Stephen Fair [Hardcover]

Tim Wynne-Jones (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 15, 1998

A masterful new novel about memory, family secrets, and the transforming power of truth.

It happened to his older brother, and now it's happening to Stephen. Night after night, he has the same nightmare--a baby crying in a treetop, a remarkable tree house threatened by fire from below. His distraught mother calls in Hesketh Martin. A witch, Stephen calls her. A practitioner of "applied kinesiology," his mother insists. But weird potions can't cure Stephen. Nor could psychiatrists heal his brother, Marcus, who left the family four years before, shortly after their father left. Now fifteen himself, the same age Marcus was when he ran away, Stephen is determined to unlock the meaning of his bad dreams and uncover the story of his own childhood. With characteristic wit and perception, Tim Wynne-Jones has crafted a masterful novel that has much to say about memory, family secrets, and the transforming power of truth.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 6 UpAStephen Fair, 15, is having nightmaresAstrange, confusing nightmares about a baby crying in a treetop. He wants to know what they meanAand so does his motherAso she hires a psychic practitioner (Stephen calls her a witch). Her special potions are supposed to heal his "energy blockage." His short life has been an eventful oneAhis father left years ago, and his brother Marcus left, too. Now Stephen needs to unravel the secrets and disturbances of his life and he thinks his dreams and patchy memories hold the key. Then he discovers a letter his mother is hiding from him and sees a puzzling photograph from the past. Could his mother be keeping a secret that involves him? Following his memories and checking out his hunches, the teen unlocks his nightmares and discovers a startling family secret. Stephen is a complex character with colorful friends, including Virginia Elizabeth Dulcima Skye, who helps him learn about family and self. The book may take a while to grab readersAthis is an unusual family (they live in an ark-shaped house and used to live in a treehouse) with an unusual history. But once readers learn where the boy's memories may lead him, they'll be hooked. The conclusion of Stephen's journey is a satisfying surprise as well.ASharon Korbeck, Waupaca Area Public Library,
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews

Recurrent nightmares and a strong feeling that his mother is hiding something haunt a teenager in this ethereal novel from Wynne-Jones (The Maestro, 1996, etc.). At 15, Stephen has disturbing dreams of a tree, a fire, and a baby cryingdreams he seems to have ``inherited'' from his older brother, Marcus, who left home four years ago. He can't keep them from his loving, hovering mother Brenda, but he can refuse the psychotherapy and other treatments that didn't work for Marcus. While his social life moves in a promising direction, toward friendship with beautiful, brilliant Virginia Skye, his inner turmoil, driven by lack of sleep and his lingering guilt over the departure of his father, Doug, gives rise to tensions at home. Wynne-Jones seldom flatly describes a character's feelings or state of mind; instead, he conveys them through quick, telling details and comments, or heavily symbolic background events. Stephen is surrounded by an unusual, distinctive supporting cast, and compelled by a series of artfully revealed hints that lead at last to truth: Doug and Brenda stole him away from his neglectful birth parents when Stephen was only a baby. Brenda's lies, Doug's departure, even the nightmareslinked to suppressed memoriesall arise from that act, but Stephen is strong enough to weather the storm, and wise enough to offer Brenda an olive branch at the end. An intense study in friendship and troubled family relations, in which the steadiest characters are the teenagers. (Fiction. 12-15) -- Copyright ©1998, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: DK CHILDREN; 1st edition (March 15, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0789424959
• ISBN-13: 978-0789424952
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.7 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,035,399 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars another wonder by wynne-jones, June 24, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Stephen Fair (Hardcover)

an enormous fan of tim wynne-jones' "the maestro", i thought stephen fair was a wonderful addition to his line of 'show-not-tell' style books. stephen is a believable 15 yr. old who indulges in fantasy at times, (as well as in spur of the moment whims), but is strong enough to handle the truth when he finally finds it. i thought the author's use of the film 'casablanca' was perfect for this book as it made me want to watch to movie to see what all the fuss was about! (was that the author's intention?) my only negative criticism was that 'stephen fair' was so chock full of characters that i often got them mixed up. i can't say i enjoyed 'stephen fair' as much as i enjoyed 'the maestro' (i completely fell for burl crow and his enigmatic surrogate-dad maestro) but it is most definitely as well-written, worthwhile read for anyone.

5.0 out of 5 stars Captivating, April 23, 2006

By 

Jack D. McNamara (Walnut Creek, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Stephen Fair (Paperback)

Stephen Fair is a very interesting book written by Tim Wynne-Jones. I have read several books by him, but this one was the first one I read. The book has an element of mystery to it from the start. 15-year-old Stephen Fair has a recurring dream about a treehouse on fire and a baby crying. He learns that this was the same dream that eventually drove his older brother to run away when he was his age. With his brother gone, Stephen tries to figure out the mystery of what this dream is trying to say and find out family secrets that have been kept from him for years.

Overall, this book was captivating. I found a fast page-turner and I could read it in a short amount of time. The book is believable and well-written. There are many "Casablanca" references which I thought fit the story well. The ending of the book was satisfying and definitely said that the book was over.

I: 5/5 O: 5/5 WC: 5/5 V: 5/5 SF: 5/5

5.0 out of 5 stars Stephen Fair, July 1, 2004

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Stephen Fair (Hardcover)

Stephen is a 15 year old teenager who battles with the loss of a brother and the nightmares that caused his brother to leave. He now makes new friends, pieces together the meanings of his dreams, and digs up old family secrets. On this exciting journey through the mind and surrounding events/actions of Stephen's life you are taken on a journey through twisted tails of facts and lies that will keep you reading till the end.