Zia

I read Zia, a 179 page, adventure book by Scott O'Dell. Zia is the sequel to Island of the Blue Dolphins. The main character in the book is Zia. Zia is a fourteen-year-old determined girl, who lives on the island of Santa Barbara with her brother, Mando. Mando is a young boy, who likes to fish and has an attitude as if he take on anything that comes his way. The two get along pretty well, and work together throughout the story.

Zia is the story about a teenage girl who tries to find her aunt Karana. Karana was stranded on a island and was her last relative, besides her brother. The quest to find her family member is very dangerous.

One day Zia and her brother, Mando, were collecting clams on a beach when she saw a boat, that had been washed up by a recent storm. When they returned to the mission they went to confession.

Zia talked to her friend, Father Vicente. She told him of the boat and asked if they could keep it. He responded to her question by stating that by law she was able to keep the boat because she had it. Then she told him that the words Boston Boy was written on the side of the boat. Father Vicente said that the boat belonged to a whaling company, and that they had one of their whaling boats. Zia and Mando renamed the boat Island Girl . They decided to row the boat to the Island of the Blue Dolphins, a sixty mile journey, to find Karana. Zia told Father Vicente the news and he told her to visit Captain Nidever. Captain Nidever had been to the island before and had seen a woman and her foot prints on the beach. He suggested not to go because it was too far, and they had no experience. Ignoring his warnings, the two went along with their plan. They started off with no trouble, but they soon became tired. Soon they saw a large ship approaching with the name Boston Boy . The men on the ship spotted the Island Girl and took them aboard to work. Mando worked as a person who fed the fire to keep on going. While Zia worked in the kitchen making the meals for the men. Zia and Mando talked together and decided to escape. Successfully doing this, they made it back to the mission. When they told Captain Nidever what happened, he had good news for them. He said that he, with his companion, where going otter hunting, and along were going to stop by the Island of the Blue Dolphins. Zia begged to let her go with them, but he refused. So instead she asked if Father Vicente could go, and he agreed. Zia wanted Father Vicente to go because he looked Indian and Karana would not fear him. Everyone worked to get Father Vicente ready for the trip. Then finally the day came for him to leave. Every person was there to see them take off, hoping they would return safely. After he left, Zia had to work in the fields with other women. To teach how to plant there was Gito Cruz, who was the mayordomo (mayor), of the mission. While working he talked with all the young people of the mission and explained a plan of escape from the mission. He explained how the people were like slaves at the mission and they should return home. Everyone agreed to go with him, except

Zia who wanted to stay in case Karana came with Father Vicente when they returned. The night of the escape there was a fiesta. While dancing with Zia, Gito Cruz explained to Zia that he knew how she was feeling. So, he told her that he would send a messenger, with a map for her and Karana a month after he reached his destination. This way the two could both live together. That night Gito Cruz made his escape with his band of boys and girls. When the elders awoke they were furious and questioned Zia. But decided that she knew nothing. A group of soldiers were sent to look for them, but when the soldiers returned empty handed they questioned Zia again. At the end of their cession together, the leader, Captain Cordova took Zia with him to the garrison.

There she was kept in a small cell, and was fed water and tortillas. The nights were freezing and everyday a lady came for her food and asked her if she was ready to tell the Captain all she knew. Each time Zia replied that she knew nothing. Every few days the Captain sent for her, and each time he talked to her more sternly. But each time she replied very little with not much info. Then one time he called her and said they found Gito Cruz and they were cornered in a cave. He asked Zia more questions, but with no response, Zia was sent to her room, where through the small hole in the wall she saw Father Vicente returning with Karana. Once she saw them get off the boat, Zia began yelling and waving her arms. Father Vicente saw her and went to the garrison.

