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Vasilisa and the Queen of Asps
A young girl named Vasilisa has to go to the Queen of Asps to ask for the Brew of Life to save her dying old father. The Queen is not very friendly and tries her best to see the girl dead. Meet the glorious and scary Queen of Asps, pale and mysterious Prince of Asps, thousands-years-old witch with attitude, see magic caves, night forest, snakes dancing by the fire, gypsies... Read the book!
- GenresSpeculative Fiction
64 pages
First published January 1, 2004
74 people want to read
About the author
Svetlana Kovalkova-McKenna
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
August 18, 2009
Since this is a children's book I wanted to look at it in that context. It doesn't seem like this is a book a child would read to themselves, the pace and the lack of visual stimulation would have them putting it down quickly, so I would suggest at lease some illustrations be added. Now, as a book you would read TO a child, it does much better. It is the standard fairy tale adventure you could put down and pick right up the next night without having to have a reminder of what you had read. It has the feeling of entering the universe the author created even after stepping away from it.
As an adult, and as one who is a big fan of fairy tales, I was hoping for something a little more creative. I know I've been spoiled with a lot of modern fairy tale writers, but I was hoping for something...new, something fresh. It would have been great if the story didn't fit so squarly in the fairy tale templates, it had the feeling of being a high school creative writing assignment. The writer is talented, has a good style and execution, but hasn't yet discovered the art of writing. The story has a way of trying to seem to perfect, that she wrote what was expected out of a fairy tale, and that leaves a lot to be desired. It’s not something that you will take away with you or remember once you complete it.
I really appreciated the feminist qualities of the story in where Vasilisa didn't want a husband, and how her mother told her she needed to find herself before she could find a husband. I literally say that to my friends all the time. I wish it hadn't been so heavy handed though, instead of just saying "You don't need a husband. Find yourself first." It would have been better to have that be a part of Vasilisa's character development (not that she had any). Instead of the story being her readiness for a man, It would have been a much needed learning tool for young girls if Vasilisa discovered through the story she didn't need a man and THEN at end the 'When you find yourself' was stated. As it is, it's another story of "Some day your prince will come." Literally.
As an adult, and as one who is a big fan of fairy tales, I was hoping for something a little more creative. I know I've been spoiled with a lot of modern fairy tale writers, but I was hoping for something...new, something fresh. It would have been great if the story didn't fit so squarly in the fairy tale templates, it had the feeling of being a high school creative writing assignment. The writer is talented, has a good style and execution, but hasn't yet discovered the art of writing. The story has a way of trying to seem to perfect, that she wrote what was expected out of a fairy tale, and that leaves a lot to be desired. It’s not something that you will take away with you or remember once you complete it.
I really appreciated the feminist qualities of the story in where Vasilisa didn't want a husband, and how her mother told her she needed to find herself before she could find a husband. I literally say that to my friends all the time. I wish it hadn't been so heavy handed though, instead of just saying "You don't need a husband. Find yourself first." It would have been better to have that be a part of Vasilisa's character development (not that she had any). Instead of the story being her readiness for a man, It would have been a much needed learning tool for young girls if Vasilisa discovered through the story she didn't need a man and THEN at end the 'When you find yourself' was stated. As it is, it's another story of "Some day your prince will come." Literally.
April 28, 2010
Vasilisa and the Queen of Asps is a story about a young woman on a journey to obtain the Brew of Life in order to delay her father's imminent death. I say "young woman" instead of the author's words, "young girl," because I initially assumed the "girl" would be 9, no older than 11 years old. As soon as it was mentioned that men had been trying to court her, I had to change my vision of Vasilisa right away!
