Solimar: The Sword of the Monarchs
"I advise you to tell no one about the gift unless you trust them implicitly."
Ever since Solimar was a little girl, she has gone to the ouamel forest bordering her kingdom to observe the monarch butterflies during their migration, but always from a safe distance. Now, on the brink of her quinceañera and her official coronation, Solimar crosses the dangerous creek to sit among the butterflies. There, a mysterious event gives her a gift and a burden--the responsibility to protect the young and weak butterflies with her magical rebozo, or silk shawl.
Solimar is committed to fulfilling her role, and has a plan that might have worked. But when her father, the king, and her brother, the prince, leave on an expedition, a neighboring king overthrows the kingdom and holds everyone left in the village hostage. It takes all of Solimar's courage to escape and then embark on a dangerous journey to save her kingdom, but she's not alone. Her pet bird, Lázaro, the butterflies she protects, and a magical rag doll, Zarita, are with her. Then, at a precarious moment, she meets a river boy who knows the rapids.
Even with help, can Solimar save her family, the kingdom, and the future of the monarchs from a greedy king?
Middle-grade fans of Pam Muñoz Ryan's Esperanza Rising, will find a new Mexican heroine to love in Solimar and a fresh, magical story!
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Community Reviews
There were a few plot points I really wish had been expanded on more-- specifically their original plan to retake the kingdom, meeting the captain of La Quinta and actually seeing Campeón rescue their father --but as I'm not the target audience, I think it was exactly what it needed to be
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