Isabel: Taking Wing

The year is 1592, and twelve-year-old Isabel Campion is living under the strict rule of her Aunt Elinor in an upper-class neighborhood located in London. Isabel, unlike other 12-year-olds, wants nothing more than to escape the "conformist" society she is forced to grow up in. She doesn't want to spend her days cleaning stains out of shirts, or learning how to sew perfectly; but rather longs to explore the world, and become an actor like the boys she sees perform at the playhouse. Unfortunately, that's another thing Isabel is unable to do. Perform. For girls are not actors, and even the roles of females are played by males. When Isabel is sent to her Aunt de Vere's home, she becomes lost, and joins a group of boys who accept her as one of their own, and allow her to become an actor like them. But maybe acting isn't what Isabel was after all. Maybe there's nothing in the world that is perfect for her. As a fan of the GIRLS OF MANY LANDS series, as well as sixteenth-century London, I found that ISABEL: TAKING WING was a perfect addition to the collection. Isabel is a spirited young girl, who is brave, and kindhearted, and will easily keep readers enthralled from the first page to the very last. Filled with many informational tidbits regarding sixteenth-century life, as well as information about London-born girls of today, Annie Dalton's effort will be cherished. Erika Sorocco Book Review Columnist for The Community Bugle Newspaper

This book, Isabel: Taking Wing, was written by Annie Dalton. It was set in the Elizabethan age in London, in the year 1592. It is the first of the five books in the series Girls of Many Lands, which tells about girls in history, how they are alike and different from girls today. Isabel: Taking Wing has about 180 pages and 12 chapters. Though the book was hard to get into at first, it became very exciting after the first few chapters. In addition to the story, the author put a section in the back of the book that tells what the women wore, as well as historical facts and pictures about Queen Elizabeth I and Shakespeare's theater. This book comes with a colorful Isabel bookmark where you can keep your place in the book. This book has a very colorful picture of Isabel on the front, but no pictures while you are reading the story. I don't like that about the book. But I do like how the author wrote the book in first person, where you can feel what Isabel felt. She really described Isabel's thoughts and dreams in an exciting, fun to read way. I love the way the author filled this book with happy, sad and exciting times that Isabel experienced in her life. Isabel is a 12-year-old girl growing up in a wealthy house in London. The author tells how Isabel grows tired of endless chores to prepare her for being a lady. So she sneaks out to see a Shakespeare play, but she is found out and banished to live at her aunt's house in the countryside. On the way there she is attacked by thieves. They leave her unharmed, but lost and alone. She then joins a band of actors, disguised as a boy, and finally gets a taste of the freedom she longs for. But it is not the freedom she imagined it to be. By the end of the book, though, she is reunited with her family, and discovers what freedom really means. This book has many historical details, as well as good humor. It tells how women were expected to run the household and men to earn the money, like trading overseas that was Isabel's father's job. As Isabel bluntly put it, "Women must stay indoors, sewing stitches so fine that no one will ever see them. Our work is only visible if we do it badly. But men's work is very visible if you do it wisely." Isabel also says, "Girls must always be good and stay at home. But when you are a boy the world can be your home." Isabel longs for adventure, and finds it in this book, and you will too!

is an excellent book! Isabel Campion has always dreamed of avventure. When her sister gets engaged, Isabel has to learn all about the house-hold responsibilities. She finds it a bore, so she asks one of her servants to take her to the playhouse. They steal Meg's(her servants)uncle's boat. Isabel is enchanted and instantly falls in love.On her way back, the boat get a hole, and Megs uncle saves them. Isabel is in big trouble. The punishment is to live with her aunt. Isabel packs her things and finally her aunts servant arrives to bring Isabel to her aunts home. On the way, Isabel is robbed and her aunts servant is killed. Isabel finds Megs brother and the rest of the people from the play. She disguises herself as a boy and even acts in some of the plays. When she arrives at her aunts house, everyone was glad to see her alive. She learn which plants heal certain sicknesses. One day, a letter arrives from her married sister telling Isabel that therir little sister has fallen ill with the plague. Isabel comes home and saves the day. I recommend it to all girls 9 and up.

While I have not read any of the other books from the Girls of Many Lands series, I really enjoyed Isabel: Taking Wing. The story begins on Christmas Eve. Isabel lives with her father, sisters Sabine and Hope, Aunt Elinor, and a few servants. She befriends Meg, a maid who is around Isabel's own age. Meg's brother, Kit, works at a playhouse, and Isabel's dream is to become an actor. One day, when Isabel persuades Meg to let her visit the playhouse, both return very late and Isabel is banished by her father to live with Aunt de Vere. While on the journey to Aunt de Vere's house, Isabel's companion, Aunt de Vere's servant, is killed and the horses are stolen. Isabel happens to meet up with Kit and his journeying troupe. She pretends she is a boy and acts in plays until the group gets to Aunt de Vere's house in three weeks. When Isabel finally reaches her aunt's house, the two of them come to love each other and have many things in common. Will Isabel's family ever forgive her and welcome her into their home again? Read this great story and find out.