I like Tim Wynne-Jones' books. I just do. This would be a "middle school book" by its length and vocabulary, but Mr. Wynne-Jones has a real beauty to his writing, a lyric quality that draws you in and helps paint an emotional quality to his stories that goes far beyond physical description. I shared this one with my mother (an avid reader, age 60+) and she liked it fine. Like many of his books, "A Thief in the House of Memory" focuses on a teenage boy with a hidden past. In this case, it is the story of 16 year-old Declan, trying to come to grips with a mother who left and a father who is present in name only. It reminds me a teensy bit of Paul Fleischman's book, "Seek." The characters are exceedingly real ... Declan and his friends remind me of students I see everyday. The drama is there, but not overblown, and Declan's relationship with his younger sister is delightful -- the kind of love/hate relationship that so many siblings have. An enthusiastic thumbs up for this one.
2 comments:
Any relation to Diana Wynne-Jones, the fantasy writer? Hmm.
Also, I can't STAND Paul Fleischman, so this is a little bit of a downer. :(
Cheers!
Yeah, I've always wondered about that. I think they are husband and wife...but they could be brother and sister? As to Fleischman, folks like what they like, but I find Fleischman is pretty diverse, like Avi? He writes in lots of different styles. If you didn't like something you had to read for a class, I'd say try a different style of book by him. "Seek" is actually a radio play!
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