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Great Alta #2
White Jenna
The sequel to the much praised coming-of-age story "Sister Light, Sister Dark," marked by the author's recognized ear for folklore and clear style, offers a haunting fantasy epic for old and young alike
265 pages, Hardcover
First published September 1, 1989
36 people are currently reading
803 people want to read
About the author
Jane Yolen
971 books3,230 followersJane Yolen is a novelist, poet, fantasist, journalist, songwriter, storyteller, folklorist, and children’s book author who has written more than three hundred books. Her accolades include the Caldecott Medal, two Nebula Awards, the World Fantasy Award, three Mythopoeic Awards, the Kerlan Award, two Christopher Awards, and six honorary doctorate degrees from colleges and universities in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Born and raised in New York City, the mother of three and the grandmother of six, Yolen lives in Massachusetts and St. Andrews, Scotland.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews
May 12, 2020
I liked this book, it was a worthy read.You had Jenna continuing her mission from the first book.We meet a handful of new characters, which is always interesting.It was good enough I'll read the next book.
December 4, 2019
Whereas book one was slow in development (of the heroine), this second book caught fire.
Jane Yolen mixes "Ballads," "Myths," "History," and "Story" in a very interesting way. Literally, each has sections of the saga. "Story" follows the real characters. Our heroine and her escapades are a feel good fairy tale. It is a quick read. I felt book one a tad juvenile, now I know these tales are aimed at younger readers. Nonetheless, who never benefited from a good fairy tale?
At the end of each book, there are summaries of the ballads set to music for piano. A nice touch. I might experiment with the treble clef on my guitar. The Kindle screen is small, but I'll give it a shot.
Finally, there are a lot of quotable quotes of wisdom spread throughout the stories. Fun!
"Hunger is the best seasoning."
Jane Yolen mixes "Ballads," "Myths," "History," and "Story" in a very interesting way. Literally, each has sections of the saga. "Story" follows the real characters. Our heroine and her escapades are a feel good fairy tale. It is a quick read. I felt book one a tad juvenile, now I know these tales are aimed at younger readers. Nonetheless, who never benefited from a good fairy tale?
At the end of each book, there are summaries of the ballads set to music for piano. A nice touch. I might experiment with the treble clef on my guitar. The Kindle screen is small, but I'll give it a shot.
Finally, there are a lot of quotable quotes of wisdom spread throughout the stories. Fun!
"Hunger is the best seasoning."
December 16, 2018
Sadly the second volume of the series failed to engage me, as did volume one but for slightly different reasons. There were fewer pseudo academic interruptions to the text - the myth and legend versions were not quite such an intrusion - but the story veered all over the place. After the set-up at the end of book one, book two starts with Jenna and her companions starting on their journey to warn the other women's communities about the murderous attack by the men of the usurper king, but it is promptly derailed - after they find one or two settlements already devastated and the women murdered or taken away - by an encounter with the green people: this world's version of the faerie folk. Jenna and co go with them on scant persuasion and promptly lose five years, physically aged those same five years themselves but without any of the mental or other development they would otherwise have undergone as young teens. Now ten of the women's communities have been long devastated - there are supposed to be eight left but by story's end it seems there is only one and it is never disclosed what happened to the rest.
Jenna is promptly drawn into supporting the cause of the second son of the previous king in his fight to win back his throne - the older brother of Corum, whom she saved in book 1 (the act which prompted the usurper's retaliation against the women's communities), although there isn't much explanation of what has been going on in the interim. Given later events, it doesn't seem likely that the usurper would not have taken care of this opposition in the five years that have elapsed.
It also seems at first that a conflict is being set up, because the would-be king wants to cement his claim by marrying Jenna although he knows that Corum and she are in love, and I anticipated a great conflict build up with emotional angst - but it was then simply and easily resolved .
