The Republic of Birds
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
A young witch must save her sister from evil birds in this masterful middle-grade fantasy
In the land of Tsaretsvo, civil war has divided the human kingdom from the Republic of Birds. Magic is outlawed, and young witches are sent to a mysterious boarding school, from which no one has returned. Olga and her family live a life of dull privilege in the capital until her father displeases the tyrannical tsarina. The family is sent off into exile at the Imperial Center for Avian Observation, an isolated shack near the Republic of Birds. Unlike the rest of her family, Olga doesn’t particularly mind their strange new life. She never fit into aristocratic society as well as her perfect younger sister, Mira. What does worry Olga is her blossoming magical abilities. If anyone found out, they’d send her away. But then Mira is kidnapped by the birds, and Olga has no choice but to enter the forbidden Republic, a dangerous world full of iagas, talking birds, and living dreams. To navigate the Republic and save her sister, she’ll need her wits, her cunning—and even her magic.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Ever since the War in the Skies, yagas and magic have been banished from Tsaretsvo. Olga Oblomova, 12, who loves cartography despite its male-only designation, feels out of place between her movie-star stepmother Anastasia and perfect younger sister Mira. But their lives are upended when Olga's architect father is demoted to Minister for Avian Intelligence at the Imperial Center for Avian Observation. The remote outpost separates the world of humans from the Republic, the forbidden city of birds ruled by the treacherous Ptashka III, who is intent on finding a firebird egg taken by yagas that will give her ultimate power over humans. When Ptashka's army kidnaps Mira, Olga's fascination with legendary cartographers proves useful—especially when she learns she has magic of her own. As Olga journeys into the Unmappable Blank, a place from which no cartographer has ever returned, she weighs saving her sister against her newfound powers. Miller (Elizabeth and Zenobia) crafts a Russian folklore–infused tale, augmented by excerpts from mythical history books. While the resolution feels abrupt, the theme—"If you feel you don't fit somewhere, change it until it fits you"—is movingly portrayed. Ages 10–14.
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