The narrative reminds me very much of a folktale, which I thought was interesting. It's lighthearted tone is enjoyable. Her journey progresses quickly, which was great, because in some books it takes a long time to get to important events. Vasilisa travels through 7 mountains, and meets asps, eagles, a troll, and a witch along her way. Vasilisa has to use quick wit and courage to persevere through the Queen's tactics to get her to fail. I was pleasantly surprised to see that we didn't have to wait until the very end to actually "meet" the Queen ourselves. There were plenty of obstacles still to come for Vasilisa after that meeting! The rest of those trials are interesting as well, and the conclusion of the story was satisfying.
As far as technical writing goes, it was definitely a disappointment. The grammar and incorrect choice of words at times were so distracting, it was hard to enjoy the wonderfully thought-out story line. It took me twice as long to read this book as it would have if simple mistakes had been corrected. Even the narrative tense was inconsistent in some passages. There was even a typo on the name of the heroine! (Page 12, "After Vasilissa passed through..." instead of "Vasilisa" like on the title of the book!)
Here is an example of one of the awkward sentences: "Vasilisa was the only one in her village who allowed forever hungry gypsy children of this particularly poor tribe to pick as many apples in her orchard as they could carry in the outstretched fronts of their raggedy shirts." (Page 5) Not only is this a run-on sentence, but the word "forever" grammatically does not fit in. Did she mean "ever allowed hungry gypsy children," or that she "always allowed hungry gypsy children..."?
Other odd words and phrases include, "slithering black hair up to her waist" (Page 7) instead of hair being DOWN to her waist. Then there's the description of Zmeyan's eyes glowing "back at her in a softening semi dark." (Page 35) A semi dark what? It just doesn't make sense grammatically. And later he "retained a rind of unique emerald green that would forever remain in his eyes..." (Page 53) The word "rind" (meaning bark, or hard peel) doesn't belong here.
I don't think it's necessary to give more examples, so I'll just end this review by stating that this was a refreshingly unique story whose interesting plot unfortunately could not make up for it's poor grammar. I expect correct writing in any book, whether it's for adults or children...well, ESPECIALLY if it's for children. This was a two and a half star book for me, but since I can't give half stars, and since 4 of the 5-star ratings already came from a single source, I chose to give it "2" (which in Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ means I still liked it).
The narrative reminds me very much of a folktale, which I thought was interesting. It's lighthearted tone is enjoyable. Her journey progresses quickly, which was great, because in some books it takes a long time to get to important events. Vasilisa travels through 7 mountains, and meets asps, eagles, a troll, and a witch along her way. Vasilisa has to use quick wit and courage to persevere through the Queen's tactics to get her to fail. I was pleasantly surprised to see that we didn't have to wait until the very end to actually "meet" the Queen ourselves. There were plenty of obstacles still to come for Vasilisa after that meeting! The rest of those trials are interesting as well, and the conclusion of the story was satisfying.
As far as technical writing goes, it was definitely a disappointment. The grammar and incorrect choice of words at times were so distracting, it was hard to enjoy the wonderfully thought-out story line. It took me twice as long to read this book as it would have if simple mistakes had been corrected. Even the narrative tense was inconsistent in some passages. There was even a typo on the name of the heroine! (Page 12, "After Vasilissa passed through..." instead of "Vasilisa" like on the title of the book!)
Here is an example of one of the awkward sentences: "Vasilisa was the only one in her village who allowed forever hungry gypsy children of this particularly poor tribe to pick as many apples in her orchard as they could carry in the outstretched fronts of their raggedy shirts." (Page 5) Not only is this a run-on sentence, but the word "forever" grammatically does not fit in. Did she mean "ever allowed hungry gypsy children," or that she "always allowed hungry gypsy children..."?
Other odd words and phrases include, "slithering black hair up to her waist" (Page 7) instead of hair being DOWN to her waist. Then there's the description of Zmeyan's eyes glowing "back at her in a softening semi dark." (Page 35) A semi dark what? It just doesn't make sense grammatically. And later he "retained a rind of unique emerald green that would forever remain in his eyes..." (Page 53) The word "rind" (meaning bark, or hard peel) doesn't belong here.
