East (novel)
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East is an ALA Top Ten Best Book for Young Adults by Edith Pattou. It was released in the UK as 'North Child'.
[edit] Story
When Arne married the superstitious Eugenia, he agreed to have seven children with her, one for each point of the compass, excluding North, which she believed to be wild and vulgar. Her favourite child, East-born Elise, died very young and Eugenia had another child to replace her. But Rose turned out to be a North born child. Eugenia was told years before that any North Child she had would die beneath snow and ice.
Rose grows up believing herself to be an East like her dead sister, but is unhappy that she is expected to be a replacement for Elise. Nonetheless she could not curb her adventurous nature and when she was very young, she fell into the river and was rescued by a mysterious White Bear, who watched her ever afterwards. Since then, Rose took her imagination on adventures across the world on the back of a White Bear and in time also became an accomplished seamstress.
One evening, when Rose's family was destitute and her elder sister lay dying, the White Bear appears to them and asks that he be allowed to take Rose. If they agreed, the family would no longer be poor and the sick daughter would be made well. He gives them seven days to decide, but Rose's father is already determined he will not give her up. Her mother is excited by the promises of the White Bear and tries to persuade her husband to agree to his bargain. Rose listens to their arguments and learns that she is not an East, but a North child. She knows her destiny is to go away and decided to leave with the White bear. When the White Bear arrives a week later, she goes with him and though her father and brothers try to stop her, her mother tells them to leave her. "It is her direction. Her choice"
The White Bear takes Rose to a hidden castle in the mountains of France and there she lives for months on end with a couple of mysterious servants, a woman and her son who are both pale with rough skin and a strange language. She passes the time by weaving or learning to play the musical instruments, but never goes outside. At night, she has a mysterious visitor who comes into her room and lies in the bed beside her, but a mysterious enchantment takes hold and she cannot see or even speak to him. She believes it is the White Bear, who has cast off his fur and is cold, she makes a shirt for him. Nonetheless, she becomes homesick and the White Bear reluctantly allows her to return home for a visit. Her family is happy to have her home and she speaks in private with her brother Neddy about the strange happenings of her nighttime visitor. Her mother overhears and gives Rose an enchanted candle to use. When Rose returns to the castle, she uses the candle and at last sees the face of a young man lying beside her. In her shock, she wakes him as she spills tallow onto his shirt. At once, the castle disappears and Rose is left alone with the young man. He explains that he was stolen from his home by the Queen of the Trolls and changed into a White Bear by her angry father. If he could find a young maid who would live with him for a year without seeing his human face, he would have been free. Now he would have to go with the Troll Queen forever. At this, the man is whisked away by a white sledge.
Rose is determined to find and save him. Her journey takes her through France all the way up to the Arctic, in search of the place that is East of the sun and West of the moon. At last, she arrives at the Palace of the Trolls, Niflheim. She works as a servant or 'softskin' for many months, before she learns that the White Bear is to marry the Troll Queen. With the help of the Troll boy from the castle, Tuki, she disguises herself and approaches the White Bear at a ball, trying to get him to remember her. But his memory has been all but erased from the poison the Troll Queen has been feeding him, and Rose flees the city believing him to truly love the Troll Queen. When she reaches the outskirts of the city, she discovers a group of frozen corpses, softskins who had been turned out to die in the cold when they were no longer useful. Sure that the same thing would happen to the White Bear, Rose turns back to the city and hides among the guests at the wedding. By now, the White Bear has remembered Rose and how to escape the Troll Queen. He asks her to wash a shirt for him, and produces the one that Rose spilt tallow on. The Queen cannot clean it, so Rose tries and succeeds. In her fury, the Queen destroys the Ice Palace and wipes out the Trolls. Rose and the White Bear escape with the Softskin slaves and escape the city.
On the journey home, the White bear reveals that he cannot remember who he was before he was changed and decides to leave quietly on a journey to find out. He returns to the castle in the mountain and Rose follows him. She tells him at last that she loves him, and he reveals his name to her. Prince Charles Pierre Phillipe. They are married after this and live happily ever after.
[edit] Characters
Rose - a North born child, wild and adventurous.
Charles/Myk/White Bear - a prince who is stolen from his home by the Troll Queen and transformed into the White Bear.
Neddy - Rose's elder brother, a North-West child.
Arne/Father - Rose's father, a mapmaker.
Eugenia - Rose's mother. Very superstitious.
Troll Queen - a jealous queen who falls in love with Charles and steals him from his home.
Tuki - a Troll boy who makes friend's with Rose and helps her find Charles.
Urda - Tuki's mother and servant of the mountain castle
Malmo - a shaman woman who helps Rose find the Troll city.
Sofi - a French woman living outside the mountain castle.
Estelle - Sofi's daughter.
Thor - a drunken captain who helps Rose reach the North.
Sara- Rose's older sister who gets sick.
