Silver on the Tree by Susan Cooper

Silver on the Tree is the fifth and last book in the Dark is Rising series by Susan Cooper. I highly recommend reading the other books before this one, and if you continue with this review, you may encounter some spoilers on those books. The series is about an ancient and timeless fight between the forces of the Light and of the Dark. Our main character, Will Stanton, is the youngest of the Old Ones of the light and has been seeking out the power objects of the light to keep the dark from rising. He also is sometimes complemented by the Drew children who also play an important role in this battle and were the ones to find the Holy Grail. The dark is aware of their plans though and will try to stop them at all costs.

This last book Will is seeking out the last power object, a special sword that should only be wielded by the Pendragon. The Pendragon happens to be a friend of Will's from Wales and is a strange boy whose Albino-ism and parents make him very special indeed. With the help of the Drew children they are set on the right path to find the sword and will journey to a lost land where the dark is waiting for them. They have to succeed though, or everything they've done before will have been in vain and the dark will rise.

The Drew children weren't in this book as much as they were in some of the others. But I really didn't care because I found their parts the most boring anyway. It should have been interesting, but I've never really connected to them as characters. I have mixed feelings about Bran, the Pendragon. He is an interesting character but not really likable to me. Will has always been my favorite and Cooper does a marvelous job of showing the old one and the small child in him throughout the book.

There is a lot that goes on in this book and it can be hard to follow at times. I can see how the characters in the book have trouble remembering things because even I do and I had just read them a few pages back! Since it is a children's book they may have even worse problems following along and the language in this book is a bit tougher. But it is still quite interesting and Cooper does a good job of finishing the series off. I'm always sad to see it end but I am glad she didn't stretch it into something that wouldn't have worked as well.

Great series and a good ending to it. Anyone of any age could read this book and I always enjoy returning to it.

Silver on the Tree
Copyright 1977
275 pages