Picture Perfect

August 4, 2003
Alphin (Counterfeit Son; Simon Says) again explores the psychological ramifications of physical and emotional abuse in this taut suspense novel set in the small town of Sawville. The narrator, 14-year-old Ian Slater, lives under the thumb of his father (one of the punishments he devises for Ian is making the teen sleep in the family closet), who is also the local school's principal. Ian has two ways to escape his pain. One is retreating to the redwood forest outside of town to pursue his photography, a passionate interest he shares with his best friend, Teddy Camden. The other is to "zone out": "It's kind of like disappearing into a fog—sometimes I can sort of see things through the fog, but most of the time I don't have any idea what's happening," he explains to a kind classmate. When Teddy disappears, and Ian cannot remember anything that happened that day, he becomes the local sheriff's main suspect. Ian uncovers not just his father's surprising role in Teddy's disappearance, but his own coping mechanism: the development of multiple personalities. Ian's father may be a stock character, but Ian is fully formed. Unlike the narrator of Counterfeit Son, who gained a true understanding of himself only at the conclusion, Ian's process is gradual, as he slowly recovers his memory, making his story a compelling journey of self-discovery and self-protection. Ages 12-18.

October 1, 2003
Gr 9 Up-Ian's friend is missing, and no one knows what happened to him. Or do they? As Ian searches for clues, snatches of a forest glen and Teddy pleading for help keep creeping into his mind. On top of that, Ian's father, the school principal, has been putting extra pressure on his son to be perfect. The protagonist's three "personalities," School-Ian, Home-Ian, and Failure-Ian, all try to work together to do what is expected, but sometimes the expectations are too great and Ian "zones out." As he struggles to remember what he may have seen the day Teddy disappeared, he begins to understand what happened, what he is repressing, and what role his violent father played in his friend's disappearance. Once again, Alphin uses child abuse and the machinations of the mind to create her story, but this time it falls short of believability. While the setting is perfect and Ian's character is well developed, readers are likely to be puzzled by the initially unexplained voice Ian hears in his head. Also, some of Teddy's journal writing is obviously forced to advance the plot and may not ring true for teen readers. Because of the complexities of the relationships, reluctant readers will struggle, but better readers searching for a "male-oriented" mystery may be satisfied.-Lynn Evarts, Sauk Prairie High School, Prairie du Sac, WI

Copyright 2003 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2003
Gr. 6-9. Ian Slater, the principal's son, has many secrets. One is the hideout he and his best friend, Teddy, have created in an abandoned motel in the redwood forest surrounding their small northern California town. Here the boys take photos, read photography magazines, and keep secret journals. Yet, as close as the kids seem to be, they keep secrets from one another: Ian has an abusive father; Teddy is searching for the father he's never met. After Teddy fails to go home one day, Ian becomes a suspect in the disappearance. Told through Ian's first-person narrative, this psychological thriller has many twists and turns, incorporating multiple personalities, name games, and paternity riddles. Readers will relish following Teddy's trail of digital photographs and anticipating Ian's triumph.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2003, American Library Association.)