by John Thomson
It is the story of twelve year old Donovan Sanger and his summer in Pudget Sound with his aunt and uncle. Donovan is there because his Aunt Hattie is very ill and although his family is concerned, old arguments and disappointments lie between his father and Uncle Bix preventing a more direct adult involvement.Donovan wants to know more about Uncle Bix, and why he went to prison so many years before.The plot includes a sunken pleasure boat with a salvageable motor (that Donovan must dive down to more than once), to a 1963 Chris Craft waiting to be resurrected in Uncle Bix's backyard. the dock is a daily test of caution and courage and the revelations surrounding Uncle Bix's past are revealed one patient step at a time. Stuff happens in this book, it is just not what you would expect.this is a quiet book about a boy searching for truth and lurching ahead into that mysterious world of manhood. It is all about asking questions and coming to conclusions and realizing that it doesn't hurt to face a bully when you have a big Crescent wrench in your hand. the book has adventurous moments and a mystery whose solution carries grave consequences.
It is the story of twelve year old Donovan Sanger and his summer in Pudget Sound with his aunt and uncle. Donovan is there because his Aunt Hattie is very ill and although his family is concerned, old arguments and disappointments lie between his father and Uncle Bix preventing a more direct adult involvement.Donovan wants to know more about Uncle Bix, and why he went to prison so many years before.The plot includes a sunken pleasure boat with a salvageable motor (that Donovan must dive down to more than once), to a 1963 Chris Craft waiting to be resurrected in Uncle Bix's backyard. the dock is a daily test of caution and courage and the revelations surrounding Uncle Bix's past are revealed one patient step at a time. Stuff happens in this book, it is just not what you would expect.this is a quiet book about a boy searching for truth and lurching ahead into that mysterious world of manhood. It is all about asking questions and coming to conclusions and realizing that it doesn't hurt to face a bully when you have a big Crescent wrench in your hand. the book has adventurous moments and a mystery whose solution carries grave consequences.