The relationships in this book are very flimsily and sketchily drawn; I couldn't relate to the characters and found myself forgetting who some of them were, e.g. Piet, the soldier-lover of Jenna's old mentor . That mentor hadn't really appearied in book 1 or if she did I blinked and missed it! And then the whole conflict against the usurper is resolved quite rapidly and we have a happy ever after ending which surprised me until I realised that the third book in this series is about the children of Jenna and Corum. There are a lot of loose ends - apart from one friend of Jenna's we never see what happened to the hundreds of young girls who were abducted from the overun communities and their fate is quietly and conveniently forgotten about.
Apart from the problems above, the piling on of one lot of magic onto another, and magic which doesn't really fit with book 1 - faerie folk and the land under the hill - grated a bit. The original strangeness of the dark sisters paled into significance - even Jenna's own played very little part in this volume and we never do learn how the women's communities learned their skills and connected with their dark sisters in the first place. So I found the book very unengaging and can only award it an OK 2 stars.
Jenna is promptly drawn into supporting the cause of the second son of the previous king in his fight to win back his throne - the older brother of Corum, whom she saved in book 1 (the act which prompted the usurper's retaliation against the women's communities), although there isn't much explanation of what has been going on in the interim. Given later events, it doesn't seem likely that the usurper would not have taken care of this opposition in the five years that have elapsed.
It also seems at first that a conflict is being set up, because the would-be king wants to cement his claim by marrying Jenna although he knows that Corum and she are in love, and I anticipated a great conflict build up with emotional angst - but it was then simply and easily resolved .
The relationships in this book are very flimsily and sketchily drawn; I couldn't relate to the characters and found myself forgetting who some of them were, e.g. Piet, the soldier-lover of Jenna's old mentor . That mentor hadn't really appearied in book 1 or if she did I blinked and missed it! And then the whole conflict against the usurper is resolved quite rapidly and we have a happy ever after ending which surprised me until I realised that the third book in this series is about the children of Jenna and Corum. There are a lot of loose ends - apart from one friend of Jenna's we never see what happened to the hundreds of young girls who were abducted from the overun communities and their fate is quietly and conveniently forgotten about.
Apart from the problems above, the piling on of one lot of magic onto another, and magic which doesn't really fit with book 1 - faerie folk and the land under the hill - grated a bit. The original strangeness of the dark sisters paled into significance - even Jenna's own played very little part in this volume and we never do learn how the women's communities learned their skills and connected with their dark sisters in the first place. So I found the book very unengaging and can only award it an OK 2 stars.
May 5, 2021
This book was okay, but didn't really work for me on the level of its predecessor. There's a lot less of the history/myth/legend layering that made the first book so fascinating, and the plot feels... almost perfunctory. I was particularly bothered by a five-year timeskip which completely changed the course of the story. Jenna and her allies go from a frantic, pressing effort to warn the Hames of potential violence to joining up with the true king's effort to retake the throne - and in the meantime, ten Hames are destroyed and their inhabitants killed, captured, and raped. That's... kind of huge, and it felt like a betrayal of the urgency at the end of the first book to have it all happen in the figurative blink of an eye.
There were some standout moments here that highlighted the reality/prophecy dichotomy that the first book really focused around - in particular, a scene where Jenna is trying to control her mount and ends up causing the horse to rear dramatically at just the right moment, creating an impression of power and control which is in fact the opposite of what was happening - but overall this installment wasn't really as appealing to me. I'll probably still read the third eventually, though.
There were some standout moments here that highlighted the reality/prophecy dichotomy that the first book really focused around - in particular, a scene where Jenna is trying to control her mount and ends up causing the horse to rear dramatically at just the right moment, creating an impression of power and control which is in fact the opposite of what was happening - but overall this installment wasn't really as appealing to me. I'll probably still read the third eventually, though.
June 8, 2017
White Jenna follows Sister Light, Sister Dark, but loses some of the first novel's whackadoo joy and general confusion. Yolen pulls back mostly but not entirely on her conceit of academics-arguing-about-a-long-past-history for book two, leaving it much more straightforward of a read. But then it becomes clearer that the storyline and characters are too lightly sketched to carry the book. Time passed oddly, and I felt myself surface-reading White Jenna. The small moments and half-understood mythologies of Sister Light, Sister Dark turns out to be the most compelling part of this series.
