Voyage of Midnight

January 1, 2007
Gr 6-9-A powerful, beautifully written tale about the evils of early-19th-century slavery. In 1818, orphaned Philip leaves Liverpool to find his uncle in New Orleans. Two years later, after living with a kindly couple and helping out in their chemist shop, he finds the man, who is a ship captain. After joining his uncle's crew, he realizes that the Captain is a slave trader who firmly believes that buying and selling human beings is part of the natural order of things. Philip, however, sees only brutality, especially after he is forced to brand a captured African. Before the ship ends its mission, illness and death have ravaged both the enslaved and the sailors. Torrey does a fine job of showing history through the eyes of a teenager who has to deal with something he knows is evil. The characterization is strong and believable, and Philip is a compelling hero. This gripping story provides readers not only with a vivid picture of a shameful past, but also with an understanding of its cruelty."Jane G. Connor, South Carolina State Library, Columbia"

Copyright 2007 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

December 15, 2006
English orphan Philip Higgins, 14, is delighted to learn that he has an American uncle who is a successful ship captain. After searching for several years, he finds his relative--and despite the good life he has had with kind foster parents, he accepts a position as surgeon's mate on his uncle's ship. Excitement soon turns to horror, however, when the ship heads to Africa to bring back slaves, and Philip witnesses his uncle's heartless, inhumane behavior toward human cargo. Then the crew and the slaves are stricken by ophthalmia, which causes blindness. Phillip alone regains sight, and he uses the opportunity to take the Africans home. The story works on multiple levels: as a suspenseful nautical adventure; a heart-wrenching account of the slave trade; and a coming-of-age story. Philip is a well-developed character whose powerful narrative (including some graphic descriptions), incorporates abundant historical detail, which Torrey explores further in an appended note. A glossary completes this engrossing, eye-opening historical novel, which examines one boy's response to a call for action.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2006, American Library Association.)