My Own Summary and Review: The Silver Crown

Title: The Silver Crown
Author: Robert C. O’Brien

Summary and Review by: Hyacinth S. Faune [SJSaranghae]

Reviewed in Yahoo on: October 24, 2007
This is supposed to be the third book I’ve borrowed from the library. But Mary Joy borrowed High School Musical Junior Novel using my library card, and so, filling up the third space….
Nevertheless, I borrowed this book 2 days before the Semestral Break in the Caridad Trillo-Elumba Library of English.

………………………..My Personal Review………………………….

Ellen Carroll, a ten-year old girl wakes up one morning finding a silver srown with blue stones encircling it on the pillow beside her. Since she has longed for so long to be Queen, she stood up, took her handbag and her pocketbook with her and went out the house. Since it was her birthday, she thought that the Siver Crown was a birthday present to her….but by who?

Ellen found out the crown was foldable. Besides the crown, she slipped in her pocket a dollar and fifty-six cents. Her family was still asleep when she went to a small wooded park where it was rather misty. She sat on a log which she imagined her royal seat. She began imagining about the wonders of being a Queen and how it would feel being one too. In the tall bushes nearby, she thought she saw someone pass by…a person with a green head.

Soon, she smells smoke and heard sirens of the firetrucks. Her house had been burned down! Firemen were gathering around it. But according to the neighbors, it burned down so quickly…like and explosion only with no noise. Everything has been burned down and turned to ashes. But the weird thing is, the firemen reported that no person lived there. Although Ellen insisted she lives there, no family member even showed up…so the thought came to her that they died. So, she asked for help from a police named Officer Drogue who immediately told her he’ll be taking her to the precint to help her find her family.

When they stopped over a store, they saw a man in a green hood who shot the store manager. Officer Drogue followed the green hood and left Ellen for hours. Ellen then decided to go to the post office and write her Aunt Sarah who is in Kentucky a letter to inform her of what has been happening. She then sat down a bench beside a fat man who was talking about his diets. He gave her a sandwich and told her to be careful of the green hooded man, who also killed Officer Drogue.

Ellen decided to hitch-hike by herself all the way to Kentucky. She went to a nearby gas station and looked for road maps…but she only saw Virginia and West Viginia….no Kentucky! But then, a shiny blue car appeared with a person inside, who introduced himself as Mr. Gates, a “school teacher”. Mr. Gates offered Ellen a ride to Kentucky since, as he said he was going that way. But, later on, as Ellen saw a green hood in the car rear, she hopped out of the car, knowing he too was one of the green hoods who killed both the store manager and Officer Drogue. Ellen fled into the forest nearby and hid from Mr. Gates, who failed in finding her.

The next morning, she saw a boy wandering in the woods where she is currently in, whose name was Otto. He took her to their house somewhere in the woods. When Mrs. Fitzpatrick saw her, she immediately let her rest in a vacant room.

Ellen stayed for more days there until one night, she heard footsteps outside and an evil laugh. The next morning, Mrs. Fitzpatrick woke Ellen up and told her she must get out of the place and go to Kentucky as soon as possible. Mrs. Fitzpatrick then revealed to her Otto’s true identity, that he was not her true son, he was only taken care of since she found him. But, she didn’t want Otto to know this. Mrs. Fitzpatrick told Ellen that Otto will go with her because Otto is used to the forests, brave, smart. Mrs. Fitzpatrick also requested that Ellen would tell her Aunt Sarah that if it could be, Otto would stay there.

They left early at dawn and Mrs. Fitzpatrick packed everything they needed…from food to clothes. At first they do not have any problem at all…they were enjoying the walk up the mountains into the valleys, the steep slopes until they reach the highway pass to get to Kentucky. But after days, problems began to rise…

shortage of food
shortage of water ever sice they could no longer find brooks
sore legs…from walking all day long
a man in a black uniform actually stalking them

They came into Mr. Jason Carver’s cabins. There, they ate food, drank water and spent the night. They found out that Mr. Carver was actually a woodcarver. He told Otto and Ellen about his past…his job before as a stonecutter, his wife and his daughter. He showed them his wood carvings and gave Otto a carving of a dove, which he actually likes. Then, they found out that the stranger followed them up the hill all the way to the cabin. Mr. Carver went out with King, his dog. The stranger forced his way in but Mr. Carver wouldn’t let him. As the stranger pulled out a pistol, King pounced on him and he went away. Ellen and Otto were forced to take a route straight ahead, not down the hill for the stranger may come back. At first they continued gradually. But then, they found out the road was broken.

They went to another way and farther ahead, Richard, Otto’s pet crow began acting strange. They also noticed there were no birds in this place. They saw a crevasse and they must cross it to reach the other side. Down the crevasse was a brook. They used a strong vine to get down. Otto got down easily, but Ellen did not. So, she severely sprained her ankle. Otto took her to a nearby cave where Ellen rested her ankle. They found out that the cave was shining with granite rocks, that look like diamonds. Ellen placed hot compress every now and then. But it seems like her ankle was not getting any better.