August 24, 2019
This is still a neat idea. It's got good storytelling, solid relationships, and a bit of unique worldbuilding in the form of the dark sisters. I also like how the actual story was interwoven with different interpretations from some far distant future where these events are only ancient histories that must then be pieced back together.
I was, however, still skeeved out by the Jenna/Carum romance. So, she aged up the characters, so instead of a 17-year-old with a 13-year-old it's now a 22-year-old with an 18-year-old. If anything, though, the Jenna/Carum romance somehow manages to be even more disturbing, because while Carum has been living out in the world for the past five years, Jenna lost all that time during the (to her) one night she spent in this universe's equivalent of a fairy mound, so even though her body is five years older, she's still mentally thirteen. That's right, this book features a romance between a 22-year-old man and a 13-year-old girl in an 18-year-old body, and by this point it's gone right past the innocent kissing stage and straight on to the sex. Real romantic, that.
(Also, what is it with old-school female YA authors who think it's appealing to write epic romances between teenage girls and adult men? First Tamora Pierce, now this.)
It was also still somewhat... queer bait-y? Once again, the possibility of homoerotic relationships was certainly mentioned, but it was always in the context of various historians misgendering the subjects of certain documents and misinterpreting evidence. The actual homoerotic content is still at exactly zilch. Again, if you don't want to do it, then don't do it—but don't bring it up in the first place if you're just going to chicken out at the last minute.
I was, however, still skeeved out by the Jenna/Carum romance. So, she aged up the characters, so instead of a 17-year-old with a 13-year-old it's now a 22-year-old with an 18-year-old. If anything, though, the Jenna/Carum romance somehow manages to be even more disturbing, because while Carum has been living out in the world for the past five years, Jenna lost all that time during the (to her) one night she spent in this universe's equivalent of a fairy mound, so even though her body is five years older, she's still mentally thirteen. That's right, this book features a romance between a 22-year-old man and a 13-year-old girl in an 18-year-old body, and by this point it's gone right past the innocent kissing stage and straight on to the sex. Real romantic, that.
(Also, what is it with old-school female YA authors who think it's appealing to write epic romances between teenage girls and adult men? First Tamora Pierce, now this.)
It was also still somewhat... queer bait-y? Once again, the possibility of homoerotic relationships was certainly mentioned, but it was always in the context of various historians misgendering the subjects of certain documents and misinterpreting evidence. The actual homoerotic content is still at exactly zilch. Again, if you don't want to do it, then don't do it—but don't bring it up in the first place if you're just going to chicken out at the last minute.
September 29, 2025
Segunda parte de la trilogía de la Gran Alta, que tan bien había iniciado con Hermana luz, hermana sombra.
Blanca Jenna mantiene el mismo estilo de narración mediante diversas voces: el Relato, el Mito, la Leyenda, las Baladas, la Historia y, se suma en esta ocasión, el Cuento popular. Si bien la narración principal es referida mediante el Relato, las demás voces funcionan como complemento, por momentos agregando o anticipando información, y en otros ofreciendo diferentes versiones de lo que ya sabemos. En mi reseña del primer libro ya hablé en detalle sobre estas diferentes voces. Solo quedaría por mencionar el Cuento, que cumple un rol muy similar al de la Leyenda. Para quienes deseen saber más, les dejo el link de dicha reseña: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Respecto a este segundo libro, si bien me pareció una continuación digna, sentí que flaqueó un poquito al final. Tras un comienzo excelente, aunque con algunas diferencias respecto del primer libro (más enfocado en la magia y menos en la aventura), la segunda parte se me hizo bastante inverosímil. Por empezar, todo se resuelve demasiado rápido; en segundo lugar, la protagonista obtiene demasiada ayuda de sus enemigos: cuando tienen todo para derrotarla, se confían, se descuidan, le dan todas las ayudas posibles como para que logre derrotarlos. No tiene demasiado sentido, la verdad.
De todos modos, me parece un libro entretenido, ágil y con momentos emocionantes. Valió la pena su lectura y, si consigo el libro (cosa que hasta ahora se me está haciendo bastante cuesta arriba), voy a tratar de leer la continuación: La reina de un solo brazo.
