Product Description

For ten years, 15-year-old Walker Morgan has lived in the small and isolated town of Red Cedar, Oklahoma, where his parents have run an antique store. The three of them, as members of the Soldiers of God, have participated in weekend war games, gone to bible study, received training in wilderness survival skills, and participated in all the activities that are part of the life of their community. But something is different about Walker's family. His parents speak differently at home than with their friends, and they read a lot. And there are no photo albums, scrapbooks, or other evidence of extended family members, no mementos from a previous time. Shortly after Walker's father reveals that he is investigating the activities of the Soldiers of God for the FBI, Walker's mother is killed by members of the militia. With his mother gone and his father's fate uncertain, Walker begins the fight for his survival in rough physical and psychological terrain.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1847417 in Books
• Published on: 2005-12-10
• Original language: English
• Dimensions: .52" h x 6.36" w x 8.50" l, .46 pounds
• Binding: Paperback
• 161 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Gilbert (Stone Water; Broken Chords) stresses the destructive forces of paramilitary groups in this chilling survival tale of a boy playing a game of cat and mouse within an antigovernment camp. In the heart-stopping opening scene, the 15-year-old protagonist (who remains nameless until the end of the novel) witnesses the murders of first his pet dog and then his mother. As the boy fades in and out of consciousness in his hiding place inside a hollow log, the narrative takes a surreal turn, mixing in hallucinations and fragments of boyhood memories, alternating with excerpts from newspapers documenting real-life paramilitary groups. Through a flashback, readers discover that the protagonist has recently learned that his parents are not what they seem. Far from being a devout follower of the Reverend GeneralAleader of the "Soldiers of God"Ahis father is an FBI agent working undercover, presumably with his mother's full knowledge. But even before the boy has had a chance to sort out his confusion, his whole family is under attack, and readers never get a sense of the boy's own allegiances. Those anxiously waiting to learn the boy's fate will be jolted by the shocking turn of events after he finally awakens. This complex montage of images and dialogue may well prompt discussions about truth and deception, but readers may experience the same sense of betrayal by the author's trickery that the boy feels as a consequence of his father's lies. Ages 12-up. (May)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal
Grade 5-8-Walker's father is a deep-undercover mole who has infiltrated a fanatical right-wing militia for the FBI, taking his family along in order to provide even more convincing cover. The novel begins with Walker and his parents fleeing from the soldiers after his father's cover has been blown. Chapters giving a third-person account of the 15-year-old's attempted escape from the militia are intermixed with his first-person account of his life in the compound as a younger boy. These chapters are spliced with a page or two of "scraps," consisting of quotes and news accounts about the militia movement. This ambitious narrative technique doesn't quite work, however. At the novel's end, all these lines come together fairly well; but many readers are likely to be confused along the way. This is unfortunate because individual chapters are often exciting, written with a vividness that has the potential to keep young adventure fans on the edge of their seats.
Todd Morning, Schaumburg Township Public Library, IL
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author
Barbara Snow Gilbert is an attorney, mediator, and writer. She is a member of the mediation panel for the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma.