The Ugly One

August 5, 2013
Inspired by the author's travels to Peru, Ellis's coming-of-age tale follows the small but significant story of 12-year-old Incan girl named Micay, who is shunned by her community because of "the deep scar that ran like a river from my right eye down my cheek to my lip and lowered my mouth in a permanent half frown." That changes, however, when a "jungle stranger" comes to town and gives her a scruffy baby macaw named Sumac Huanacauri ("Handsome Rainbow"), who protects her from her tormentor Ucho's cruelty and teaches her to free herself from doubt, as well as accept that she may be destined for a greater purpose. Micay leaves her "wasi" (one-room home) to explore and study with Paqo, a "mighty shaman" from Cuzco. Micay's intimate narration weaves in Quechua vocabulary and abundant references to Incan folklore, enhancing the novel's vivid sense of time and place. Despite the element of shamanism and Micay's communication with spirits, her transformation is subtle and pragmatic as she evolves from fearful outsider to empowered individual. Ages 9â12.

May 1, 2013
Micay's name means "Beautiful Round Face" in Quechua, but her disfiguring facial scar has earned her the nickname Millay, "Ugly One," from bullies in her Incan village. Fleeing to her special rock, she hides behind her long hair, but the taunts persist. Having a beautiful sister compounds her misery. When a stranger traveling to the Sacred Sun City (Machu Picchu) gives her a fledgling macaw, Micay emerges from her defensive shell. The bird she's named Sumac, "Handsome," becomes her companion and protector, leading her to the Paqo (village shaman), who takes her on as his apprentice. The Paqo is a mystery: Why did he forsake his powerful position in Cuzco for a humble village? He trains Micay in the healing arts, bringing her to an assembly of shamans seeking to end the relentless drought afflicting the empire. Despite their sacrifices and pleas to the gods, the drought worsens, and Micay fears the Paqo may be driven from the village. Though fantasy elements exist, the novel strives for historical accuracy. Micay's an appealing, if subdued, protagonist, and the rich cultural and physical setting trumps the somewhat derivative plot. The Incan empire's four-century ascendance has inspired plenty of nonfiction and over-the-top fantasy but perplexingly little historical fiction for kids. This recommended title can help fill that void. (glossary, author's note) (Historical fiction. 9-12)

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January 1, 2014
Micay, an outcast in her Incan village because of a disfiguring facial scar, embarks on a pilgrimage to Sacred Sun City to ask to be healed; instead, she asks unselfishly for the drought to end and is chosen to become a shaman priestess. The narrator's formal voice is a little stilted and the pace is slow, but Micay is a sympathetic heroine.

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