Blanca Jenna mantiene el mismo estilo de narración mediante diversas voces: el Relato, el Mito, la Leyenda, las Baladas, la Historia y, se suma en esta ocasión, el Cuento popular. Si bien la narración principal es referida mediante el Relato, las demás voces funcionan como complemento, por momentos agregando o anticipando información, y en otros ofreciendo diferentes versiones de lo que ya sabemos. En mi reseña del primer libro ya hablé en detalle sobre estas diferentes voces. Solo quedaría por mencionar el Cuento, que cumple un rol muy similar al de la Leyenda. Para quienes deseen saber más, les dejo el link de dicha reseña: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Respecto a este segundo libro, si bien me pareció una continuación digna, sentí que flaqueó un poquito al final. Tras un comienzo excelente, aunque con algunas diferencias respecto del primer libro (más enfocado en la magia y menos en la aventura), la segunda parte se me hizo bastante inverosímil. Por empezar, todo se resuelve demasiado rápido; en segundo lugar, la protagonista obtiene demasiada ayuda de sus enemigos: cuando tienen todo para derrotarla, se confían, se descuidan, le dan todas las ayudas posibles como para que logre derrotarlos. No tiene demasiado sentido, la verdad.
De todos modos, me parece un libro entretenido, ágil y con momentos emocionantes. Valió la pena su lectura y, si consigo el libro (cosa que hasta ahora se me está haciendo bastante cuesta arriba), voy a tratar de leer la continuación: La reina de un solo brazo.
queued
April 17, 2024Three heroes rode out of the East. One was light as day, one was bright as noon, one was dark as night. Their horses were caparisoned the same: one in silver, one in gold, one in ebon, and they carried the crown, the collar, and the ring. Their swords flashed as they rode. The woods rang with their battle song:ISBN 812509072395 TOR/Tom Doherty 1989
WE SERVE THE QUEEN OF LIGHT
WE SERVE THE QUEEN OF NIGHT
The saga of Jenna, thrice-prophesied White Queen, and her dark sister Skada, continues as they cross a battle-torn land to save their true-born King.
September 29, 2021
I thought I remembered this one being better than the first but it was not. I found it dull. For some reason our heroine had turned all lovesick, and was a 13 year old in love with a 22 year old, which was kinda icky, and in the last book he'd been her inferior but now she was totally in awe of him and ick. I gave up about halfway through.
June 17, 2017
Read as part of the ,a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3... edition.
November 5, 2019
White Jenna (1989) by Jane Yolen completes the story begin in the novel, Sister Light, Sister Dark. In the previous novel, we met Jenna, heard of the prophecies, learned of matriarchal villages of women, and saw the terrible behavior of the bad guy. In this second novel, our heroes stumble around, meeting random information sources, until they develop a bad plan that somehow works.
As you can surmise, this novel didn't work for me. I just couldn't get into the character, the world, or the plot. None of that worked for me. It's not that anything in there was terribly written, but for me, nothing stood out as enticing, and without enticing, novels become an exercise in skimming to the end.
As you can surmise, this novel didn't work for me. I just couldn't get into the character, the world, or the plot. None of that worked for me. It's not that anything in there was terribly written, but for me, nothing stood out as enticing, and without enticing, novels become an exercise in skimming to the end.
December 21, 2014
I didn't like this quite as much as I liked the first book in the set. That's mostly to do with the fact that the "chosen one" aspect plays a much bigger role in this book and I'm not a fan of that trope.
Yolen does acknowledge that Jenna's "destiny" relies as much on what the society expects from her as it does on anything to do with Jenna herself. The people's belief in the prophecies surrounding Jenna's birth are really more important than whether those prophecies are inherently true - and that aspect is certainly refreshing... But it wasn't quite enough to save the book for me.
Yolen does acknowledge that Jenna's "destiny" relies as much on what the society expects from her as it does on anything to do with Jenna herself. The people's belief in the prophecies surrounding Jenna's birth are really more important than whether those prophecies are inherently true - and that aspect is certainly refreshing... But it wasn't quite enough to save the book for me.
