From Publishers Weekly
"One raw day in 1870," the owner of a touring medicine show takes in an eight-year-old orphan as "company servant" and dubs him Punch, a whimsical tribute to his beloved daughter, Judy. Four years later, the owner is dead, and a sanctimonious clergyman in a neighboring village calls upon the sheriff to arrest the showfolk: laughter, claims Parson Cuthwhip, "is the voice of the devil." Following the troupe's unsuccessful run for the state border, a bet is waged: if they can make the sheriff laugh, their freedom is assured. Avi ( The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle ) creates a dark, eerie world as backdrop for his somber narrative; while the story starts slowly, it eventually becomes an absorbing tale centered around Punch's unrequited love for Judy. This beleaguered protagonist engenders such sympathy that readers will cheer him on through his many predicaments. Lisker's stark black-and-white spot illustrations suit the novel's melancholy tone. Ages 11-14.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
Grade 5-7-- Avi's style here doesn't work well, and this offering won't be among his popular works. After the Civil War, a young street performer is taken in by a traveling showman with an acrobatic wife (sort of a show biz Mr. and Mrs. Macawber), their daughter Judy, and an assortment of ragtag entertainers. The boy, dubbed Punch, becomes general servant to the rest, tries to please everyone, but is constantly abused and berated. When her father dies and her mother loses touch with reality, Judy tries to run the operation. As the troupe struggles to survive, Punch tries to establish himself. He also struggles with his love for Judy, a futile crush, he being 12 years old and she old enough to marry. As in a Punch and Judy show or commedia dell'arte, the tale is cast with stock characters. There is a cruel streak present here that's made all the more chilling because the voice is so objective, so removed from any involvement, any sense of a warm presence. Punch, as is his puppet forbear, is pounded on, emotionally and, finally, physically. Illustrated with black-and-white heavy ink drawings in a naive style, this book keeps readers at a distance. Perhaps the aimlessness of the performers is a metaphor for the state of the country post-war. Other than that, there's little sense of time or place, and events occur without much preparation. There is minimal character development, and in spite of the stated action and conflict, there is no tension. Instead, the book is a stark outline of a story within a stylistic exercise. Are readers expected to provide the human context? If so, it seems likely that few will be interested. --Sally Margolis, Deerfield Public Library, IL
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
