Island's End by Padma Venkatraman

Island's End Reviews

• 
  Corinne

  The story of a courageous girl which makes me feel courageous in my life also. I appreciate this kind of book which has the amazing power of changing your mindset. This is like reading Indrajit Garai's books, it changes something deep inside...
• 
  Kelly

  2.5.
  
  This wasn't remarkable for me. I think it'll be mostly forgettable down the line.
  
  Uido lives on a remote island with her tribe which is very unlike modern society, and a lot of what they believe in are spiritual guides. She sees a lot of visions at night, and when she admits to this to their spiritual leader Lah-ame, he chooses to make her the tribe's next guide. When she passes her final test in his teachings, she's told to be careful not to exert her power yet.
  
  Of course she does it, and that unleashes a number of events which lead to to understanding the importance of accepting tradition and new ideas and how both can work together to build a better world. It's kind of cliche but it's done well enough to make it less so here.
  
  My problem was the big event of the story felt completely rushed and it didn't feel urgent. I blame this on the writing. It's first person present, and rather than being immediate, it's distancing. I never quite got inside Uido's head, nor did I find her offering me much of what was going on around her emotionally. It happened and that was all. I understand this could be an entire element of the culture itself, and that would make sense, but it's not satisfying to me and leaves the story quite one note.
• 
  Padma Venkatraman

  My second novel.
• 
  Abby Johnson

  Uido has a vision of the strangers before they appear: magic men with boats that fly and strange sticks that cause fire. But Uido knows that these magic men could destroy the life she holds dear, the ways of the En-ge, people who have inhabited these islands for thousands of years. As an apprentice to the oko-jumu, spiritual leader of her tribe, she will have to figure out a way to protect her people, even as their magic entices more and more.
  
  There's a good deal of adventure and I enjoyed learning about the ways of these island people (the En-ge are based on actual indigenous people who have lived on remote islands, shunning modern ways). Descriptions of island life are lush, including smells, sounds, and tastes. But I never felt truly connected with the main character. There's some distance there, even though the book's written in first person present.
  
  I'd hand it to kids who enjoyed Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell (for a strong female native islander protagonist) or Wolf Brother by Michelle Paver (for the mix of action and spiritual/mystical components) or maybe even Nation by Terry Pratcher (for the island setting, although Nation is aimed at a slightly older audience).
• 
  Lauren

  Loosely based off indigenous tribes who live off the coast of India, Island’s End settled a little too close to the uncomfortable “magical Native American” trope of earlier American literature for me to enjoy the book. For all I liked Ms. Venkatraman’s Climbing the Stairs because of its portrayal of a strong young woman defying convention, Uido, the protagonist in Island’s End, steps beyond that and into Wesley Crusher territory – that is, a precocious teenager who knows better than all of the adults and will therefore them all.
  
  I wanted to like this book a lot more than I did. If the characters or plot were stronger, some of my quibbles with the book would have been easier to overlook. As is, the entire package left something to be desired for this reader. Not recommended.
  
• 
  B.

  A very enjoyable book that only had a few characters I wanted to strangle. Which isn't bad. Every book needs a few. Yet you just can't help but scream at them.
  
  Admit it. You always do it in your head.
  
  My only wish is that this book was longer, but that's not enough to lower it to 4 stars. Yay! It's about time my favorites shelf got a new book.
• 
  Edward Sullivan

  Evocative, vivid, beautifully written story.
• 
  Rebecca

  I'd give this 3.5 stars if I could. Great depiction of an indigenous culture w/o patronization. A few spots needed fleshing out, however.
• 
  Garrett Dawson

  It was as great book and i wish there was a second book to read.
• 
  Susanna

  While I was in the process of reading Island's End, I wasn't really that thrilled by it. The plot moved so fast, I wished the author had added more details about the events that occur to help further flesh out both the characters and the overall feel of the culture. I didn't find the story particularly exciting, though it was interesting enough to keep from being boring. Some of the messages Venkatraman tries to get across, while good, came across as very blatant at times when more subtlety would have been nice.
  
