CANYON WINTER

by Walt Morey ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 30, 1972

Fifteen year-old Peter Grayson leads a charmed life: miraculously uninjured in a wilderness plane crash (though the pilot is killed), he is led by a conveniently tame deer to the safety of hermit Omar Pickett's cabin; there he is taken in for the six months' winter by Omar, who for the previous fifty years has preferred the isolated company of animals to man, and soon Peter has mastered many of the skills in survival and animal lore that it took the older man so many years to acquire. Omar contracts pneumonia saving a deer from the icy river and dies, but not before he has totally convinced Peter of the necessity of fighting the logging company that wants to ""clear-cut"" the wilderness timber, destroying all wildlife and most vegetation in the process. Peter is finally rescued by a group that includes a U.S. senator, and in the end carries Omar's fight to the senate committee hearing on the loggers' bid. Morey's preference for animals over humans is dear, though even among the animals there is a similarity in their docility and acceptance of man (it all started with Gentle Ben). His stock human characters include the untried boy who proves his (overwhelming) capabilities, the stern father who is transformed in turn by his son's transformation, the strong but quiet mother who yields to ""her men"" in all things, and the boy's older mentor who almost inevitably dies. The corny dialogue and accumulation of unbelievable events further relegate this to the level of ""clear cutting"" -- as Peter said, there are places where it might work, but not in elevated areas.

Pub Date: Oct. 30, 1972

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Dutton

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1972

Categories: FICTION