April 4, 2019
Not as strong as book 1. The dark sister "system" seemed to need a bit more thinking through, in terms of when they appear and their autonomy, which got a bit inconsistent and confusing. Also,
July 28, 2018
Sorry Great Alta series, but I need to break up. I know, I know, you probably didn’t see this coming. I apologize. There probably isn’t much I can say that will make you feel better. I’d like to use the line, “It’s not you; it’s me,” but the truth of the matter is, it was both of us. About half way through our second installment, I tried to make it work. I tried really hard. But eventually I found I just didn’t care anymore: about your characters, or your story. So I’m moving on. I wish you well, and hope you can find others who are really into you.
December 15, 2018
Not as good as the first, imo. The ending felt rushed, and Skada felt like she had too little presence for us to feel for her in the way it was implied Jenna did. For all of the "historical" sections talking so in depth about the wars and how long they lasted, what we read felt short, quick, and almost easy.
Still a very enjoyable tale and definitely worth reading if you liked the first book, though!!
Still a very enjoyable tale and definitely worth reading if you liked the first book, though!!
April 30, 2017
I love any book by Jane Yolen. I read these books years ago and loved them just as much this time! Jane Yolen takes you away to another world, time, and culture. I couldn't put The Books of Great Alta ~ Sister Light / Sister Dark or White Jenna down. Jane Yolen is a masterful story teller. She added music and ballads of the Dales - amazing! LOVED it!
April 25, 2018
The story isn't strong enough to truly carry the weight of the additional songs/poems and the future academic writings. Only about 1/3 of the novel directly related the narrative. Also, due to a time skip Jenna misses out on a lot of growth and potential development.
August 6, 2023
I really liked this book. The world-building and lore is fantastic. However, it just wasn’t quite as good as the first and I cannot give it a full five stars.
This is in large part because I found the conclusion to be unsatisfying (not bad or even disappointing, but just lacking). So much foretelling and mystery was leading up to the end and the beginning. But I finished the book thinking, “The end of what? The beginning of what?”. It all felt too low stakes and inconsequential to have been the monumental shift that had been prophesied for generations.
I also LOVE the dark sisters. But I couldn’t help but wonder what role they played in this story. What was their significance beyond that of a fascinating hook for readers? I will be pondering this question for quite some time. The mystery (and eventual loss) of their existence felt left loose.
Lastly, in a tale so focused on women and their power and sisterhood, WHY did we need a princely love interest at all?
Overall, I would absolutely recommend this saga though, particularly to fans of fantasy. It was delicious and one-of-a-kind and deeply thought provoking. It is written in such an engaging way and the culture of the Hames is immensely fascinating. It’s no wonder historians are drawn in by it. Long live Magon.
This is in large part because I found the conclusion to be unsatisfying (not bad or even disappointing, but just lacking). So much foretelling and mystery was leading up to the end and the beginning. But I finished the book thinking, “The end of what? The beginning of what?”. It all felt too low stakes and inconsequential to have been the monumental shift that had been prophesied for generations.
I also LOVE the dark sisters. But I couldn’t help but wonder what role they played in this story. What was their significance beyond that of a fascinating hook for readers? I will be pondering this question for quite some time. The mystery (and eventual loss) of their existence felt left loose.
Lastly, in a tale so focused on women and their power and sisterhood, WHY did we need a princely love interest at all?
Overall, I would absolutely recommend this saga though, particularly to fans of fantasy. It was delicious and one-of-a-kind and deeply thought provoking. It is written in such an engaging way and the culture of the Hames is immensely fascinating. It’s no wonder historians are drawn in by it. Long live Magon.
