Helicopter Man [Hardcover]

Elizabeth Fensham (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 10 and up

Fifteen-year-old Peter Sinclair's father is a paranoid schizophrenic, afraid of helicopters, police, and life itself. When Peter's mother leaves home one day and doesn't return, Pete and his father soon find themselves living hand-to-mouth, estranged from family, and teetering on the brink of homelessness. Based on a real experience, this is a haunting and ultimately redemptive story of illness, love, and a boy's indomitable spirit to survive.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 6-9–As 12-year-old Pete's journal entries begin, he and his father are on the run, hiding out in an unused garden shed behind a house. Is a secret organization really after the man, or is Dad insane? Pete doesn't know–his life has been like this for years, hiding from helicopters and constantly moving. Staying firmly within the experience and understanding of a preteen, Fensham keeps the tension mounting as the boy goes back and forth between the tedium of his present life and his recollections of earlier days, when things were better. Only when he and his father are apprehended and Pete goes into foster care does he begin to see that other adults are not frightened all the time and that something is indeed wrong with his father. Australian slang is prominent, but the meaning of most of the words is clear in context. The pace slows occasionally in the book's first half, reflecting Pete's boredom in confinement, but brighter days are promised as he and his father finally begin to receive the care they deserve. Once through the initial strangeness, students will find this a worthy and thoughtful look at mental illness and the strength of family bonds.–Coop Renner, Hillside Elementary, El Paso, TX
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Gr. 6-9. Twelve-year-old Peter and his dad live on the outskirts of society, sometimes squatting in sheds, sometimes staying with friends, until the next time Pete's dad sees the helicopters, and, convinced that a secret organization is after him, moves them again. Pete's mom is dead, and Pete has long felt that he and his dad must face the world together. But as time passes, he begins to question his father's reality. When his father is hospitalized and Pete goes to foster care, he must come to terms with his father's mental illness. Fensham uses the diary format to excellent advantage, giving the reader a real sense of the uncertainty and boredom of Pete's life and his love for his father and desire to protect him. This compact, intense read, set in Australia, will speak directly to teens growing up with a schizophrenic parent, as well as to a wide range of readers who will finish the affecting story with more questions about and compassion for the mentally ill. Debbie Carton
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Children's Books (May 19, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1582349819
• ISBN-13: 978-1582349817
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,957,274 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Authentic, fresh storytelling, June 2, 2005

By 

E. S. Will "a new leaf" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Helicopter Man (Hardcover)

This review first appeared in the "Ephrata (PA) Review":

Fensham, a teacher for 15 years in her homeland of Australia, set out to fill a void--a novel for children who have family members suffering from schizophrenia.

"Information booklets were not enough to ease their pain and bewilderment," she writes. "I searched the library for a fiction novel that might both entertain and inform, but could find nothing."

Fensham penned "Helicopter Man" so skillfully that it reads first and foremost like a novel--not a story superimposed on facts about mental illness.

As the story opens, 12-year-old Pete and his father are "camping" in a dilapidated shed on someone's property. Pete's father must stay hidden or on the move. Convinced that a spy network is out to get him, he freaks when helicopters pass overhead.

The story is told from Pete's viewpoint, through journal entries and letters to a friend, which lends a fresh authenticity to the account. Pete's entries range from musings on the past to his daily concerns, gradually revealing how he and his father have arrived at their present homeless state and how they are extracted from it.

The story is gripping, the characters believable and likeable. American readers will be tickled by some of the Australian English and will enjoy piecing together the meanings of colloquialisms such as "chucking a wobbly."

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 10 year olds review, February 7, 2007

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Helicopter Man (Hardcover)

This was an exciting novel about peter and his Dad. This was a great book with many different settings. Peter and his Dad were very close. Considering they were partly homeless and Peter's mother had died. They have been running away from the C.I.A. when his dad gets put into the hospital. Peter gets put into foster care. He hates school and his teacher. I would recommend this book to people who like intense books.

5.0 out of 5 stars Boxed In or Boxed Out, November 23, 2005

By 

Donna Mullen "farm-turtle" (Lincoln, Nebraska USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Helicopter Man (Hardcover)

The style of writing drew me quickly into the novel. Peter and his thoughts about being hungry and the closeness to his father made me want to keep turning the pages. I had not read about this book, so as I continued to read a question popped into my mind. Something is wrong here; but what? I teach English to 9th graders and this is a book I would like to use in all my classes. The art museum, the mice, the planes create enough confusion that the young reader would fly with this book.
Great writing, reading.