I don't think it's necessary to give more examples, so I'll just end this review by stating that this was a refreshingly unique story whose interesting plot unfortunately could not make up for it's poor grammar. I expect correct writing in any book, whether it's for adults or children...well, ESPECIALLY if it's for children. This was a two and a half star book for me, but since I can't give half stars, and since 4 of the 5-star ratings already came from a single source, I chose to give it "2" (which in Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ means I still liked it).
October 10, 2009
To capture the attention of young readers, a book must contain three elements. Interesting characters, a goal worth pursuing, and conflict along the way. Svetlana Kovalkova-McKinna, the author of Vasilisa, wrote the book for her daughter as a way of presenting a story with a strong female role model, and as a handbook for finding her own Prince Charming.
Vasilisa is a young girl who is forced to embark on a perilous quest in search of the Brew of Life to save her dying father. The characters she meets along the way are as interesting as any you might find in Harry Potter or in one of the Star Wars movies. Young readers will no doubt be stimulated by the many decisions Vasilisa is forced to make, and the strong conflict as she encounters each additional character. From witches, to trolls, to her conflict with the Queen of Asps, the story never lets up until the last page. There are characters any reader will find familiar, but some new ones that entertain and capture the imagination of the reader. If you are the parent of a preschool child, be sure to set aside a little time before you purchase this book. I have a feeling you are going to be reading it to them, over and over again.
Vasilisa is a young girl who is forced to embark on a perilous quest in search of the Brew of Life to save her dying father. The characters she meets along the way are as interesting as any you might find in Harry Potter or in one of the Star Wars movies. Young readers will no doubt be stimulated by the many decisions Vasilisa is forced to make, and the strong conflict as she encounters each additional character. From witches, to trolls, to her conflict with the Queen of Asps, the story never lets up until the last page. There are characters any reader will find familiar, but some new ones that entertain and capture the imagination of the reader. If you are the parent of a preschool child, be sure to set aside a little time before you purchase this book. I have a feeling you are going to be reading it to them, over and over again.
April 30, 2010
I thought this was an interesting and unique story that moved quickly - I enjoyed the folktale style of storytelling and the author's descriptive imagery.
I didn't like the first chapter as much as the rest of the book tho - I am not a writer but there were some awkward phrasing and consistency problems that bothered me - such as when the author describes Vasilisa's sisters, who she initially calls her grown-up married sisters, then goes on to clarify that they are half sisters as if changing her mind in order to fit the story better. I also had to pause a bit at the way the author jumps back and forth between past and present tenses when Vasilisa encounters the gypsy woman which made that part of the story confusing to read. However after the first half of the book the writing flows much nicer and the story kept me interested.
The story reminded me very much of one of my favorite books about Thomas the Rhymer who similarly is forced to live with the Queen of Faery where time passes much quicker than in the land of humans.
As an artist myself I think this would make a beautifully illustrated children's story book with the author's lovely descriptions of the snake-women and jeweled caverns. Overall I enjoyed this book very much.
I didn't like the first chapter as much as the rest of the book tho - I am not a writer but there were some awkward phrasing and consistency problems that bothered me - such as when the author describes Vasilisa's sisters, who she initially calls her grown-up married sisters, then goes on to clarify that they are half sisters as if changing her mind in order to fit the story better. I also had to pause a bit at the way the author jumps back and forth between past and present tenses when Vasilisa encounters the gypsy woman which made that part of the story confusing to read. However after the first half of the book the writing flows much nicer and the story kept me interested.
The story reminded me very much of one of my favorite books about Thomas the Rhymer who similarly is forced to live with the Queen of Faery where time passes much quicker than in the land of humans.
As an artist myself I think this would make a beautifully illustrated children's story book with the author's lovely descriptions of the snake-women and jeweled caverns. Overall I enjoyed this book very much.
