The Crown Of Violet
Author:
Geoffrey Trease
Illustrator:
Published by:
Faberfinds
First Published:
1 Jan 1952
Ideal for readers aged
13+y
My Review
Alexis is desperate to be a playwright, despite the objections of his Marathon-running, sports keen father, and as he watches the tragedies and comedies unfolding at the Festival of Dionyssus, he resolves to make his dreams come true. However, his new and risky friendship with feisty and intriguing incomer, Corinna, and a chance encounter with political underhand upstart, Hippias, set him on a path he could never have imagined. As he and Corinna uncover a plot to overthrow the democracy and unleash terror on the city, they must race against the clock to find a way to warn the people of Athens before it's too late.
Full of intrigue, adrenaline, historical detail - including a wonderful depiction of Socrates! - and brilliant writing bringing Ancient Greece, its culture, landscape, and people to life, this is a real gem of a book. It's so frustrating that the majority of his works ar no longer in print - I might have to start a campaign to bring them back!!
Trease was a trend breaker in the 1950s among children's writers. He was one of the first authors who deliberately set out to appeal to both boys and girls and to feature strong leading characters of both sexes, and his books often focussed on the less well off in society. It's for these two reasons - his feminism and his socialism - that his books translate so very well into the 21st century and don't read as dated at all!
Heads Up!
Outrageously, Geoffrey Trease's books are largely now out of print - with the exception of 'Cue For Treason', featured (and highly recommended!) on the Tudor Times booklist. If you want to track a copy of 'The Crown of Violet' down, you'll need to find it second hand. It was published for a while by Faberfinds, but is now out of print. It's worth the effort though!
Beware, if you are hunting down a copy, there are shortened versions out their published by OUP Oxford that don't obviously advertise themselves as abridged!
Age-wise, I've put this at 13+ because the allusions to Socrates and his philosophy, although educational, may be lost on younger readers - but there's nothing in this book that would stop me recommending it for 10-12s other than that.