And Gwyn, with the overeagerness of an apprentice, unleashes the darker side of his magic. Nimmo's story, set in the Welsh countryside, contains elements of SF and fantasy, but it's firmly grounded in very real themes of blame and responsibility. She displays a mastery of family nuancesthe little rituals that can keep a family whole or tear it apart if those same gestures are ignored or forgotten. Ages 10-up.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From School Library Journal
Grade 4-7 Gwyn's birthday is the anniversary of his sister's unexplained disappearance. Nain, Gwyn's grandmother, presents him with a collection of strange items including a brooch which eventually turns into a silver spider. Nain, either mad or a witch, looks for special powers of the ancestral magicians to be found again in Gwyn and tries to convince him that the magicians of the old Welsh legends are reborn in him. As the snow spider spins webs that reveal another world, Gwyn comes to understand that he is a magician, and he yearns for his heart's desire, the return of his sister. A new classmate enters his life and is befriended by his family. She is surely Bethan, the sister who had been taken to the other world seen in the web. The occurances of arcane and bizarre wonders increase extravagantly, almost out of control. But the reality of Gwyn, his parents, and the Welsh setting give this fantasy equilibrium and an appealing warmth. The pace is brisk and captivating. A good choice to lead into ``The Dark Is Rising'' series (Macmillan) by Susan Cooper. Lucy Hawley, Wescott School Library, Northbrook, Ill.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
