Saturday, September 19, 2009

The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg by Rodman Philbrick

Telling the truth don’t come easy to me, but I will try, even if old Truth ain’t nearly as useful as a fib sometimes (p 7).

“Although he is underage, Homer P. Figg’s brother, Harold, is illegally sold into the Union Army by their ruthless guardian. Now Homer must run away from Pine Swamp, Maine, and his wretched home to find his brother and save him from the war, before it’s too late.”

Like Tom Sawyer, our young and inventive hero sets out on a ridiculously impossible task, runs into scallywags, spies, crooks and the occasional Good Samaritan and, firm in his task, Homer cajoles, performers and escapes by whatever means necessary to achieve his ends…

I scampered into that balloon with nothing in my head but the desire to get away, and no idea what it meant to cut the anchor line. I wasn’t thinking about how you get down again, that’s for sure (p 167).

An amusing and adventurous read with equal measures of depravity, death, and hope that I’m sure will be as well received by readers as it has been by critics: Fuse #8, Shelf-Employeed, Kirkus, and Publisher’s Weekly.

The cover is unfortunate. As much as I adore Shannon’s children’s picture books, this cover, while appropriate, did nothing to grab my attention.

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