Neversink

Author: Barry Wolverton
Lexile measure: 870
Language:  No major issues.  There are references to characters using language "not appropriate for polite society", but they don't actually spell out what the character says.  Characters also poke fun at each other with jokes.  Some of the jokes are "fat" jokes or "stupid" jokes.
Violence:  this book has a despotic paranoid ruler who uses violence to achieve his ends.  There are several graphic death scenes (animals, but some are characters in the book), including one of a murder/poisoning and several including animals being torn up to threaten other animals.
Big Kid Mature Topics:  power hungry despots and standing up for oneself and ones' people when oppressed, hunger/starvation, violence as above, appeasement of an Inuit goddess
Illustrations: shaded drawings every several pages including one of an unclothed Inuit goddess with certain body parts covered with long head hair.
Plot: moderately complex


Our library had this out on the shelf as a "recommended read" but the librarian couldn't tell me if it would be appropriate for younger readers.  While this is well written and has a fairly original plot, with some very interesting and complex themes, the graphic violence in my mind makes it inappropriate for small children and may even push this one out to the "teen" realm.  This would be a great one for a teen to read in tandem with studying the American (or any other) Revolution.