A new problem came up. Their food supply was shortening. Otto was the one looking for food which were usually blueberries, raspberries, wild strawberries. Otto one night after his hunting told Ellen that she saw a huge black building which was a castle and black in color in the woods. He said that he saw childern in there and told Ellen he could easily climb off the wired fences.

One time, Otto did not come back and the berries were all gone. This forced Ellen to search for him. Ellen buried the Silver Crown somewhere in the cave entrance and marked an “X” on the spot. With her ankle getting better, Ellen, climed up the crevasse and began the search. She then ended up in the black castle Otto told her about. She saw a bus with 6 childeren on board get out. The childern looked like dead people walking with a blank stare in their eyes. To investigate further, and to save Otto, she blend in with the other childern and went in the castle. She noticed that, the path was black.

Ellen recieved a tour and a uniform. The personnels didn’t find out that the 6 childern now became 7…and this was quite a relief for Ellen. Ellen then enters a classroom which seemed ordinary to her for it has a teacher in front, with desks. But, a textbook in her desk has the title

“ELEMENTARY DESTRUCTION
SECOND-GRADE READINGS in DESTRUCTIVE BEHAVIOR”

This was weird though. But what was weirder was in the lower right hand corner of the cover of the book was a picture of a crown, exactly the same shape as Ellen’s, only, it was black. Under the crown was a name imprinted “Hieronymus”. The name rang in Ellen’s mind. She was told to stay away from a person named Hieronymus. The book has strange lessons in it.

One was:

“Mary had a little lamb
Its fleece was white as snow
And everywhere that Mary went
The lamb was sure to go”

—- so far so good, but….—-

“It followed her to school one day
Which was against the rule
It bit the teacher on the leg
And knocked her off the stool”

—-that was wrong—-

“Hit the teacher! Hit the teacher!
All the children cried
And each of them picked up a rock
And stoned her till she died.”

—-at this, Ellen was aghast!”—-

What a horrible school…teaching children to be evil. But, somewhere in the class, she spotted Otto! But, the teacher noticed something wrong about Ellen. She was not with the class; she wasn’t “in tune”; she was “out of tune”. Then, the teacher sent Ellen to the dungeon. Later, she met Jenny, a girl who is kind of a prisoner, since she too is not “in tune”. When Ellen asked Jenny what “out of tune” means, she said that the “Hieronymus Machine” isn’t working on her. This machine can control other people who are “in tune” or hypnotize them into obeying only its commands. The Hieronymus machine obtains its full powers when it is near malignite, a black stuff that is responsible for making the Hieronymus machine be able to control other people. Brother Michael toured her around the castle and tricked her into getting in THE SCREEN….Here, the Hieronymus machine works stronger and it would surely put anyone “in tune”…Being placed in a screen is having a treatment to get you “in tune”. Jenny has been recieving these treatments too. But, even at force 20, the strongest force, Ellen was not placed “in tune”. As she found her chance, she explored down in the very basement as saw that is was completely dark in there and water covered the entire floor; water as she theorized that came from the brook in the crevasse. When Otto who was “in tune” mysteriously got them (Ellen and Jenny) out of their cells, the went down where Ellen said there was water. By following it, they may head for the crevasse. Ellen was right. It did came from the brook in the crevasse. But, Otto acted strange. He began shouting that he found the crown as soon as Ellen showed them the spot where there was an “X” mark. Ellen pulled hard the belt Otto had and it snapped loose. It was when Ellen realized that the belt Otto had been wearing since she saw him opening their cells was made of malignite. But it was too late. Jenny told Ellen it was a trick and she got the crown and scampered off. Captain Julio captured both Ellen and Otto and brought them to Hieronymus, otherwise known as “the King”.

But, the crown was not with them. Otto, who was back to his senses, smart as ever saw that the golden door which has the Hieronymus machine inside is quite open. He saw Jenny was hiding there for it would be the last place they would look for her and the crown. Jenny gave it to Otto and Otto threw it to Ellen…she caught it! Then, everyone in the room began taking orders from her. The King was paralyzed and some prisoners including her family members were released out. Ellen, who was wearing the crown ordered the Black Crown to be thrown into THE BIG SCREEN where it exploded and purple smoke came out. She then discovered something written on the Hieronymus machine both in English and in Latin…The English one goes like this:

Who weareth the Black Crown, I rule
Who weareth the Silver Crown, ruleth me.

The King was only controlled by the Hieronymus machine when he found the crown, thus making him evil. Ellen also ordered the destruction of the machine.
At the end, mysteries were solved. About her burnt house and how her family got in the castle:

After Ellen went out during the early morning of her birthday, someone phone called the family members and told them that Ellen was kidnapped and would be killed if they did not go to the address provided. So, they went out to search for her in the said place.

The crown was really her Aunt Sarah’s present which so bought in a store in Spain, unaware of the magical powers it posses.

———————————————————-END———
If I would rate this book:

I would give it a

9.9

This book is a must-read!!!!
Full of adventures, explorations!!!!

Super fantastic!!!
Well-developed plot!!!
Thrilling and full of suspense!!!
I can’t get enough…must get more!!!!!!!
Can’t put the book down!!