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Caesar's Antlers
By a master of "surreal storytelling in the tradition of Carroll, Lewis, and Tolkien." -- Library Journal
As he travels on his own mission to the Northlands of Norway, a reindeer named Caesar is joined by unlikely companions; a mother sparrow searching with her two chicks for her lost mate. With Caesar's permission, the birds make a nest in his antlers and travel with him through athe fall and into winter. Little do they know that the object of their search, after being rescued from an accident by a well-meaning schoolgirl, has been taken miles away, across the sea, and that he is desperately seeking them as well. Both searches seem hopeless, but in this unique adventure, devotion, perseverance, and self-sacrifice - with the help of a little magic - are richly rewarded.
As he travels on his own mission to the Northlands of Norway, a reindeer named Caesar is joined by unlikely companions; a mother sparrow searching with her two chicks for her lost mate. With Caesar's permission, the birds make a nest in his antlers and travel with him through athe fall and into winter. Little do they know that the object of their search, after being rescued from an accident by a well-meaning schoolgirl, has been taken miles away, across the sea, and that he is desperately seeking them as well. Both searches seem hopeless, but in this unique adventure, devotion, perseverance, and self-sacrifice - with the help of a little magic - are richly rewarded.
224 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1997
About the author
Brooks Hansen
19 books121 followersBrooks Hansen is an American novelist, screenwriter, and illustrator best known for his 1995 book The Chess Garden. He has also written one young adult's novel. He lives with his family in Carpinteria, California. He attended Harvard University and was the recipient of the John Simon Guggenheim Fellowship in 2005.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
April 2, 2022
This book was a pleasure to read! And I am surprised that so few people have read this one as it is an excellent animal based adventure story - although it is very unusual. I will admit that. The entire situation in here is kind of far fetched but than I suppose so are wizards or dragons or the other things you find in children's books. At the heart of this tale you have kindness, generosity during bad times and a willingness to help strangers. And all of those are very important things.
The story starts out with a herd of reindeer and we meet Caesar. He already has a name and the reindeer work with humans. And Caesar is given a mission. A slay is attached to him and he is to pull a special cargo somewhere...
Then we meet two young sparrows: Bette and Piorello. In my opinion the birds actually have a much bigger role in the story than Caesar has and they are the ones driving the entire plot. Anyway something happens and the two birds are separated. Bette meets Caesar and he decides to help her and her two children look for her lost mate. And that is how he ends up carrying the bird nest on his head!
The story moves at a good pace and there are many unexpected plot developments too. In fact the one incident truly shocked me! In fact in a strange way I still don't understand it?
Now when I read books like this if the story really captures my imagination like this one did, I will try to figure out other things. Things like where the story itself takes place. The location. And that is where I ran into a problem. Mind you this is not a plot problem - it's just me trying to better understand the setting to satisfy my own curiosity. Sometimes my autism kind of drives me to do that. Anyway the back of the book says "in the uplands of Norway" but the human girl in the story later states she goes back to "Newcastle". And as far as I can tell, Newcastle is in Ireland. But there are no reindeer in Ireland and there is no Newcastle in Norway! So where does that leave the setting? Needless to say I am confused. I do believe her school she attended was in the UK. And the straight that is crossed could fit either! So... ? I suppose I will never know. Maybe there is a small town in Norway called Newcastle? Places do seem to enjoy reusing names.
I also don't understand the bit about the human attaching the sled to Caesar and then he has to go that distance on his own? It seems very irresponsible. There are too many things that could go wrong. But I suppose the plot wouldn't work if a human was along with Caesar.
Definitely enjoyed this!
The story starts out with a herd of reindeer and we meet Caesar. He already has a name and the reindeer work with humans. And Caesar is given a mission. A slay is attached to him and he is to pull a special cargo somewhere...
Then we meet two young sparrows: Bette and Piorello. In my opinion the birds actually have a much bigger role in the story than Caesar has and they are the ones driving the entire plot. Anyway something happens and the two birds are separated. Bette meets Caesar and he decides to help her and her two children look for her lost mate. And that is how he ends up carrying the bird nest on his head!
The story moves at a good pace and there are many unexpected plot developments too. In fact the one incident truly shocked me! In fact in a strange way I still don't understand it?
Now when I read books like this if the story really captures my imagination like this one did, I will try to figure out other things. Things like where the story itself takes place. The location. And that is where I ran into a problem. Mind you this is not a plot problem - it's just me trying to better understand the setting to satisfy my own curiosity. Sometimes my autism kind of drives me to do that. Anyway the back of the book says "in the uplands of Norway" but the human girl in the story later states she goes back to "Newcastle". And as far as I can tell, Newcastle is in Ireland. But there are no reindeer in Ireland and there is no Newcastle in Norway! So where does that leave the setting? Needless to say I am confused. I do believe her school she attended was in the UK. And the straight that is crossed could fit either! So... ? I suppose I will never know. Maybe there is a small town in Norway called Newcastle? Places do seem to enjoy reusing names.
I also don't understand the bit about the human attaching the sled to Caesar and then he has to go that distance on his own? It seems very irresponsible. There are too many things that could go wrong. But I suppose the plot wouldn't work if a human was along with Caesar.
Definitely enjoyed this!
February 13, 2020
i read this in german, but it was one of my favorite reads when i was younger, so i'll just drop off five stars <3
October 22, 2024
86%
a sweet and dreamy animal tale. it's a tad unusual, but it felt much-needed in the genre
a sweet and dreamy animal tale. it's a tad unusual, but it felt much-needed in the genre
July 12, 2020
The story of two sparrows, each separated from its mate, as they both journey in search of each other with the help of other animals. It's a quiet, magical winter tale.
March 14, 2024
Delightful book, Albeit, really a young adult novel in adult parlance, giving but a smaller audience perhaps ?
August 28, 2014
Parallel stories involving two birds who are separated right after their eggs hatch. I thought the reindeer would be the main character, but he is mostly there to provide a nesting site for the mother bird and two hatchlings.
June 21, 2012
We should've waited a year for this one, I did lots of editing on the fly.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews