The Hunter's Heart [Hardcover]

Grade 7-10-Life in Arkansas changes suddenly for Benjy as he finishes high school and inherits his grandfather's farm. His initial thrill at independence is jolted by the frightening enormity of his new responsibilities, and the adult world, to which he turns for wisdom, reveals its frailties. He learns some disturbing things about his father, grandfather, and trusted friend Coot. He watches helplessly as loggers threaten to destroy the forest and empathizes with displaced Native Americans. Then Sara appears, searching for her lost father, who Benjy soon realizes must be Coot. Although his initial resolve to reunite father and daughter and win Sara's affections is dampened by serious resistance, he eventually triumphs. Benjy's lackluster earnestness makes the early chapters of this book drag. But Sara's arrival brings touches of mystery and romance that compel readers to continue on. Even Rhodes's writing style seems to become more inspired as Benjy's own emotional conflicts are resolved through wisdom gained from observing the real life dramas of the people he loves. Ornery but wise, Coot is the most interesting character, while the rest are serviceable but flat. Nevertheless, the author's philosophy comes through clearly without being overbearing, and the imagery of her language improves as the story progresses, bringing it to a beautifully expressed and satisfying conclusion. Sensitive teens willing to persevere through a slow start will find their efforts rewarded.
Margaret Cole, Oceanside Library, NY
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Gr. 7-10. Fans of The King Boy (1991), Rhodes' first book about Benjy King, will not be disappointed in this sequel, which takes place two years later. Having graduated from high school, 18-year-old Benjy is working the farm he inherited after his grandfather's death. Many changes have occurred in his small Arkansas town. Loggers have clear-cut most of the forests; his father, who works for a logging company, is seldom home; it's difficult to find workers to help on the farm; and Benjy's friend Coot Hunter is talking about leaving because it's only a matter of time before the old way of life is gone. Growing up is more complicated than Benjy reckoned. Then Benjy meets Wolf, a Native American trying to preserve the old ways, who teaches Benjy about making a difference. He also meets Sara, who is searching for her father who disappeared years before. In his determination to help Sara, Benjy puts his friendship with Coot to the test. Rhodes writes with a down-home charm that is just right for this story of loss, forgiveness, and healing. Chris Sherman

Another old man's tragic past comes to light in a flimsy thematic reprise of The King Boy (1991). Two years after his abusive grandfather's death, Benjy is struggling to keep his Arkansas farm going. Ready to quit, he calls on gray-bearded friend Coot Hunter, who introduces him to Wolf, Doe, and Little Hawk, First Americans living as far from ``civilization'' as they can get. Heartened because at least no one can take away his home, Benjy returns to the farm. Enter Sara Brown, searching for her long-lost father; Benjy conveniently finds a telling photo and extracts from Coot a sad tale of a young mother who killed herself, a drunken father, and self-righteous relatives who beat him nearly to death and took his baby girl. A tearful reunion ensues. Along with a plot punctuated with extraneous incidents, and characters who speak in colorful similes and vague platitudes, the portrayals of Wolf (painted face and stilted speech) and Doe (whose only apparent purpose here is to die in childbirth because Wolf refuses to summon a doctor) are insensitive at best. An abrupt shift from Benjy's story to Sara's and Hunter's roils the ending. Altogether, an awkward, rough-hewn construct. (Fiction. 11-13) -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Alone on the farm left to him by his grandfather, eighteen-year-old Benjy King faces some adult challenges, among them the despair of his mysterious friend, Coot Hunter, and the worrisome ways of the native American Wolf.