The Way to Stay in Destiny

October 27, 2014
It’s May 1974, and Theo M. Thomas is begrudgingly taken in by his gruff Uncle Raymond, a Vietnam vet, and brought from Kentucky to the small town of Destiny, Fla., on the Gulf Coast (Theo’s parents died when he was young, and his grandparents can no longer care for him). They move into Miss Sister Grandersole’s Rest Easy Rooming House and Dance Academy, where Theo is saddled with chores and ordered around by his uncle, who wants little to do with him. Theo isn’t looking forward to starting sixth grade at a new school until he meets the mayor’s daughter, Anabel, who shares his love of baseball. Miss Sister encourages Theo to use his talent for playing the piano at the academy’s recital, but just when Theo feels that his destiny is at his fingertips, Uncle Raymond threatens to uproot him again. With an eye and ear for period details and dialogue, Scattergood (Glory Be) builds a cast of memorable, realistically flawed characters in an affecting story about holding on to one’s dreams. Ages 8–12. Agent: Linda Pratt, Wernick & Pratt.

Thelonious Monk Thomas is boy with troubles to spare. His parents are dead, the family farm in Kentucky has been sold, and he's headed for Destiny, Florida, with a mean uncle he barely knows. However, when Theo discovers the piano at Miss Sister's rooming house and makes friends with Annabelle, Destiny gains appeal. Soft-spoken Michael Crouch is masterful at creating character voices, even differentiating accents between the transplanted Kentuckians and the native Floridians. His likable Theo and kindly Miss Sister contrast sharply with the brooding and taciturn Uncle Raymond. Without the visual cue of quotation marks, it's initially difficult to discern between Theo's many unvoiced thoughts and his spoken words, but this is a minor complaint in an otherwise strong production. Don't skip the author's afterword. L.T. © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine

May 1, 2015

Gr 4-6-Theo is a sixth grader who was raised by his grandparents but displaced when their Kentucky farm was sold after his grandmother's death. As the story begins, Theo is traveling with an unfamiliar uncle en route to a new life in Destiny, Florida. Theo's fear of being the new kid in a new place feels authentic, but are unfounded. Instead, he finds beaches, a baseball mystery, and a glorious piano owned by Miss Sister, proprietor of the rooming house where he and his disgruntled Uncle Raymond rent a room. Michael Crouch's narration lilts with the rhythm of the South, which immerses listeners in the hot Florida sunshine of Theo's new world. Some of the metaphors are a stretch, however: when asked to play piano for dance students, Theo thinks, "I thought I'd have more time to practice before being thrown to those leotarded wolves." And though the story seems simple and straightforward, things become complicated as relationships often do. Listeners will be pleased with the resolution, which, while not exactly a happy ending, finds Theo and his uncle managing to tentatively become a family. An author's note adds value by putting the struggle of returning Vietnam vets, such as Uncle Raymond, into context. VERDICT Recommended for those who enjoy recent historical fiction.-Toby Rajput, National Louis University, Skokie, IL

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