Hal

Krystyna J. Higgins is the book review editor of the Toronto-based
Catholic New Times.

Halford Drucker has spent 10 of his 17 years living in a residential
school for the blind. Sent home because of his disruptive behavior, he
now faces the challenges of adjusting to a new school and a new
lifestyle. His task is complicated by his overprotective parents and
guilt-ridden younger brother, but most of all by his own inability to
accept help from anyone. Befriended by a determined young woman, he
overcomes some daunting hurdles and learns to distinguish between
independence and isolation.

There is much here that will readily appeal to the young teen reader: a
fast-paced story line, plenty of peer and intergenerational conflict, a
love interest, and a hair-raising climax. Somewhat problematic is the
character of Hal, who narrates the story in the first person. The tone
and language of this teenage “voice” do not always convince. On at
least one occasion, too, Blakeslee’s blind protagonist comments on a
detail he could not possibly have observed. These slips aside, the book
has enough momentum to “hook” even a reluctant adolescent reader.
Recommended with reservations.