Amber and Clay

Written by Laura Amy Schlitz

Narrated by Rachel Botchan and Tom Picasso

The Newbery Medal–winning author of Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! gives readers a virtuoso performance in verse in this profoundly original epic pitched just right for fans of poetry, history, mythology, and fantasy.

Welcome to ancient Greece as only genius storyteller Laura Amy Schlitz can conjure it. In a warlike land of wind and sunlight, “ringed by a restless sea,” live Rhaskos and Melisto, spiritual twins with little in common beyond the violent and mysterious forces that dictate their lives. A Thracian slave in a Greek household, Rhaskos is as common as clay, a stable boy worth less than a donkey, much less a horse. Wrenched from his mother at a tender age, he nurtures in secret, aided by Socrates, his passions for art and philosophy. Melisto is a spoiled aristocrat, a girl as precious as amber but willful and wild. She’ll marry and be tamed—the curse of all highborn girls—but risk her life for a season first to serve Artemis, goddess of the hunt.

Bound by destiny, Melisto and Rhaskos—Amber and Clay—never meet in the flesh. By the time they do, one of them is a ghost. But the thin line between life and death is just one boundary their unlikely friendship crosses. It takes an army of snarky gods and fearsome goddesses, slaves and masters, mothers and philosophers to help shape their story into a gorgeously distilled, symphonic tour de force.

Blending verse, prose, and illustrated archaeological “artifacts,” this is a tale that vividly transcends time, an indelible reminder of the power of language to illuminate the over—and underworlds of human history.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Mar 9, 2021
• ISBN: 9781980031451

Laura Amy Schlitz

Laura Amy Schlitz is a librarian and storyteller in Baltimore County, USA. She has worked as a costumer, actress and playwright, and her plays for young people have been produced in theatres all over the county. She has been awarded the Newbery Medal and numerous other literary awards. She is a New York Times bestselling author.

Reviews for Amber and Clay

[ladyofthelodge · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I had a difficult time getting into this book. It jumped around a lot and I am not sure how well a child would like this book. The narrative in veerse could be interesting but the reader would need to make the effort to get into it.The book is set in ancient Greece, and the fates of two children become linked. There is a fair amount of mythology in this book too. I am sure it has potential for the right reader.

[salsabrarian · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Narrated by Rachel Botchan and Tom Picasso. I couldn't bring myself to read the print book, it just looked too daunting. I found it more approachable in audio. Botchan and Picasso took a complex arrangement of two characters' stories, cutaways to Greek gods' voices, and archaelogical descriptions and made it into a cohesive listening experience (once you get a hang of the structure). Central and peripheral characters are distinctly voiced, no small feat with a considerable cast that includes Hermes, Artemis, Socrates, masters, slaves, and protagonists Rhaskos and Melisto.

[fionaanne · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The story takes entirely too long to get going. Despite this being a children's book, it does not read like one and is probably best suited to precocious readers with an interest in Ancient Greece (or adults who were once upon a time).

[oldandnewbooksmell · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

In ancient Greece (circa 400 BCE), two children find their fates linked. Rhaskos is born a Thracian slave and his mother loves him dearly, but she's sold away. Now, he finds comfort in drawing horses in the dirt and his talks with philosopher Sokrates. Melisto is born wealthy and privileged, but has a mother who hates her and a father who is gone more often than he's at home. When she is selected to be a bear for the goddess Artemis at Brauron, she finds a place where she is happy and free. When a freak accident happens, Melisto and Rhaskos' lives are connected on the path to find Rhaskos' freedom.

I absolutely loved the two main characters in Amber and Clay, and their connection to the title as well. The section where you read about Melisto in Brauron as a bear was one of my favorite parts of the book - oh to be a child, allowed to do whatever you please in a wilderness sanctuary and you become friends with a bear cub!

This was told in verse form and at first I was worried I wouldn't like it, but I quickly fell in love. The writing varied - there were a couple of different narrators besides Rhaskos and Melisto, mostly Greek Gods (Hermes was my favorite). The descriptions were amazing:

“She knew her mother was an attractive woman, but there was something feral about Lysandra’s grace, something that reminded her of a weasel she had once watched kill a snake.”

Mostly, I loved the exhibits, the "relics" from that era, that were given between chapters and were described like museum pieces. They gave the readers little insights to answers the museum descriptions may be asking. Even at my age, it would kind of make me giggle a bit when I knew the answers.

I would highly recommend this for all lovers of historical fiction, Ancient Greek history, and those who love a good story.