The Captain and the Father yelled at each other but eventually Zia was freed. While the two were yelling Zia met with Karana thought the hole. There, instantly knowing of their connection, they attempted to hug each other and Zia tried to communicate with her, but neither of them understood each other. After leaving the garrison the three walked back to the mission. Soon the father in charge died and Father Vicente took his place. He made new laws and treated Karana very nicely, with many exceptions because she was new. Then Father heard talk about Gito Cruz and his band again. So he met with others and decided to talk with them about coming home. Father Vicente, Zia, Karana and her dog all went to find Gito Cruz. Reached him, Father Vicente invited the group to come back to the mission, and with a little persuasion he agreed to return. On their return, fire accidentally caught in the forest. Everybody running for their lives hurried for the mission, all lead by Karana. Everybody returned to the mission safely. Another father was sent to take Father Vicente^s place in charge since the elders thought he was too young to rule wisely. Then life became much harder than before and Karana was treated not as she should of so she left to live in a cave on the beach. Karana became sick, but was healed by a Medicine Man. One day Zia came to visit and Karana was sick once more. She went to the mission for help, but they agreed only to help if Karana came to them, which she would not. Zia went to visit one last time where Karana gave Zia her necklace and died.

Zia believes she died from home sickness. After burying Karana, Zia left the mission. She walked for ten days to return to her home land, and with her she took Karana^s dog, who soon became Zia^s good friend. THE END After reading this book I found that I really liked it. My first reason for liking it has to do with the language the author uses. I don^t like it because of the good word usage of good descriptions, but of the actual language. Scott O^Dell writes some of his words in Spanish and the rest in English. I enjoy this for two reasons. My first is because it gives me a chance to practice my Spanish. The other is because it gives you a since of where Zia is living, or as we have learned to call it, the setting. Unlike in the Fighting Ground, Scott O^Dell does not provide English translation. Either the words he used are easy to understand or the reader does not necessarily need to know. For instance Father Vicente answers Zia^s question my saying,^...which is the truth,verdad. ^ or the author used the word mayordomo which means mayor. Or the author will write the word the first time in Spanish, and then later on write the word in English. The next reason why I liked the book is because it is the continuation of Island of the Blue Dolphins. After I read Island of the Blue Dolphins in the fourth grade I wondered what had happened to Karana, and this book reveals the answer. In the first book Karana was left alone on the island by herself. In this book Karana was rescued from the island and brought to the mission t live with her niece. At the end of this book it is the death of Karana. Now there are no more questions. Another reason why I enjoyed this book is because it is exciting. Zia makes a long voyage with her 9 year old bother, on a sixty mile journey. The long way is not the only reason why the trip is dangerous but also because the two are traveling in a four-person boat with only two oars, one of which was made by Mando. At first the trip seemed easy but when the Island Girl was captured I got worried and couldn't but the book down. Then when Zia was captured by Cordova I thought that she would not get out in time to greet her aunt. And finally, I feared that Father Vicente nor Karana would see Zia waving her arms frantically to get their attention to be freed and be reunited. One more reason why I like the book was because there was something unexpected in between. The entire time that I was interested in the return of Karana after Father Vicente left, Gito Cruz had the idea of fleeing from the mission. I expected the return of Karana very soon because there was nothing else that I could think of to come up in the story.

Then all of a sudden Zia helped Gito Cruz and his band escape from the mission, and become captured by Cordova and kept in a small room with no windows. The last reason why I found the book good is because the book is in Zia^s point of view. This really helps to understand exactly what is going through her mind and how she truly feels. I am sure I could get by not reading the story from Zia^s point of view, but writing the story this way helps me to get interested as well. Writing it in first person also makes the story less confusing, considering the book title is also the name of the main character. For these reasons I enjoyed this book. I would especially recommend this book to anybody who has read Island of the Blue Dolphins. This book, in my opinion, is a great conclusion to how the life of Karana ended. I also think that anyone who enjoys reading adventure books should read this book. Or to anybody who wants to read a short, easily understood book. Overall, I liked reading Zia.