From Publishers Weekly
Harlow's (Star in the Storm) novel, set in 1919 Boston, touches on some tough issues, including child labor, death and the Great Molasses Flood (due to the explosion of a molasses tank). After the death of 13-year-old Joshua's father, his Boston Brahmin mother takes in boarders (whom Josh has to call aunt and uncle to throw off the neighbors), and the boy must quit school to help earn money. Newsboy kingpin Charlestown Charlie (a tough Irish immigrant) presses Josh into service as a "newsie," and Josh is also hired to sneak story leads to their boarder, "uncle" Marc Muggeridge, an editor for the Boston Traveler. Though the author stacks the odds against Josh, the conflicts tend to fizzle. For example, Mr. Muggeridge feeds Josh the idea that he should buy his own papers rather than work for Charlie and then offers to fight Josh's battle for him. Likewise the picture of rough-and-tumble street life seems fairly tame. The titular song refers to the loss of the hero's famous soprano voice (a talent that makes him known even to the mayor) and his refusal to sing even at his father's funeral until he shares his gift to help a victim of the molasses flood. Despite colorful details based on actual events, the novel's ending wraps everything up a bit too neatly. Ages 9-12.
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From School Library Journal
Gr 4-6-A fast-paced novel with a likable main character. World War I has ended and the influenza epidemic has taken Joshua's father. His mother, formerly one of Boston's elite, is struggling to make ends meet because of her husband's debts. She takes in boarders whom her son must call "uncle" and "aunt" so the neighbors don't know she's running a boarding house, and Joshua must give up his private school and find work. Harlow quickly sets up this background, then begins the boy's adventures the day he becomes a newsboy. The plot moves swiftly as he falls in with Charlestown Charlie, who oversees the newsboys in downtown Boston; meets a reporter who will pay for the stories Joshua can bring him; and learns about the darker side of city life when he meets a girl who sells papers to help her sick mother. The climax of the story is based on the Molasses Flood of 1919, when a huge tanker full of molasses exploded in Boston's North End, killing 21 people. The conclusion is somewhat pat; Joshua's mother sells property and is no longer poor. One hopes that the boy won't forget his friends or the lessons he's learned. Harlow skillfully integrates historical fact to make a colorful setting believable. An afterword gives other interesting details. A worthwhile title for historical-fiction collections.
Sally Bates Goodroe, formerly at Harris County Public Library, Houston, TX
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