May 24, 2020
This book's story was kind of halting -- a few things were set up and then never realized, like the conflict between the princes and the mission to warn the Hames. It felt like a weird choice to have Jenna give up after visiting two Hames and stay with the Grenna for years. But only five years, which allowed for some change but wasn't as interesting as if they had been hidden for a longer span of time. The romance with Carum was dull -- I was more interested in Jenna's relationships to her sisters. The final battle at Kalas's fortress had exciting moments, although it was disappointing that the dark sisters didn't play a larger role. A good enough story that sometimes didn't meet expectations.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 3, 2022
A good sequel to a great book. Halfway through I read somewhere that it is supposed to be YA literature, but it's all good for adult readers as well. Compelling themes and a good story without unnecessary "grimdarkness".
Not as good as the previous book though. The story is a direct continuation to its story and it still contains almost everything that made the previous one good; the interplay between "the story as it is" and its interpretation as a myth in the present.
The story, however, seems to resolve a bit too easy towards the end. The suspense is all good for most of the book, but it all ends up a bit too straightforwardly to my taste.
The obvious feminist thematic of the series still stays fresh and welcome. The story feels quite fresh even though it is from the 80s.
Not as good as the previous book though. The story is a direct continuation to its story and it still contains almost everything that made the previous one good; the interplay between "the story as it is" and its interpretation as a myth in the present.
The story, however, seems to resolve a bit too easy towards the end. The suspense is all good for most of the book, but it all ends up a bit too straightforwardly to my taste.
The obvious feminist thematic of the series still stays fresh and welcome. The story feels quite fresh even though it is from the 80s.
January 25, 2020
So I had a really hard time getting into this, the characters didn’t engage me in the way the book is written with myth, song, legend, and story made it hard for me to pay much attention. Until I saw somebody else talk about it more as a fairytale that is. Once I start seeing it as a fairytale, I was really able to get more into it and more engaged rather than trying to see it as young adult fiction. Written from a fairytale perspective, it was actually pretty good I would definitely recommend it. From a YA perspective however,it was lacking.
September 3, 2020
I'm enjoying this series and will be reading the next book. Through 21st century eyes, some of thsee novels' tropes are outdated and ill-conceived -- such as gender binary or the "white savior" concept -- but I'm still enjoying the stories, the characters, and the world they live in. I'm fascinated to learn more about the "dark sisters," and I'm really hoping for more about them in Book 3.
August 3, 2024
Yolen does a good job continuing the story without rehashing too much. Even if you didn't read the first book, you will know what's going on. The song and folklore intros to the chapters dragged on and made the story hard to follow at times. There is a solid ending with an epilogue that tells you what happens in the future. Not as good as the first but good enough to keep reading the series.
November 15, 2024
While this was another beautiful story, I don’t think it quite lived up to the first book, which is one of my all time favorites. I don’t love the ending (which is left up to interpretation), because I just wanted to know where everyone wound up. I have never read the third book, though, so I’ll move on to it shortly!
December 25, 2017
Loved it. I realized at the end stories such as these are truly tales, and they are often what I enjoy—Narnia, the silver apple books, these. For children? Sure. For dreaming and flying and curling up with. I'm in.
June 9, 2018
This was a good book and a satisfying sequel. I liked that the ending was bittersweet. I was troubled by the large age difference between protagonists. The whole plot felt a bit superficial - like this could have been a longer, deeper, more adult novel. But on the whole, this was excellent.
January 21, 2019
Feel like this has a pretty good ending.
Like book #1, the book is interesting, but not totally engrossing.
The legend, history, songs, etc., sprinkled through slow down the reading of the story.
Like book #1, the book is interesting, but not totally engrossing.
The legend, history, songs, etc., sprinkled through slow down the reading of the story.
January 18, 2021
I loved it! The concept of the light and dark sisters was really cool! I also loved how it shows that a hero doesn't just have an easy life and full support. It takes so much hard work to be a hero and many times the hero is filled with doubts and struggles to know what to do.
December 1, 2021
Like the previous book in the series, this was an interesting read. I did not care much for the songs, but I definitely understand why they were included.
This book included a chapter for the next book in the series but I didn’t like that at all. I won’t be picking that up.
This book included a chapter for the next book in the series but I didn’t like that at all. I won’t be picking that up.
November 22, 2017
Mythology mixed with research and then the actual events - a wonderful, insightful way to present this story of war, loss, and recovery.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews