Teen Fiction

The Wager

Name: The Wager
Author: Donna Jo Napoli
ISBN: 9780805087819

by Donna Jo Napoli

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Overview

Don Giovanni was once the wealthiest and handsomest young man in Messina. Then a tidal wave changed everything. When a well-dressed stranger offers him a magical purse, he knows he shouldn’t take it. Only the devil would offer a deal like this, and only a fool would accept.

Don Giovanni is no fool, but he is desperate. He takes the bet: he will not bathe for 3 years, 3 months, and 3 days. Beauty is a small price to pay for worldly wealth, isn’t it? Unless he loses the wager—and with it his soul.

Set against the stunning backdrop of ancient Sicily, Donna Jo Napoli’s new novel is a powerful tale about discovering what truly matters most.

Synopsis

Set against the stunning backdrop of ancient Sicily, Donna Jo Napoli’s new novel is a powerful tale about discovering what truly matters most.

Publishers Weekly

Based on the Italian fairy tale "Don Giovanni de la Fortuna," Napoli's (Alligator Bayou) sumptuously written novel is set in 12th-century Sicily. Part historical fiction, part spiritual fantasy, the story begins when Don Giovanni, a well-to-do 19-year-old orphan who is being groomed for leadership, suddenly loses his castle and wealth to a tidal wave. The eponymous wager is, of course, a deal with the devil (who appears in the form of a well-dressed stranger). Don Giovanni agrees not to bathe for three years, three months, and three days in exchange for endless bags of coins. Readers follow Don Giovanni's journey of the flesh and spirit as he suffers humiliation and physical decay; descriptions of lush feasts and brightly colored brocades give way to wretched scenes described in lurid detail: "He'd worn through his shoes a couple of months ago... a cut... oozed pus. Each night he'd press out the guck, but by morning it would be swollen again." As Don Giovanni reaches toward generosity and grace, he is ultimately rewarded. Napoli never underestimates her audience, depicting human nature at its worst and its best. Ages 12–up. (May)

About the Author, Donna Jo Napoli

Donna Jo Napoli teaches linguistics at Swarthmore College. An acclaimed author whose books have won such honors as the Sydney Taylor Book Award and the Golden Kite Award, Donna Jo lives with her family in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania.

www.donnajonapoli.com

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Editorials

Publishers Weekly

VOYA - Betsy Fraser

Don Giovanni knows that he is the most handsome youth in Messina, groomed to become one of the most important men in Sicily. He is certain of his own power and beauty, trampling over his servants to ensure his place in society and protect his reputation, until an earthquake and ensuing tidal wave washes away everything he owns and leaves him alone and destitute. The disaster, it turns out, could have been prevented if Don Giovanni had saved any of the three women placed in his path to test him. He is then offered a wager by the devil: he will be given unlimited money in the form of a magic purse which he will be able to keep but he won't be able to wash, change his clothes, or even comb his hair for three years, three months and three days. If he loses the wager or breaks the rules, he will lose his soul. Napoli ably describes the ensuing tribulations Don Giovanni undergoes as he becomes more offensive to be around even as he longs for companionship for the first time in his life. The slow regaining of his fortunes, made possible by the purse, is supplemented by his intelligence, the willingness to learn from his misfortunes, and the gathering of a group of servants and friends who care for him. Napoli's reworking of this Sicilian tale will attract readers of fractured fairy tales as well as fans of historical fiction. Reviewer: Betsy Fraser

School Library Journal

Gr 9 Up—Set in 1169, The Wager is a retelling of a traditional Sicilian fairy tale. As the story opens, Don Giovanni is a well-to-do spendthrift who gives little thought to anything but his own pleasure. An earthquake and subsequent tidal wave change his circumstances dramatically, and he is soon wandering the land as a vagrant. In classic Faustian style, the devil appears on the scene to offer a wager: he will provide Don Giovanni endless wealth in exchange for relinquishing his beauty—he may not change his clothes, shave, comb his hair, or wash for three years, three months, and three days. The devil provides the don with a magic purse, and the game is on. Suffice to say, the rot that grows on this hero is truly foul. Readers will be engrossed by descriptions of his decay, including vermin, worms, and open sores. Obviously Don Giovanni undergoes a dramatic change in how he treats the lowliest members of society. Evocative of Hermann Hesse's Siddhartha, this marvelous story is well told, and the rich, sophisticated language will grip skilled readers.—Leah Krippner, Harlem High School, Machesney Park, IL

Kirkus Reviews

After suffering a reversal of fortune, a handsome young nobleman enters into a dangerous wager with the Devil, surrendering his beauty and possibly his very soul to win a magical purse in this retelling of an old Sicilian fairy tale. Known for his "generosity of spirit and purse," 19-year-old Don Giovanni becomes a reviled pauper after an earthquake and tsunami devastate Messina in 1169. Forced to beg from town to town, Don Giovanni's situation is desperate when the Devil cunningly offers him a magical purse if he does not wash himself, change his clothes, shave his beard or comb his hair for three years, three months and three days. Determined to keep the purse and save his soul, Don Giovanni suffers unbearable misery and derision as his physical being degenerates while his inner being transforms. While Napoli's interspersing of historical events and natural descriptions adds verisimilitude to the fairy tale, the graphic details of Don Giovanni's physical and psychic anguish stretch credulity. No hero ever deserved a happy ending or a bath more. (Fantasy. 13 & up)