From Publishers Weekly
In this futuristic fable, almost a generation has passed since the Apocalypse poisoned the Mississippi River and destroyed a united society. On board the restored paddleboat River Rat , Tomcat and his friends travel up and down the polluted waters, bartering news, mail and music for fuel and food. Orphans all, these children escaped school, slavery and other assorted evils and now enjoy a free and easy life on the river. They don't take passengers but, encountering a man hunted by a group of rednecks, find themselves changing their rules and getting into big trouble. The rednecks commandeer the ship, and the children set off in search of the most frightening treasure of their time--firearms. Calling to mind such widely disparate writers as Mark Twain, Andre Norton and Peter Dickinson, Stevermer ( The Serpent's Egg ) paints a realistic ruin of society. In the tradition of good speculative fiction she offers up an appealing landscape for adventure, yet her unwavering interest in the individuals who live there distinguishes the novel from mere space opera. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an alternate
Hardcover
edition.
From School Library Journal
Grade 7-12-- Some years after the ``Flash'' (a global disaster caused by a bomb, germ warfare, or chemical weapons) transforms the Mississippi into a polluted, ravaged wasteland lined by violent families and outcast tribes of homeless boys, six teenage orphans restore an old paddle wheel steamboat and ride up and down the river hauling freight, delivering mail, and putting on impromptu rock concerts in return for food and clothing. The River Rats, as they call themselves, break their vow never to take on passengers when they save a man named King who is fleeing from the unsavory Lester family. King tells them that the Lesters are after him because he knows where a cache of guns is hidden. Forced ashore by the family, the River Rats find that King had actually been hiding something even more valuable than guns--water and other survival gear. Narrated by Tomcat, one of the River Rats, the story moves quickly, although readers may want more detail about the origin of the disaster and the society that evolves from it. Tomcat's observations are sharp, providing a rounded view of the other characters. But the upbeat ending, although appealing to young readers' values of justice, sugarcoats the dismal future this crew faces. --Jack Forman, Mesa College Library, San Diego
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an alternate
Hardcover
edition.
