FLY LIKE AN EAGLE

by Barbara Beasley Murphy ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 1, 1994

Third in a series about N.Y.C. teenager and aspiring actor Horace (""Ace"") Hobart (Ace Hits the Big Time, 1981; Ace Hits Rock Bottom, 1983), the story of his cross-country journey with his father Barney, who -- orphaned in infancy and inspired by Joseph Campbell to ""follow his bliss"" -- decides to discover his roots. Many sleazy motels and greasy spoons later, Barney finds his grandmother, former circus performer Gloria Paulette Davenport, in Kansas City. She reveals that Barney is the child of her rebellious daughter Diana, killed in an auto accident in his babyhood, and Jimmy Martinez, a Tewa Indian still living in New Mexico's San Ildefonso pueblo. Journeying on, Barney and Ace are welcomed warmly by their newfound relatives at the pueblo, where Ace participates in an intense ceremonial corn dance and is given the name ""Eagle Feather."" While much of the plot is implausible (particularly the Indians' ready acceptance of the Hobarts), the characters and settings here are vivid and believable. Ace's narrative, interspersed with postcards to his mother and sister, his girlfriend Raven Galvez, and his ""gang"" (the Falcons) back home, is reminiscent of Ron Koertge's and Randy Powell's books, by turns funny and compelling.

Pub Date: March 1, 1994

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: 182

Publisher: Delacorte

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 1994

Categories: CHILDREN'S