The Seventh Raven

A poetic rendition of one of my favorite fairy tales

I’ve loved The Seven Ravens ever since I read it approximately one hundred years ago, in a high school German class. A variant of the folktale type “Brothers Turned Into Birds” (ATU 451), the story follows a young woman who travels across the land to break a curse laid on her brothers. Elliott’s version goes a step further and adds in perspectives of other characters within the narrative, including the youngest brother. 

I both read and listened to this book, and as usual for books-in-verse, I enjoyed the audio more. Beyond just having multiple voices in the cast, it was fascinating to listen to the rhythms of the different poetic forms that Elliott chose to use for each character.