  But if you're like me, looking at reading Island's End for its anthropological information instead of thrilling action or magnificent writing, forget all of the above criticisms. After all, how often do you find YA novels that are about actual ancient cultures that have survived into the present day? While the novel's main anthropological details are on Uido's tribe's shamanic practices, other aspects of their culture are described as well, as is the clash of old and modern lifeways. What also struck me as unique and awesome is that the author treats Uido's shamanic training and visions not as part of the fantasy genre but as a part of her everyday life. Uido occupies a special place in her culture for what she sees and can do, but this well-respected place has always been occupied by someone with similar abilities. In this way, Venkatraman accents the differences between cultures in the treatment of what we Western culture people consider the supernatural. She helps readers become more respectful of others' lifeways by showing them a new perspective on such a subject.
  
  The cultural detail in Island's End is enough to outweigh any other criticisms of the novel. Honestly, if you ask me in a few weeks or months, I probably won't remember most of the things I complained about in the first paragraph of this review. I hope other readers will end up getting as much out of this book as I did.
• 
  Terri

  "Island's End" was a surprisingly good read. The book looks middle schoolish in size, cover, etc. However, the main character is fifteen years old and the material covered (the nature of the way in which we live, contemporary versus traditional ways, greed, spirituality versus what science can explain) certainly requires a mature reader. One of my book clubs is currently looking at twelve contenders for the major 2011 book awards - four potential Caldecott contenders, four potential Newbery contenders, and four potential Printz winners. This book appeared in the Newbery choices. I think it more appropriate for an older audience. But I would agree that it is worthy of award consideration.
  
  Uido lives on a small island off the mainland of India, in the Andaman Islands. Her native tribes lives apart from modern civilization and has little knowledge of contemporary life. However, when strangers appear on their island offering gifts and "magic," they are suddenly thrust into a conflict between their traditional ways and the enticements of modern civilization. The spiritual leader of the En-ge people, Lah-ame chooses Uido (a girl!) to become his apprentice. During the rainy season he takes her to a remote location where he teaches her everything that he knows about healing, modern civilization, the spirits, etc. When the two of them return, Uido is faced with her first true "test" when she must choose between traditional healing methods and modern medicine to save someone she loves. The climax of "Island's End" literally had me on the edge of my seat! This is a truly unique young adult novel.
  
  My only complaint about the book is that (and this is maybe why the book is considered a middle school read) things move too quickly with not enough detail and fleshing out of events in the story. As a result, it is somewhat difficult to invest in the story's events and characters.
  
  Recommended for both middle school and high school collections.
• 
  Tasha

  A remote island in the Bay of Bengal is the setting for this novel by the author of Climbing the Stairs. Uido is a teen who can communicate with spirits. Just before strangers arrive at their island, Uido dreams of it. The tribe has conflicted feelings about the strangers, some are drawn to the technology of their fast boats and matches, while others see the end of their ways if the new ways are adopted. During this confusing time, Uido studies to become her tribe’s spiritual leader. There is danger in the studies, from braving the dangers of the island to finding her spirit animal. But nothing is as dangerous yet beguiling as the strangers and their new ways, as Uido is soon to find out.
  
  Venkatraman creates a vivid world here surrounded by water and coral reefs. It is a world where everything is different. The island itself is a character in the book as seasons turn, Uido journeys across the island, and finally in the climactic ending scenes. The island is beautiful, wild, untamed and irresistible.
  
  Uido is a heroine who faces many self-doubts, but rises to the challenges she is faced with. She has a spirit herself that is true and strong. She struggles with a friend who doesn’t understand her, a brother who is jealous, and the loneliness of being away from her family. Plus the allure of the modern world. Yet in Uido, readers will also see a young woman who is tied to the traditional ways in a strong and compelling way.
  
  Beautifully written, this book is a journey into an unknown, primitive world where readers will discover a radiance and wonder. Appropriate for ages 13-15.
  
