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Summary: THE TRUTH FROM THE BLACK WALL
Review: Like an Arthurian knight setting out on a quest, eleven-year-old Park is determined to learn the truth about his father, who died on his second tour of Viet Nam. But his mother clams up on the subject, refusing to share critical information about the elusive man. Will she nurse her grief forever or is there more to it? This story reads like a squire's swift lance, as Park's imaginary mental adventures parallel real life situations. (There are quotes from Emily Dickinson's poetry and Rosemary Sutcliff's Arthurian novel, the Sword and the Circle.) Denying the danger, growing frustration and possible shock of knowledge wrongfully withheld from him for a decade, Park pursues his goal relentlessly; yet he is sickened by gradual then sudden revelations, as he pieces together the pathetic patchwork of his father's life. Both sides of the family kept him in deliberate ignorance, but whom were they trying to protect--the innocent boy or their own hurt pride? Park seriously considers an abrupt departure from the Colonel's stately Virginia farm, since it was His choice to make the trip, therefore his right to leave. Why stay where no one wants him or believes he has a right to be? This boy has a critical need to find and know his father--even in death--yet his mother seems to deny his very existence. Does she have the right to obliterate her son's biological and cultural heritage? "They needed the life flowing from his memory." How can he convince her to stop using his baby name of Pork? When will he be granted the minimal courtesy of being called Park the Fifth? A poignant, fascinating book about a boy's journey into the Past, in order to come to terms with the Present, thus to reshape his Future. Sensitive with compassionate humor, an entertaining introduction to our post Viet Nam national shame, delusion and prejudice.
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Summary: Great read aloud.
Review: My 10 year old daughter and I read this book together. I couldn't help it, I just had to read ahead after she went to bed at night! Hope you enjoy it as well. The only other book we've read together that had the same effect on me was "Letters from Rifka." (K. Hesse)
Rating:
Summary: Great read aloud.
Review: My 10 year old daughter and I read this book together. I couldn't help it, I just had to read ahead after she went to bed at night! Hope you enjoy it as well. The only other book we've read together that had the same effect on me was "Letters from Rifka." (K. Hesse)
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Summary: This was a great story with great charachters and plot.
Review: This Katherine Paterson was great, (as usual) and I would recomend it to any Katherine Paterson lover. It is good for all ages. It is happy, and sad, and funny. A very charming book.
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