From School Library Journal
Grade 5-8-Shady characters, dark stairwells, and menacing footsteps abound in this Victorian-era mystery set in New York City. Following the deaths of first his father and then his mother, Robin lives the quintessential hard-knocks life. When his cruel stepfather, Hawker Doak, threatens violence against Robin's brother, Danny, Robin runs away with the baby in the middle of the night. They find refuge with street boys holed up in the basement of a church that the illiterate boys call "St. Something." The urchins quickly adopt Robin and Danny, giving them a home and showing Robin how to make a living. However, all of their lives change forever when Hawker reappears and later makes a stunning deathbed confession. The sense of danger and bleakness in these characters' lives is convincingly portrayed. This feeling is contrasted nicely with the warm and loyal familial relationship of the youngsters. The mystery element and the leering, abusive Hawker keep the story moving swiftly. While the street boys' heavy dialect may be daunting to less competent readers, children will cheer at the rags-to-riches ending and the renewed sense of hope in the boys' lives. Give this to both historical fiction and mystery fans, who will enjoy the unique blend of genres.
Kristen Oravec, Cuyahoga County Public Library, Strongsville, OH Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Gr. 5-7. Fans of Wallace's earlier novels will be lining up to read her latest mystery-adventure set in the dangerous streets and bleak tenements of late-nineteenth-century New York. It has all the elements they've come to expect from the Edgar Allan Poe award-winning author: a plucky main character who is repeatedly thrust into dangerous situations, cliff-hanging chapters, vicious enemies, and a period setting so well described readers will be able to smell the dank hallways and dirty streets. When 11-year-old Robin decides to bundle up baby brother Danny and run away, he's not sure how they'll survive, but he knows what they'll face if they stay: beatings and hunger at the hands of Hawker, their cruel stepfather, who will send Robin to work in a factory and place Danny in a filthy "baby farm." But before the night is over he finds some unlikely protectors: four tough street boys willing to share their home in the cellar of a church and teach him how to survive on the streets. Things seem to be looking up until Hawker catches up to him. There's good suspense along the way, as well as a satisfying conclusion, in which Danny learns a secret that changes the boys' lives.
Chris ShermanCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