[maowangvater · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Set in ancient Greece during the period of the Peloponnesian War (431-404 B.C.E.) and its aftermath, this is a tale told in verse, prose, and artifacts of two star-crossed characters Rhaskos, a Thracian slave and Melisto, the daughter of an Athenian slaveholder. It’s not like Romeo and Juliet or even Pyramus and Thisbe. Its parallel is Akhilleus and Penthesilea united at the point of death. It’s the wondrously told life of two children growing up during a time of slavery and war.Fittingly, since the philosopher Sokrates is one of the characters, who is famous for asking thought proving questions, the book poses hard questions for young readers about life, death, war, slavery, and failures of human justice throughout the book, without easy answers. Instead, philosopher, gods and goddesses ask the reader what do you think? When one of the central characters is struck dead by a bolt of lightning, a sphinx speaks asking those hard questions :Don’t ask me. I’m the Sphinx.I ask riddles. I don’t answer them.I can tell you this:sooner or lateryou’ll find yourself here:the place where nothing makes sense,the place where you ask: What does life mean?You’ll be shocked,or suffering,and you’ll want to know why…and then life will go onnot answering,and the wheel will turn, till there comes a timewhen you look at the worldand feel such wonder,such tenderness,you’ll want to cup the earth in your hands;so much mystery!such richness of life!such intricate patterns…-- pages 216-217This book has all the vivid imaginings of ancient Greece that I savored in Mary Renault’s The Bull from the Sea and The King Must Die

[aya8herron · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Travel back in time to Ancient Greece through the poetry and prose of Newbery Medal Winner Laura Amy Schlitz. It was a time when people were restricted to the boundaries of class. A time when households owned slaves. Melisto was born into a noble family, but unloved by her mother; while Rhaskos was born to a slave woman, who loved him with all her heart. This girl and boy with nothing in common would someday forge a friendship that would free them both. This is their story told in their voices and in the voices of others like the Greek god Hermes and the philosopher Sokrates. This haunting tale of a wellborn girl and a slave boy illustrates power of friendship and love that knows no bounds.The Bottom Line: Don't be dissuaded from picking up this book because of its page count; the mix of poetry, prose, and illustrations of archaeological exhibits makes for quick reading. The author deftly transforms the reader into the audience, and the story is like watching a play. Once I started reading, I was transfixed. Very highly recommended for young adults and adult interested in historical fiction, Greek mythology, and supernatural tales of friendship.

[bibliovermis · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book was so cool. So cool! A mix of poetry and prose, history and fantasy, epistolary drawings and photos and museum cards. It's a moving story, it's a fantastical journey, it's multimedia experience—it belongs in a museum.

[cynthiam-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Amber and Clay is the story of two children who are very different and who come together to accomplish a common goal. It takes place in ancient Greece and is told using poetry and pose. This combination is a fun way to tell the story, which heavily relies on mythology. But the book is long. This is recommended readers who really like to read and can handle the unique, fun style.

[kimpiddington · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Delightful- the perfect blend of history and fiction. I found myself rooting for the main characters, even after the author surprised me by killing one of them!

[debnance_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Amber and Clay is the story of two children who are very different and who have very different life experiences and yet who join together to try to accomplish a common goal. Amber is a wild girl, reckless, undisciplined, plain, the child of a rich man, a child unloved by her mother. Clay is a quiet boy, the son of an enslaved woman, thoughtful though untaught, clever though unschooled, interested in drawing horses. The story takes place in ancient Greece and the other characters include a philosopher, a bear, and some of the gods.You can't help but be amazed at this book, with its beautiful structure of beginning chapters with an artifact of ancient Greece, found in the present day, an artifact that is closely tied to the plot. The characters are all vivid and completely unique, and the author bravely allows them to experience the full repercussions of their actions, some of which is heartbreaking. Author Laura Amy Schlitz uses timeless poetic forms to tell the story, and, again, that is an achievement that the reader can't help but admire. The lives of these two children are fascinating to watch as the story unfolds.A brilliant book.

[jackiewark · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Melisto, the ghost a young girl killed by lightning, comes to the aid of an enslaved boy Rhaskos (Pyrrhos) in Ancient Greece. Rhaskos's mother was beloved by Melisto as she was the one who showed her love and affection. And, as compensation to this, Melisto guides Rhaskos to freedom in her ghostly form. Told in both prose and verse, this fictionalized account of slaves and privileged is breathtaking. Amber & Clay uses artifacts and teachings as guides to its story. Some gods relate their impressions of these characters, with Hermes being an especially snarky narrator. He's a hoot! The Author's Notes are a must-read and also includes a Bibliography and Acknowledgements. Thank you to LibraryThing Early Reviewers, Candlewick Press, and Laura Amy Schlitz for this ARC.