A+Great+And+Terrible+Beauty

= A Great And Terrible Beauty // by Libba Bray //= Bray, L. (2003). // A great and terrible beauty //. New York, NY: Random House, Inc.

Summary
//A Great And Terrible Beauty//, the first in a trilogy of novels by Libba Bray, is narrated by the main character, Gemma Doyle. The story begins in Bombay, India, where Gemma, her mother, and their servant are walking through an Indian marketplace to a wealthy woman's home to celebrate Gemma's sixteenth birthday. Gemma is obsessed with everything London and all the grandeur the finishing schools there have to offer a young lady, but her mother refuses to allow her to go, forcing her to stay in India. But everything changes when Gemma has a vision of her mother's death. . . and moments later learns it to be true. With her mother's death comes the added confusion of the visions she doesn't understand and a strange boy, named Kartik, a member of a group called the Rakshana, who warns her of unknown dangers if she continues to let her visions get the best of her.

After her mother's death, Gemma is sent to London to Spence Academy for Young Ladies. She gets off to a rocky start with the other girls her age at Spence and at first her only ally is her awkward, pudgy roommate, Ann, who is an outcast due to her low social status and need for a scholarship to attend the school. Eventually, Gemma and Ann form a friendship with two of the school's most popular girls, Felicity and Pippa. Through one of her visions Gemma is lead to find a diary written by a girl named Mary Dowd, whom is plagued by the same visions along with her best friend, Sarah Rees-Toome. The four girls decide to form their own secret group called, the Order, after learning about a similar group who had visions of the future, travelled to mystical realms, and possessed other-worldly powers. Through their readings in the diary the girls learn that Mary and Sarah were apart of the original Order along with the school's first headmistress, Eugenia Spence who all died in a mysterious fire in the East Wing of the school. Eventually, Gemma is left with no choice but to reveal to the other girls the burning secret of her abilities.

The truth now revealed the four girls travel together into the realms where, shockingly, Gemma finds her mother alive and the girls can finally achieve their greatest desires of knowledge, power, love, and beauty. The girls travel back and forth from the real world to the realms. . . but this does not last for long. Gemma's mother reveals to her that she is Mary Dowd and that she sacrificed a little gypsy girl to help Sarah regain her power. When the girls return to the realm for the last time an evil spirit attacks them and in their rush to escape Pippa gets left behind in the realm, leading to her death in the real world. This is where the story leaves us craving more, continued in the second book in the series //Rebel Angels//, and the third book, //The Sweet Far Thing.//

Critique
Overall, I believe this book will appeal to adolescent girls more than boys. Although there is one main male character in the story, female characters comprise a vast majority of the storyline. This may cause adolescent boys to become uninterested. But, the story does offer much of the same drama many middle school girls experience on a daily basis, which can help them make real world connections to the story. In addition, the lure of mystery, magic, and other realms can provide for these students an escape from the world where they at an awkward stage of life. Although the story line offers twists, turns, and excitement none of it would seem overwhelming or as if too much is being thrown at the student to comprehend at once. The only reason I would be hesitant to use this book with a class or recommend it for a student to independently read is some of the vocabulary used is a bit challenging. If I were to use this book I would first teach my students strategies for words they do not know the meaning of, because even I, as a senior in college, had to look up a few words for myself.

Interdisciplinary Connections
__Social Studies__
 * Students will located Bombay, India and London, England on a map, determine their absolute locations, and then compare the special customs, populations, and religions of the two countries.
 * The book is set in 1895. Students will create a timeline of events going on in England at that time and increase their understanding why women were treated the way they were at that time.

__Science__
 * Students will compare the landscapes, climates, and seasonal weather of India and England.

__Language Arts__
 * Students can read Lord Tennyson's "Lady of Shallott" and, from their interpretation of the poem, create their own piece of art like Gemma did in her drawing class (can also be used in art discipline).
 * Students will create a blog for each chapter. See example: @http://keslie-agreatandterriblebeauty.blogspot.com/2011/02/chapter-blogging.html
 * Students will write about their greatest desires and what would happen if they came true, just as the girls' desires did in the other realms.
 * Students will create a fictional diary for one of the other characters in the book.

__Math__
 * Students will calculate the distance between Bombay, India and London, England and how long it would take them to get from one to another using different modes of transportation.