The Beast Player

Locations
Call Number: R Printz Honor, Teen Fiction / Uehashi, Nahoko, Teen Book / Fiction / Fantasy / Uehashi, Nahoko
On Shelf At: Downtown Library, Westgate Branch

Location & Checkout Length	Call Number	Checkout Length	Item Status
Downtown Kids Reference 0-week checkout	R Printz Honor	0-week checkout	On Shelf
Downtown Teen, 1st Floor 4-week checkout	Teen Fiction / Uehashi, Nahoko	4-week checkout	On Shelf
Westgate Teen Books 4-week checkout	Teen Book / Fiction / Fantasy / Uehashi, Nahoko	4-week checkout	On Shelf

"First published in English by Pushkin Press, 2018."
Nahoko Uehashi's The Beast Player is an epic YA fantasy about a girl with a special power to communicate with magical beasts and the warring kingdom only she can save.
Elin's family cares for the fearsome water serpents that form the core of their kingdom's army. When some of the beasts mysteriously die, Elin's mother is sentenced to death as punishment. With her last breath she manages to send her daughter to safety. Alone, far from home, Elin discovers that she can talk to both the terrifying water serpents and the majestic flying beasts that guard her queen. This skill involves her in deadly plots that could cost her life. Can she save herself and prevent her beloved beasts from being used as tools of war?

REVIEWS & SUMMARIES

Booklist Review
Summary / Annotation
Author Notes

COMMUNITY REVIEWS

Unusual submitted by mowjac on June 17, 2021, 8:39am I haven't read Japanese fiction in translation before, so the rhythm of the story was different to me from Western fiction. Elin story and her relationship with nature and animals is the majority of the story, a very openly curious approach that I found inspiring. The story ended abruptly to my senses, and I anticipate that this is a beginning of a series. Overall a slower, restful low drama story with broader implications about culture.