• 
  Mary

  I normally love stories like this, and feel a little guilty for not liking "Island's End" more. It's a good, worthwhile tale with an admirable narrator. But somehow I felt a bit distant from it.
  
  Part of it, of course, is that Venkatraman employs my least favorite voice in telling her story, namely, first-person present-tense. This pov can be compelling, but it's honestly very difficult to pull off. When the author doesn't pull it off, it is immediately distancing. That's why I wish it were less prevalent in YA, and why I wish Venkatraman had not used it.
  
  Then (spoilers)
  
  
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  I had some difficulty with the ending. Oh, it's not that I disbelieved the general premise. I can accept that Uido got a warning about the earthquake and Tsunami, and I can certainly accept that the Andaman Islanders managed to get to safety when more modern people, less in tune with nature, did not. After all, as the author explains in her fascinating afterword, that is based on fact! But I did have problems accepting that Ashu's jealousy of his younger sister would have him ignoring her when all the rest of the tribe followed, and when the world was so obviously going crazy. Finally, Uido struck me as just a little too perfect. She is wise and strong and has great courage and integrity, and is already comfortable with her role as a leader by the end of the book, when she is surely no more than 15 or 16. It seems that she gets everything she wants, and does not even grieve much for her dead friend.
  
  I did like this book, and would recommend it for most libraries. I just didn't love it quite as much as I had hoped to.
• 
  Annie

  Quiet, but incredibly thought provoking. Books about tribal cultures have a habit of being exquisitely boring, focusing on daily life when, really, how many pages can you write about wandering around gathering nuts and hunting armadillos? But this books has a lot more going for it than just a long, gory look at pre-modern life.
  
  First, this takes place on a contemporary tribal island, so there's an amazing juxtaposition between life on the island and life on the mainland. And rather than idealizing one over the other, the author does a balanced job of trying to show the beauty and grit of each. Although the books does really push you to see in a new light question the way that some things work on our "advanced" society.
  
  Second, there is a lot of nature and communing with nature and being one with nature. But there are deeper themes there, and with the tsunami that comes at the end, you really see how the people on the island are part of the "circle of life" in a way that modern societies try to resist.
  
  Third, the way that the book deals with gender and family dynamics is really interesting. It would have been easier just making the protagonist here male, but Venkatraman makes her female, which provides a look into how the tribe deals with less traditional gender dynamics.
  
  All that said, this book gives you a lot to talk about. Almost a week later, I'm still thinking about it.
• 
  Bella

  In the story Island’s End by Padma Venkatraman I believe that the theme is leadership. I believe this because Uido is chosen to be the spiritual leader of their islands tribe. The story is set in the Andaman Islands off the coast of India. The main character of the story is Uido. Uido is a young girl who lives far away from the main land. Uido was chosen to be the next leader, she is very delighted but she knew that she would have to take on many responsibilities. When strangers come to their island Uido has to protect her people. Uido had to balance the islands culture with the what the new strangers want to do.
  
  I enjoyed reading the story Island’s End because I like how it left you on your toes when you did not know what Uido was going to do next. “Confuseed thoughts whirl through like storm clouds in my head” (118). Uido has to work hard because she is the leader of the tribe. Her hard work had many ups and downs. She had to decide whether to go against culture to follow the new people of the island or stay with the islands routine. This responsibility is very large for a young girl. “You are afraid Uido” (82). Since Uido had to take on all the responsibilities of the island she was scared but she did not tell anyone because she did not want anyone to look at her like she was not their leader. I recommend this story to anyone who likes to be on the edge of their seats because of suspense.
  
• 
  Alicia

  I was beginning to think there weren't any categories that this book would neatly fit in to and really, it kind of doesn't. It is very different from other YA lit in that it sheds awareness about indigenous people, specifically off the coast of India who live in tribes that are closed from modern human contact. It is a stretch to think anyone can really write about what it's like, but Venkatraman does a fine job trying-- she also explains that she spent some time on one of these islands so she does have background knowledge.
  
