Rebel's Tag

November 1, 2007
Gr 6-8-Sam Connor, 14, can barely remember his grandfather. When his father died 10 years earlier, the once-loving and involved man simply walked away from the grave site, severing contact with Sam and his mother. Now, however, the teen has received a letter from him, seeking reconciliation and sending him on a somewhat mystical scavenger hunt for symbolic itemsa cradle, an antique watchthat will rebuild their connection. Sam deals with this strange new development and his ambivalent feelings about forgiving his grandfather in the rather idiosyncratic way he's come to cope with stress: sitting on the roofs of neighborhood buildings with his friend Indira and leaving behind his "tag," a small spray-painted symbol of the planet Uranus. Add Sumerian proverbs to the totemic heirlooms and the astrological import of the tag and Denman's symbolism tends toward the esoteric and heavy-handed. Much of the action seems as if it would strain both the credulity and patience of struggling and reluctant middle school readers toward whom the book is aimed. Character development is also a weak point; Sam's grandfather remains a dim and distant figure throughout, and even the teen himself is never fully fleshed out."Meredith Robbins, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis High School, New York City"

Copyright 2007 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.