Park's Quest - Hardcover

Katherine Paterson is a legendary children's books author whose work has garnered many awards, including two Newbery medals (Bridge to Terabithia in 1978 and Jacob Have I Loved in 1981), two National Book Awards (The Master Puppeteer in 1977 and The Great Gilly Hopkins in 1979), and the Laura Ingalls Wilder medal for her substantial and lasting contribution to literature for children. Some of her other award-winning books include Come Sing, Jimmy Jo, Flip-Flop Girl, Lyddie, and Stories of My Life. She served as the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature for 2010-2011 and is currently vice president of the National Children's Book and Literacy Alliance. She lives in Vermont.

Grade 6 Up Like the heroes of his Arthurian fantasies, Park has a quest. Kept in the dark by a mother whose memories are too painful for her to face, Park knows nothing of his father, who was killed in Vietnam. The dedication of the Vietnam War Memorial arouses his need to know, and Park sets out to find the man who was his father from the family he left behind. What he finds is not at all what he expected: an invalid grandfather, an uncle his mother never mentioned, a truculent Vietnamese girl, and a host of unpleasant surprises. If the characters in this novel seem incompleteand they doit may be because all are victims of the war, their lives stalled mid-course, their chance to right a wrong denied them by the finality of death. Only Park's uncle has been able to pick up the pieces of his life (and his brother's) and go on. But Paterson suggests that the others, together, may yet do the same. What young readers will make of this remains to be seen. Much reading between the lines is necessary to discern characters' motivations; careful attention is required to follow quick transitions of plot and a confusing timetable of events. Puzzling questions and loose ends remain. In grappling with large issues, Paterson seems to have lost control of small details. Still, she gives readers much to ponder at all levels and a sufficiently engaging plot to draw them on. Margaret Rostkowsky's After the Dancing Days (Harper, 1986) deals with similar issues (albeit an earlier war) in a more tightly structured framework. Thoughtful readers will gain from reading both titles. Marcia Hupp, The Ferguson Library, Stamford, Conn.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.