The Bronze Bow
1961
- juvenile fiction
- newbery medal
- fiction
- historical fiction
- jesus christ, fiction
- jews, history, fiction
- palestine, fiction
- rome, history, fiction
- children's fiction
- books and reading
The story
After witnessing his father's crucifixion by Roman soldiers, Daniel bar Jamin is fired by a single passion: to avenge his father's death by driving the Roman legions from the land of Israel. Consumed by hatred, Daniel joins the brutal raids of an outlaw band living in the hills outside his village. Though his grandmother's death slows his plans by forcing him to move home to care for his sister, he continues his dangerous life by leading a group of the boy guerrillas in spying and plotting, impatiently waiting to take revenge. In nearby Capernaum, a rabbi is teaching a different lesson. Time and again Daniel is drawn to the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, only to turn away, disappointed and confused by Jesus' lack of action in opposing the Romans. Devoid of tenderness and forgiveness, headstrong Daniel is also heedless of the loyalty of his friend Joel; the love of Joel's sister, Malthace; and the needs of his own disturbed sister, Leah, dragging them down his destructive path towards disaster. Elizabeth George Speare won the 1962 Newbery Medal for this magnificent novel of Daniel's tormented journey from a blind, confining hatred to his acceptance and understanding of love. Booklist called it "a dramatic, deeply felt narrative whose characters and message will be long remembered." - Inside front cover. "Angry and bitter, a teenager in ancient Israel fights the occupation of his land by the Romans. He plots revenge and carries out daring raids, never doubting his ideals, until all of his actions, plans, and notions are brought into question by a man who fights the Romans with a force stronger than hatred."
What it’s like
Plain, clear prose with a juvenile reader's directness, and vivid heat in the sensory details: dust on sun-baked hill roads, the cold of mountain nights around an outlaw camp, the bustle of Galilean market towns and the lakeside at Capernaum. Its vibe is tense and brooding, a restless hatred slowly loosening into doubt. It suits a focused afternoon read, a long-haul flight, or a quiet evening when you want a story that feels grounded in its time and place. The pacing is steady, with short chapters that build pressure through plotting, secret meetings and close calls. Violence is present and matter-of-fact: raids, ambushes, and the memory of a crucifixion, described with restraint rather than gore, though the threat and cruelty are real. The emotional register is earnest and reflective, and the central arc follows a fierce, unforgiving boy learning, reluctantly, to see past vengeance toward compassion. It is for readers who enjoy historical fiction with a moral spine, teen and adult alike, and who can handle sustained tension and some brutality without graphic detail.
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