  The focus of the story of Uido who is training to become the tribes next spiritual leader while growing up (discovering whether she would like to marry Danna, testing the limits of gender roles, taking and giving orders based on her place in society). The test comes when she seeks help from "the white man" on their island after all medicine fails to help her younger brother recuperate. Yet, she thankfully returns to her tribe and island and leads the people with how she knows they should be, not following the sparkly and gluttonous ways of the strangers.
  
  In all, it was innovative but again, it's hard to pinpoint an audience. There is quite a bit about nature and living outdoor and off the land, which would intrigue boys especially, yet a touch of romance and multicultural understanding would be a draw for girls.
• 
  Sandy D.

  This is fascinating YA fiction about a girl coming of age in a tribe of modern-day hunter-gatherers who live on a remote island in the Indian Ocean (the Andaman Islands, way off the coast of India). There is a lot going on in this story: spiritual development, the encroachment of modern cultures, sibling rivalry, and young love and sexual awakening (the latter handled pretty discreetly, so I'd say fine for 12+, or a bit younger if you don't mind your kid reading about teenagers in a relationship deciding to go off into a special place in the forest at night, where "nothing exists but the magic of shared silence and beauty of our togetherness". Uido (the female protagonist) also lets her hands slide down her lover's hips - but that and some gentle kissing are as explicit as it gets.
  
  The conclusion - the 2004 tsunami - is intense and the descriptions of its aftermath are pretty graphic, though. And it's disturbing, because you *know* those descriptions are based on real life. The ending is ultimately uplifting, and it is pretty cool to see a book based on a "primitive" people with non-generic characters and an interesting plot. The island is described quite beautifully, too. And "Island's End" deals with cultural conflict in a respectful and not overly idealistic "Dances with Wolves/Avatar" manner!
• 
  Amy

  This is the story of Uido, a young girl who lives with her tribe, the En-ge, on a remote island. Uido has been chosen as the next oko-jumu, or spiritual leader, of her tribe. Lah-ame, the current oko-jumu, takes Uido away to train her in visiting the Otherworld, listening to the voices of the spirits, starting fire (because the oko-jumu is the only person in the tribe who can start fire), gathering medicinal plants and animals, etc. Uido returns to her tribe a stronger woman, both physically and mentally.
  
  Strangers from an island nearby have been visiting her island and it concerns Uido, even as her brothers Ashu (older) and Tawai (younger) and other tribe members continue to be fascinated by these visitors, their gifts (green bananas), and their modern boats. Uido is scared for the future of her people but when Tawai becomes deathly ill and her medicines don't seem to be working, she takes him to the stranger's island for their modern medicine and he is saved. Tawai is even more enthralled with the modern ways that endanger the En-ge. Uido is unsure of the future of her people and how to lead them.
  
  This book plodded along for me. I struggled to continue reading it even though it had been highly recommended by several people.
• 
  Julia

  This book is challenging to categorize. It has the feel of realistic fiction, yet the reality of Uido's world includes spirits (though this is no fantasy). Uido has always seen the spirits of her people in her dreams, though she has not let many know this. She is sent a warning about strangers coming to her island home. When they do arrive, some of the members of her tribe are seduced by the strangers gifts, matches for example, but Uido feels unsure. Lah-ame, the tribe's elder/shaman, declares that the tribe should stay away from the strangers and offers to teach Uido the secrets of being a shaman. Uido struggles through her lessons to achieve her goal. When she returns to her tribe, so do the strangers, and Uido's younger brother becomes sick. Uido must decide whether to seek out the medicine of the strangers to save her brother or to follow the path her people have always walked.
• 
  Meena

  This book is about a girl named Uido who is growing up on the Andaman Islands off the coast of India. She is living with a tribe that stays separate from modern society, despite their relatively close geographical distance to the mainland. She is chosen to be the tribe's next spiritual leader, and she is delighted. But this job gives her lots of responsibilities, and when strangers arrive on the island, her world seems to be turned upside down. And she has to protect her tribe from all of it. Uido has to find a balance between her culture and the ways of the strangers, while guiding her tribe to make the right decisions as well. Their future depends on her. This book is about courage, strength, love, and leadership. It also teaches us about the lives of some indigenous people struggling to preserve ancient traditions.
• 
  Laura

  I was really torn about this book. On the one hand, I enjoyed reading about this culture (representative of other cultures in the Andaman Island chain), on the other I felt that the author's purpose was too clearly evident, that Western ideas/culture were encroaching on these tribes and were Bad Bad Bad. Now, I'm not saying that I don't agree with the idea of letting these "untouched" peoples live their lives without modern day intrusions, but I thought the message could have been conveyed a little more subtly.
  
