Skip to main content

Distant Waves: a novel of the Titanic

Distant Waves: a novel of the Titanic
By Suzanne Weyn
Scholastic Press, 2009. 330 pgs. Juvenile/young adult fiction.

Raised by a strong, spirited mother who works as a ghost medium, Jane Taylor's life is far from ordinary. Along with her sisters--Mimi, Blythe, Emma, and Amelie--she finds herself transplanted at a young age to Spirit Vale, a gathering place for all people who claim to be mediums for the spirit world. Despite such an environment, Jane manages to maintain strong common sense and even develops skepticism towards spiritualism. When she travels with her sister Mimi to New York in order to interview the fascinating scientist, Tesla, the lives of all the Taylor women are affected by the chain of following events, most particularly by Mimi's invitation to sail on the Titanic.

It is rather misleading that this book is titled "a novel of the Titanic." Although the infamous ship does make its appearance in the story, it doesn't surface until the later portion. It makes for a dramatic ending but may be a bit disappointing for readers who expect the book to be all about the Titanic. That being said, I actually preferred Weyn's decision to leave the Titanic scene for the end. The reader gets the chance to know the characters as they grow up and develop a stronger feeling for them rather than being thrown into their lives only while they are on the ship. I thought the constant stream of two dimensional famous characters was too forced and really detracted from the story, although some readers may be delighted with such references. The thread of romance was a nice touch and the tie between history and the supernatural was quite intriguing. This book might be most appropriate for 5th and 6th grade readers and could definitely be an option for readers needing historical fiction but wanting an interesting story. Although not Weyn's best work, it was still worth reading.

CW

Comments

lw said…
Ha Ha "doesn't surface" ha ha ha

Popular posts from this blog

Painting for Peace in Ferguson

Painting for Peace in Ferguson By Carol Swartout Klein Treehouse Publishing Group, 2015. Nonfiction. When the city of Ferguson was overrun with so much hate and despair that homes and businesses had to be boarded up to protect property, citizens of the community decided to bring a message of hope by painting the boarded windows. Klein’s rhyming text supports the photographs of the hundreds of artists and volunteers and their artwork as they bring the messages of peace, hope, love, and that by being united they can make a difference. A great book to show children how a community rallied to make a positive change and that even a small gesture can make a huge difference. A great discussion opener on how we should treat each other.

Dragon Run

Dragon Run by Patrick Matthews Scholastic, 2013.  336 pgs.  Fantasy      Al Pilgrommor is excited for Testing Day, when he will receive his rank, a tattooed number on the back of his neck, and a path forward to his future occupation and life.  He feels confident because his parents were fours on a scale of seven, but he is worried for his friend Wisp who doesn't have much of a chance of scoring above a two at best. But when Al is scored a zero, he not only has no prospects, he may lose his life as the dreaded Cullers are unleashed to kill him and his family to purify the land's bloodlines.  Al's world is ruled by dragons--the lords and supposed creators of humankind--so he thinks that even if he survives, he will have to make his living as a beggar or thief. But when Al sticks up for his Earther friend in front of Magister Ludi, he is drawn into the struggle of a secret organization hoping to destroy the Cullers, and perhaps the dragons them...

Review: We're All Gonna Die-Nosaur!

We’re All Gonna Die-nosaur! By Kon Tan  New York: Disney Hyperion, 2025. Intermediate. 157 pages.  Pterry (the “p” is silent) pterodactyl is a worry wart. Pterry is worried about flying (he doesn’t how to fly yet), dinosaurs going extinct (he had a scary dream), and how to protect his family (he has a little brother who hasn’t fully hatched from an egg yet). Even though there is a lot of feels for Pterry, this is actually quite a funny book. Pterry tries to learn how to fly with kites as his “training wheels” and his brother who is inside an egg is quite the adventurer.  This is a funny, heart-felt comic-like intermediate fiction book that will be great for many readers. If kids love dinosaurs, this book is for them. If kids like funny graphic novels, this book is for them. If kids want to read something about facing fears and doing things even though they don’t always want to, this book is for them. Plus, even though Pterry does a lot of things on his own, he still has s...