Reviewed by Sally Kruger aka "Readingjunky" for TeensReadToo.com
If you are looking for something different to read, pick up a copy of THE HUMMING OF NUMBERS. Several things combine to make it a quite unique reading experience.
First, there is the setting - the 10th-century in a Celtic monastery. Most books I've read lately have been set in 2008 and have included the latest in modern technology. In THE HUMMING OF NUMBERS, the main character, Aidan, is in training to become a scribe. He lives at the abbey and is a novice monk. His days are spent following their strict rules and dreaming of the day he will be able to work magic with his calligraphy pen.
Next comes the magic. Aidan possesses a mysterious talent. He associates numbers with everyone he meets. It's almost as if each person emits an aura (hum) that communicates to Aidan. The story begins one day in the abbey when Aidan hears an eleven. Until that day he has never heard anyone above a ten. Most of those he meets hum the number three. From the moment Aidan meets Lana, her special number and her lovely face become the focus of his attention. As the story unfolds, it also becomes clear that Lana has her own unique magic, and Aidan hopes her magic can be used to save the lives of those around them.
Another element that adds a different dimension to this story is the presence of raiders attacking and pillaging the countryside around Aidan's abbey. Aidan's life is spared when he is sent on an errand away from the abbey. Lana insists on accompanying him, so she is safe as well. When the two realize the horrors that have destroyed the villages and killed many, they offer to use their talents to rescue the local lord's kidnapped young son. Complicating matters is the fact that Lana is actually the illegitimate child of the local lord and has been sent away to the abbey as punishment.
THE HUMMING OF NUMBERS is truly an escape into another time and place. It is filled with likeable characters whose lives revolve in an entirely different direction than ours. This book gives readers a peek into the past, into the world as it once was.
If you are looking for something different to read, pick up a copy of THE HUMMING OF NUMBERS. Several things combine to make it a quite unique reading experience.
First, there is the setting - the 10th-century in a Celtic monastery. Most books I've read lately have been set in 2008 and have included the latest in modern technology. In THE HUMMING OF NUMBERS, the main character, Aidan, is in training to become a scribe. He lives at the abbey and is a novice monk. His days are spent following their strict rules and dreaming of the day he will be able to work magic with his calligraphy pen.
Next comes the magic. Aidan possesses a mysterious talent. He associates numbers with everyone he meets. It's almost as if each person emits an aura (hum) that communicates to Aidan. The story begins one day in the abbey when Aidan hears an eleven. Until that day he has never heard anyone above a ten. Most of those he meets hum the number three. From the moment Aidan meets Lana, her special number and her lovely face become the focus of his attention. As the story unfolds, it also becomes clear that Lana has her own unique magic, and Aidan hopes her magic can be used to save the lives of those around them.
Another element that adds a different dimension to this story is the presence of raiders attacking and pillaging the countryside around Aidan's abbey. Aidan's life is spared when he is sent on an errand away from the abbey. Lana insists on accompanying him, so she is safe as well. When the two realize the horrors that have destroyed the villages and killed many, they offer to use their talents to rescue the local lord's kidnapped young son. Complicating matters is the fact that Lana is actually the illegitimate child of the local lord and has been sent away to the abbey as punishment.
THE HUMMING OF NUMBERS is truly an escape into another time and place. It is filled with likeable characters whose lives revolve in an entirely different direction than ours. This book gives readers a peek into the past, into the world as it once was.
