Voigt’s fourth adventure set in the alternate reality world of Jackaroo (1985) is a stately-paced study of courage and loyalty shared, mostly, between women. Condemned to a ritual rape and murder by the brutal raiders known as Wolfers, Elske escapes untouched to the mercantile port of Trastad, where she meets prickly, imperious Beriel, an occasional visitor who claims to be a princess from an unknown land. Responding deeply to Beriel’s inner fire, Elske becomes her steadfast servant, finding a home for her secretly-borne child, following her on the long, dangerous journey back to her kingdom, and, while she is away battling her treacherous brother for the throne, cleverly driving off an invading company of Wolfers without bloodshed. Aside from one assault, the violence is off stage, and Voigt keeps the focus on her two main characters: she traces Elske’s growth from almost amoral innocence to strong-minded, loving maturity, and presents Beriel as a figure made larger-than-life by her anger and surety, demanding utter loyalty from her followers, but able to return it in kind. Fans of thud-and-blunder epics should look elsewhere; for readers who enjoy probing studies of ties that bind, this will illuminate some hidden corners of the human spirit. (Fiction. 12-14)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-689-82472-6
Page Count: 245
Publisher: Atheneum
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 1999
In this companion to The Wreckers (1998), Lawrence provides more adventures on the high seas. When John Spencer’s father buys the mysterious black schooner, the Dragon, the 16-year-old boy is excited until he learns that he must make the ship’s maiden voyage without his father. Among the bad omens: Mr. Spencer survives a shooting, and later, the captain they’ve hired is killed. Mr. Spencer is convinced that their affairs are looking better when he hires the colorful Captain Crowe to assume command of the vessel. No sooner does the schooner sail out of harbor than Crowe changes course unexpectedly, claiming that he has new orders. Crowe, of course, is a pirate, as are the scalawags he’s hired, and in no time, John is trapped with the scurrilous crew. When it seems that John will be fed to the fish by Crowe, he escapes and lives to see the cur hanged on his beloved Dragon. The storytelling is broad but the details are fine: Lawrence has packed his tale full of vivid descriptions that are swarming with historical detail, painting as honest a picture of piracy as readers are likely to encounter. (Fiction. 9-14)
Pub Date: May 1, 1999
ISBN: 0-385-32663-7
Page Count: 185
Publisher: Delacorte
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1999
From the author of On the Devil's Court (1989), another story in which sports and life intertwine. Jimmy Winter, his eyes fixed on the major leagues, accepts his father's harsh coaching as the only way to develop that special edge. Develop it he does, though their personal relationship founders on the rocks of his father's alcoholism. Jimmy fires up new friend Seth with the love of baseball, and the two play through Little League, Babe Ruth League and into high school. Seth is competent but not gifted, though he discovers that the benefits of hard work and concentration on the field carry over to school. His admiration for Jimmy's potential becomes mixed with more complex feelings when he learns that his friend is drinking and cutting class. After that revelation, the story moves with heavy inevitability: the varsity team puts together a championship season, but Jimmy kills himself in a car accident just before the clincher. Covering well worked thematic territory, Deuker offers readers few surprises in this outing, but the baseball action is believable and the contrasts between several sets of characters are thoughtfully explored. (Fiction. 12-14)
Pub Date: May 1, 1993
ISBN: 0-316-18166-8
Page Count: 200
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 1993
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