  Because this was an ARC, I don't know if the final version will include a list or commentary about resources for those of us who know virtually nothing about the Anadamans and would like to learn more about them (and about these tribes).
  
  ARC provided by publisher.
• 
  Tracy

  The first half of this book dragged a bit, but about half-way through it got really interesting. It's a fiction book, based loosely on tribes in India who shun modern life. (In real life there are reservations set up for the tribes and although some of them do adopt modern ways, there are several who still live the way their people have always lived.) Uido has just been selected as the first female spiritual leader for her tribe. (Kind of the tribe's healer.) Her little brother gets sick and none of her medicines work, so she makes the choice to take him to the island where modern civilization is to see if they can help.
  
  Her choice makes some of her tribe lose faith in her and in their ways.
  
  Pretty interesting.
• 
  Annie Oosterwyk

  Uido, a young woman with a deep connection to her tribe and culture is chosen to be the next spiritual leader of her people. At the same time, strangers begin to make occasional visits to the island bringing gifts. That is not all they bring. Uido's irrepressible younger brother, who is enthralled by the strangers, becomes seriously ill from a disease they have brought with them. Uido must navigate between keeping her people safe in isolation and denying them conveniences that would seem to make their lives easier and better. There are many issues brought to light by the clash of cultures that would make excellent discussion topics. (gender roles, spiritualism, native vs. modern medicine, colonialism, logging)
• 
  Unchan Ki

  quite boring, quite fascinating,
  
  a girl who became a spiritual leader for the tribe from a normal girls life. She learns to meditate, heal and lead from her last leader. Also, learns that to believe in their courage and faith to lead their tribe. En-do tribe is in the island where white people never have been. In addition, its the place where tribe people won't leave. Therefore, En-do people wouldn't know anything about economy, and the other world. However, when white travelers visited the island, a girl, Uido force them out of the Island. It was Uido's job to manage all these situations; defend the Island, take care of the tribe and more.
• 
  Rachel

  I would actually give this book 3.5 stars.
  
  I didn't have high hopes for this book in the first few chapters, honestly — it was difficult to believe and get into. However, I got caught up in the promising romance between Danna and Uido, and once that wasn't enough, I found more to hold on to. Uido's exploration of spirituality, and that of her tribe, really got me sucked into this book. It's actually one of those stories that made me want to re-evaluate my own values and relationships with people.
  
  It was good enough that I read it within a few hours once I got past those first thirty pages!
• 
  Quetzallida

  This was a beautiful story to read. I deeply appreciated the spiritual authenticity. I loved many of the characters and relationships, even when they weren't perfect, they were real. This book made me want to read more books like it, ones about spiritual paths and travel; ones about indigenous tribes existing and thriving with ancient, ancestral technology and wisdom. I couldn't put the book down, the way the story was told was engaging and poetic. I was impressed by the language and the magical way words were woven to create images that allowed me to travel with the character. This book is precious and the stories will stay with me, I know it.
• 
  Sue

  Reviewed from an ARC.
  
  Uido lives on the island with her people. They live simply, hunting and gathering for food each day as a group. Spirits tell Uido in a dream that she must go to the beach. When she gets there she sees strangers in shiny boats. Her brother and some of the other villagers are fascinated with the strangers and the things they have. Will the tribe be so fascinated with the things of modern life or will they stick with their own ways?
  
  This book has short chapters and a very innocent main character. Good for a world cultures unit, etc.