May 7, 2010
In the land of Once Upon a Time, Vasilia, a dutiful daughter, sets out to find a miracle cure for her aging father. Through her kindness, she befriends a gypsy who sends her into the forest to find two black snake-covered stones, which quickly transform into the young daughters of the Queen of Asps, a powerful medicine woman. Vasilia mends the skin of one of the snake/daughters, Naya, saving her life. In gratitude Naya leads Vasilia through an arduous journey through the seven mountains, filled with trials and temptations. Once Vasilia reaches the Queen of Asps, the wily queen exacts yet another test--a year of servitude. Vasilisa finally earns the Brew of Life (and a studly prince), not for the purity of her heart, but for her bravery. She is, above all, a girl who sticks up for herself, does what is right, and talks back to witches.
Ms. Kovalkova-McKenna spins a delightful tale, both familiar and fresh, that will please anyone who loves the rhythms and images of folktales. Most appealing for girls aged 8-12.
Ms. Kovalkova-McKenna spins a delightful tale, both familiar and fresh, that will please anyone who loves the rhythms and images of folktales. Most appealing for girls aged 8-12.
August 31, 2009
Vasilisa and the Queen of Asps, by Svetlana Kovalkova-McKenna, is all that a children’s story should be. Creative, imaginative, and entertaining, Svetlana takes you on a journey into a fantasy world that you may never want to leave.
Vasilisa is a young woman intent on saving her father’s life. Her love for him sends her in search of the Queen of Asps and her Brew of Life. Along the way, Vasilisa meets a troll, a talking eagle, and an old witch. Some want to help her, others want to stop her from getting to the Queen. The challenge for Vasilisa is in determining which is which.
Vasilisa’s strong love for her father keeps her persevering through the all the difficulties thrown at her along the way. Her courage and persistence are rewarded in the end. Vasilisa gets the Brew of Life, her prince, and lives happily ever after.
Vasilisa is a young woman intent on saving her father’s life. Her love for him sends her in search of the Queen of Asps and her Brew of Life. Along the way, Vasilisa meets a troll, a talking eagle, and an old witch. Some want to help her, others want to stop her from getting to the Queen. The challenge for Vasilisa is in determining which is which.
Vasilisa’s strong love for her father keeps her persevering through the all the difficulties thrown at her along the way. Her courage and persistence are rewarded in the end. Vasilisa gets the Brew of Life, her prince, and lives happily ever after.
November 18, 2009
Vasilisa and the Queen of Asps by Svetlana Kovalkova-McKenna is a fascinating book that will keep a child on the edge of their seats from page to page. The book has a heart-felt story that involves a treacherous journey through six mountains to see the Queen of Asps who lives in the seventh mountain. The Queen has a brew that will save Vasilisa's father from death. It seems the demands of the Queen will never end in order to return home with the brew. But Vasilisa never gives in to her fear from the scary surroundings, nor does she give up on her mission. Her love for her father keeps her strong. The story has some very interesting characters that move between magical and natural, according to the need at the time. But this feature only proves to engage the reader even more. The book ends with some very nice surprises as well. Children will love this book.
September 2, 2009
The first mistake I made when reading this book, was that I was trying to read it as a young adult book, and it's not. I haven't read a children's book since I was a child and found that I had to re-adjust the way I thought about it. At first, I wanted there to be much more description; of characters, feelings, scenes etc. But I realized after a while that you don't do that in a children's book because it would be lost on them.
When I imagined that I was reading it aloud to a small child I really enjoyed the story. It was a lovely children's fairytale and brought back memories of the kind my mother used to read to me before bedtime.
I am sure that lots of children would love having this read to them while tucked up in bed, before the lights go out. Charming.
When I imagined that I was reading it aloud to a small child I really enjoyed the story. It was a lovely children's fairytale and brought back memories of the kind my mother used to read to me before bedtime.
I am sure that lots of children would love having this read to them while tucked up in bed, before the lights go out. Charming.
