For last month's audible.com credit, I downloaded Summerland by Michael Chabon. I'd had it in my wish list for a while, and it finally came its turn after I finished the Dark is Rising series.
Hmm, how to describe Summerland... it's about a boy, Ethan, his friend Jennifer T. and how they save the world whilst playing baseball. This story is intertwined with elements of American folklore such as fairies (which are similar to those found in faerie), giants, Sasquatches, were-foxes and Coyote. Oh, and don't forget the Cuban baseball star!
I did worry if I would like it, for after all, the main activity participated in by the protagonists was baseball; oft times major developments resulted from baseball. I knew that I was enjoying the book when I began to wonder what was going to happen. Okay, not to spoil the story and all, but I had deduced that it was going to end happily, but how? How was that possible with the odds so against them?
Overall, yes, I did enjoy the book. There were a few cheap tricks in the plot line, but they were forgivable. I haven't devised a rating system, and I really don't know to which other books it is comparable to, other than Rip Van Winkle and other American folk tales.
Final verdict: read worthy material, especially if you like the folk myth of America. He does a good job of integrating the characters in a believable manner.
For the mums: there are a few instances of swearing, but nothing horribly vulgar. One instance of descriptive nudity and at least one passage of potty humor that I can remember.
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