The novel of the American writer M. M. Dodge “Silver Skates”, the summary of which is the subject of this review, became a real bestseller immediately after its publication. The work takes place in the Netherlands at the beginning of the 19th century. The author in her book conveyed the amazing flavor of this country at the beginning of the century, as well as romantic concepts of youthful honor, which, of course, will interest all readers, especially adolescents and teens.
Introduction
The book “Silver Skates”, the brief content of which must necessarily include a small description of the situation and environment in which the main characters were brought up and grew up, is one of the best examples of children's prose.
The work begins with a description of the place where the poor Brooke family lives. Father ten years ago was in a disaster and became crippled, so all family members are constantly in need. This affected, first of all, the situation of young children. Gretel and Hans Brinker are very fond of skating, but because of poverty they cannot buy real skates, and are forced to use wooden devices on ties that only remotely resemble athletic shoes.
Once the children rescued the dog of a rich lady. The woman rewarded them for this with money, for which they bought real skates. After some time, the children found the money hidden by their father, which went to the treatment of their sick parent, which, fortunately, ended successfully.
Country features in the work
The work “Silver Skates”, the brief content of which should include a short reference about the historical and cultural features of the country that were reflected in the narrative, is interesting from a cultural point of view: after all, this is, in fact, the American writer’s view on the life and life of Holland.
As you know, channels play a big role in the development of this state. Therefore, the author included in her essay a beautiful story that Hans alone plugged a dam and thereby saved the city from a flood of water. This episode has gained worldwide fame, so many tourists still come to this country to take a look at the scene of the "incident." The authorities even erected a monument to the fictional boy, since the interest of travelers to his act is very great.
Sports traditions in the novel
The history of “Silver Skates”, the brief content of which should definitely be continued with a description of the author’s ideological idea, which is to reproduce the life of the people in the most detail, reflects many ancient traditions of the Dutch.
So, ice skating has become a popular sport since the 13th century. It was this country that first began to build artificial tracks for speed skating. Therefore, a prominent place in the work is the description of the contest, in which Gretel took part. The author writes that the crowd was delighted at the sight of this amazing enchanting spectacle. Mary Mapes Dodge reproduces the passions in the arena, the audience of which actively and very violently reacted to what is happening on the tracks.
The main character
The protagonist of the work is the eldest son in the Brinker family. The boy is only fifteen years old, but he is brave, selfless, proud and stubborn. The author emphasizes that, despite poverty, he behaves with dignity and is not humiliated before anyone. He feels his responsibility for the family and is trying to somehow help his family.
Hans Brinker is a perfect character in every way, he has almost no flaws, and yet, readers note that this image turned out to be very expressive and true.
Negative and minor characters
In contrast to him, the writer nominated Karl Schummel. This is an arrogant greedy and proud man who is very contemptuous of the Brunker family. However, his own fate is not going well: he becomes an accountant in the office, which is led by Voost, a man whom he greatly offended in childhood. However, the latter, apparently, forgot about all the insults, and this hurts Karl even more.
The book “Silver Skates” is interesting because in it the author presented a gallery of various characters. The second not-so-nice character is Richie Korbes. She is also proud and arrogant, but her fate was somewhat better than that of Karl: she became a writer.
Another heroine of the work is Katrinka. This is a very frivolous person who failed to marry. Another memorable hero is the good-natured fat man Jacob Pot, who was distinguished by a light and cheerful character, for which everyone loved him. However, this person died early, and thus the reader will receive an incomplete picture of him.
Rich people
One of the most famous works of children's prose is the novel "Silver Skates." Reviews about the book, as a rule, are very positive, and largely thanks to the colorful characters.
Peter and Hilda come from a wealthy family and try their best to help the Brunker family. The author described this concern in very touching and bright colors, which should cause a feeling of sympathy for these people. However, some readers noted that this storyline looks too idealistic and does not make an impression of vitality. However, Peter has a brother Ludwig, who is, as it were, opposed to the first: he is lazy and not active and therefore does not achieve anything in life, while his friend Lambert, who has a more entrepreneurial and active character, leaves for America.
Climax
The translation from English into Russian of this work was carried out by Melitina Ivanovna Klyagina-Kondratiev. She managed to convey a lively narrative language, thanks to which readers have the opportunity to get a vivid idea of ​​the culture and traditions of Holland. But the main episode in the story is, of course, a description of the ice skating competitions, in which Gretel also took part. To everyone's surprise, she won the race, and she won the main prize - amazing silver skates.
Schoolchildren should pay attention to the description of the authors of the emotional intensity of this scene, when the stands were jubilant about the victory of this little fragile girl on ice. This moment is perhaps the strongest in the entire work, not only from the semantic, but also from the aesthetic point of view. Of particular note is the description of Gretel in this scene. The author touchingly compares her with a small fairy and a bird, who ran, as it seemed, without any efforts. At this very moment, she became the real queen of ice. The heroine dedicated her victory to her parents and brother Hans. The second prize was won by Peter - the universal favorite. Then the writer described a solemn holiday, which was arranged in honor of sports.
Opinions
Reader reviews on the work as a whole are very positive. The weight is noted by the undoubted skill of the writer in reproducing the colorful spirit of Holland at the beginning of the 19th century. Others credit her with the fact that she told her amazing story in a fabulous spirit. However, some believe that this book is too correct and that the characters are spelled out insufficiently vitally and convincingly. Be that as it may, but the named story has become a real classic of children's prose.
It is significant that in the Netherlands this book is not very popular, while in America, Europe and in our country it is rightfully considered a real standard of literature for adolescents. Well, the successfully completed translation from English into Russian of this work only contributed to its popularization among the domestic audience.
This interest is largely due not only to the touching plot, but also to an interesting reproduction of the culture and life of Holland. The reader, through the eyes of children and adolescents, plunges into this amazing atmosphere of the beginning of the century, which undoubtedly enhances the attractiveness of the work.