November 16, 2009
Lucky me, I won this book from Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ book giveaway! I've read a few children's books with my grand daughter Isabel (she is 10) and know she will gobble this up. Any child reading this book will enjoy the looks of the characters as the descriptions are similar to eye candy, the tale is tight and well writen, I can envision this as a tale in a movie. I applaud the writer, so, keep the books coming. Adding Illustrations would probably not appeal to many children.
Bonnie
Bonnie
November 13, 2020
Won it.
Very cute, and for young artists, its a good idea. My sister loves drawing, so for my Xmas gift from her, I had her draw me the pics! :)
Very cute, and for young artists, its a good idea. My sister loves drawing, so for my Xmas gift from her, I had her draw me the pics! :)
July 5, 2009
A young girl named Vasilisa has to go to the Queen of Asps to ask for the Brew of Life to save her dying old father. The Queen is not very friendly to say the least and tries her best to see the girl dead. Vasilisa does not scare easily, read for yourself: "...“Did you enjoy your last meal, cutie?� said a low, cackling voice from the dark of the cave. The witch snapped her fingers and several torches along the wall shot out fire. Standing now in front of Vasilisa, the witch could as well have been a thousand years old. Her long twisted chin rested in the middle of her chest, her nose reached far away from her wrinkled face, blazing red eyes were half hidden under the bushy eyebrows and her skin was almost black from dirt and old age. Stinky gray hair stood straight up on her head, as if terrified of the owner. “Did you come to take a peek at the looking glass inside my cauldron? You may not like what you see. Once the prophecy is made, it can not be altered. Your fate will be sealed. Still eager to take a look, dear?� asked the witch, wiping her ugly hands with overgrown nails on her raggedy garments that were made out of the skins of different animals unlucky to have crossed the witch’s path. “Have you considered other options, sweetie? In exchange for that eagle feather up your sleeve, I may be kind enough to fly you back home on my broom, all in one piece.� “I want to see the mirror steeping inside the cauldron. And I want to know why the Queen of Asps does not want to see me so much,� said Vasilisa in a firm voice that was stretched just a little thin..." . Joining the halves of the gates was one round door handle the size of a human head. It was shaped like a head of the snake wearing the large spiked crown. Made from many masterfully encrusted emeralds, the eyes of the snake glittered. Taking Vasilisa by surprise, the crowned snake head moved and stared at her, bejeweled eyes shining their unwelcome light. The snake opened its mouth and the deep hissing followed. “So you made it this far. A pity to waste a life so young, so precious and brave, as a punishment for defying the laws of nature. Your father cannot live any longer that he already has. The human life is what it is; you have no right to alter the way things are.� Vasilisa took a deep breath and stepped closer towards the snake head. “Stop scaring me; my life is obviously not in your hands, since I am standing here despite all your best tricks.� The snakes eyes flashed in anger. “Oh, you have yet to see my best tricks, little girl, but by any means, come in, since you are here already. Your life is yours to give.� With those words the snake head disappeared without a warning. The small snakes that weaved the pattern of the golden gates came to life and effortlessly slithered apart, revealing an entrance to a large hall lined with a great number of tall columns, finished in pale yellow marble. Many young men and women, all with slick black hair and dressed beautifully were standing and talking or moving about casually. At the very end of the hall was a throne made out of a solid black stone. First, Vasilisa thought it was empty, then, as she came up closer to it, everyone silently stepping out of her way, she saw a large black snake, wearing a tall gold crown decorated with emeralds of many shades. The snake turned her head towards Vasilisa and hissed in a familiar voice. “Welcome human child. I am in debt to you for saving my daughter’s life. Make a wish, and I will have you delivered to the edge of the forest where your village stands, pockets lined with gold and precious stones. Your father still has a few days in him, you will have a chance to say good-bye. I am grateful to you. And I am impressed that you made it this far, but I do not owe you a Brew of Life.�
February 1, 2011
A first reads giveaway book :-) Can't wait to read it!
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