The Madman of Piney Woods

July 7, 2014
In 1901, Benji Alston lives in Buxton, Ont., a real-life town settled by abolitionists and runaway slaves (and the setting of Curtis’s Newbery Honor–winning Elijah of Buxton). Alvin “Red” Stockard, son of an Irish immigrant and a local judge, resides in nearby Chatham. The woods of the title connect the two towns, and both boys have grown up hearing cautionary tall tales about a wild boogeyman who lives there. Writing in his customary episodic style, Curtis relates their separate stories in alternating chapters, incorporating a large cast, his trademark humor and gritty hijinks, and the historical events that shaped the people and the area: slavery, the U.S. Civil War, and Irish immigration. It takes more than half the book for the boys—both 13—and their stories to connect, which may try the patience of some readers. Those who persist, though, will be rewarded with an update on what became of Elijah, the hero of the first book, as Curtis delivers an ending that ties together the two stories, set 40 years apart, in a poignant and powerful way. Ages 8–12.

Starred review from July 1, 2014
Forty years after Elijah Freeman's exploits in Elijah of Buxton (2007), 13-year-olds Benji Alston and Red Stockard become friends as Curtis revisits Buxton, Ontario, in a fine companion novel.Benji and Red don't meet for 200 pages, their separate lives in 1901 related in alternating first-person narratives. Benji, an African-Canadian boy in Buxton, and Red, a white boy of Irish descent living in nearby Chatham, have fairly ordinary and free lives. Benji dreams of becoming the best newspaperman in North America; Red mostly wants to survive his crazy Grandmother O'Toole. Echoes of history underlie the tale: Benji lives in a community settled by former slaves; Red is the grandson of a woman haunted by the Irish Potato Famine and the horrors of coffin ships on the St. Lawrence River. Both boys know the legend of a mysterious creature in the woods, called the Madman of Piney Woods by Benji, the South Woods Lion Man by Red. And, indeed, this "madman" and his woods ultimately tie the whole story together in a poignant and life-affirming manner. Humor and tragedy are often intertwined, and readers will find themselves sobbing and chuckling, sometimes in the same scene. Though this story stands alone, it will be even more satisfying for those who have read Elijah of Buxton.Beautiful storytelling as only Curtis can do it. (author's note) (Historical fiction. 9-13)

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August 1, 2014

Gr 4-6-This companion novel to Elijah of Buxton(Scholastic, 2007), set 40 years after its conclusion, is a powerful testimony to the joys of friendship and the cost of unresolved hatred. The lingering effects of prejudice and unbelievable hardship weigh heavily in the lives of Benji, the descendant of American slaves, and Red, the grandson of an Irish immigrant to Canada. A chance meeting at a forensics competition brings these two different boys together; their initial conversation, in which they talk about their physical differences, is awkwardly charming and sincere. Although their communities are different, they have both grown up with the legend of a crazed former slave, a hermit called "The Madman of Piney Woods." Their friendship is complicated by the fact that Red's grandmother is extremely racist and fearful. The strong father-son relationship between Red and his father is tenderly and honestly created. Relationships between family and friends are realistically complicated, changing, and complex. The horror of Ireland's potato famine, the "coffin ships" that carried Grandmother O'Toole to Canada, and the prejudice faced by Irish-Canadians are brutally brought to life, as is the constant tension felt by the few remaining original settlers of Buxton. Although occasionally somber and heartbreaking, there is great humor, hope, and adventure from Benji and Red. The conclusion may be less powerful if readers are not familiar with Elijah, but it is stunning nonetheless. An author's note on the inspiration and creation of the story is included.-Jennifer Schultz, Fauquier County Public Library, Warrenton, VA

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Starred review from July 1, 2014
Grades 5-8 *Starred Review* The year is 1901 in this companion volume to Curtis' Newbery Honor winner Elijah of Buxton (2007). The coprotagonists are African Canadian Benji of Buxton and Irish Canadian Red of nearby Chatham. Each brief chapter alternates between the two as readers learn that Benji longs to be a journalist, and Red, a scientist. At first, they seem to have little in common except their respective encounters with a strange, frightening hermit known to Benji as the Madman of Piney Woods and known to Red as the South Woods Lion Man. Call him what you will, he becomes a large presence in the book when the two boys finally meet almost 200 pages into the story and quickly become fast friends. Another large presence is Red's termagant grandmother, who despises black Canadians and from whom Red keeps his new friendship with Benji a secret. The grandmother is a vehicle for Curtis to examine the terrible experiences of early Irish immigrants to Canada, experiences that are not unlike those of blacks in America. Though sometimes overly discursive, the novel is otherwise a delight, featuring the author's obvious love for his characters, his skillful use of sentiment, and his often hyperbolic humorBenji's laboring to reconstruct his younger siblings' tree house upside down (you have to be there) is priceless. It is, in short, quintessential Curtis, sure to please his legions of fans and to cultivate new ones.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)