Teen Fiction

River Boy

Name: River Boy
Author: Tim Bowler
ISBN: 9780689848049

by Tim Bowler

Available on Bookshop Write a review

Books.org participates in affiliate programs including Bookshop.org and the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. We may earn a commission from qualifying purchases made through links on this page, at no additional cost to you.

Overview

Fifteen-year-old Jess's grandfather has just had a major heart attack, but he insists he finish his painting, River Boy. At first, Jess cannot understand why this painting is so important to her grandfather, especially since there doesn't seem to be any boy in it at all. But while swimming in the river herself, Jess begins to feel the presence of a strange boy. Could this be the same one her ailing grandfather struggles to paint? And if so, why has he returned?

Knowing that he is dying, Jess's grandfather insists on returning to the river he had known as a boy to finish a special painting and fulfill a life-long dream.

Synopsis

Tim Bowler's gripping narrative flows like a river itself -- gentle and calm at times, turbulent and deep at others, always fluid, always alive. Readers will be swept along by the magic of the river and the mysterious river boy -- and changed forever by Jess's unforgettable journey.

Publishers Weekly

Jess is 15 years old, the same age as her grandfather was when he lost both parents in a fire and moved away from his childhood home by the river. Now growing frail, his last wish is to return to the river and finish his last painting, entitled River Boy. Grandpa calls Jess his muse; she counts on him to cheer her on at her swim meets. As they commence their vacation, the unfinished painting troubles Jess, more so as she begins to sense a mysterious presence on the river. Then she begins to see the river boy himself, waiting for her, asking for her assistance in a special mission. The narrative builds too slowly, and some of the passages seem out of character or overblown (e.g., a few times Jess's parents mention that they feel they're neglecting her; Jess tells the river boy, "Stay a mystery a little longer. I can't take any more truth right now"). However, Bowler's (The Midget) 1998 Carnegie Medal winner succeeds in conveying the strong bond between Jess and her grandfather; as the novel unfolds, she realizes they have more in common than she'd ever imagined. Ages 12-up. (June) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.|

About the Author, Tim Bowler

Tim Bowler has written seven novels for teenagers and is one of the most prominent authors currently writing for this age group. His first novel, Midget, established him as a thrilling new voice in young adult literature. His third novel, River Boy, won the prestigious Carnegie Medal, and his books have also won numerous other prizes. His most recent novels are Storm Catchers and the highly acclaimed Firmament.

Mr. Bowler lives with his wife in Devon, England, and is a full-time writer.

Reviews

There are no reviews yet. Log in to write one.

Editorials

Publishers Weekly

It is the last wish of 15-year-old Jess's grandfather to return to his childhood home by the river. "Bowler's 1998 Carnegie Medal winner succeeds in conveying the strong bond between Jess and her grandfather; as the novel unfolds, the heroine realizes they have more in common than she'd ever imagined," said PW. Ages 12-up. (Jan.)n Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Children's Literature

When fifteen-year-old Jess's Grandpa has a heart attack, she and her parents agree to take him to his childhood home. His health continues to deteriorate as he pushes to finish a painting he entitled River Boy. Meanwhile, avid swimmer Jess has explored the nearby river and has seen an elusive and enigmatic boy who invites her to swim to the sea. These seemingly disparate happenings come together in an ethereal way. The rapport between Jess and Grandpa is key to her ability to sense the boyhood spirit of her grandfather, and is well-crafted. Not so the tension between Jess's father and grandfather which is never explained. Bowler has poignantly written about death and its impact on the dying as well as those continuing on. This introspective and quiet story dealing with relationships and lost opportunities will appeal to a mature reader. 2000, Margaret K. McElderry Books/Simon & Schuster, Ages 10 to 14, $16.00. Reviewer: Sharon Salluzzo

VOYA - Voya Reviews

Winner of the United Kingdom's Carnegie Medal, this fascinating novel is the subtle tale of teenaged Jess, who comes to terms with the illness and eventual death of her beloved grandfather. It is also the tale of her grandfather, an irascible painter who claims Jess as his muse, and of his acceptance of his own mortality. Shortly after her grandfather experiences a near-fatal heart attack, Jess's family takes him on a vacation to the remote river where he grew up. There Grandfather tries to finish a final painting called River Boy, which seems to have no boy in it. Meanwhile Jess, an avid swimmer, takes to the river, tracing it to its source, where she meets a strange youth in swim trunks. He talks enigmatically of the river as a living thing that ends as it reaches the sea. Eventually Jess follows the boy down the length of the river, swimming nearly forty miles. The reader is left to decide whether the boy, who with the river is an obvious metaphor for life, is real or fantasy. This beautifully-written book places the reader in a difficult period in anyone's life, that of being first faced with the death of a loved one. At the same time, it feels like a written painting, a descriptive, emotive work that will mean something different to each reader. This mystical story is a true work of literature that is recommended for all libraries. VOYA CODES: 5Q 4P M J S (Hard to imagine it being any better written; Broad general YA appeal; Middle School, defined as grades 6 to 8; Junior High, defined as grades 7 to 9; Senior High, defined as grades 10 to 12). 2000, Simon & Schuster, Ages 12 to 18, 160p, $16. Reviewer: Beth Karpas

KLIATT

To quote KLIATT's July 2000 review of the hardcover edition: Jess, age 15, loves her artist grandfather, although he is cantankerous and stubborn. When he suffers a heart attack, he insists on traveling as planned with Jess and her parents back to the area he grew up in, to a place by the river so that he can finish his painting called "River Boy." The painting mystifies the family, who see the river but no boy depicted. Then Jess, who loves to swim, starts to catch glimpses of a real boy in the river. As her grandfather weakens, and becomes frustrated by his inability to finish this painting that means so much to him, the river boy suggests to Jess that she help him complete it—and that she accompany him on a swim the length of the river, from its source to the sea. Jess takes the river boy up on both ideas, and the marathon swim helps her come to terms with her grandfather's death. She comes to understand that the river boy is somehow Grandpa's spirit, and she is happy to have helped her grandfather fulfill his dreams. This well-written British novel effectively uses the river as a symbol of the course of life, and movingly portrays the love between granddaughter and grandfather. It won England's Carnegie Medal in 1998. I wish the cover were more appealing though; the river boy looks too young to appeal to YAs, unfortunately. Category: Paperback Fiction. KLIATT Codes: JS—Recommended for junior and senior high school students. 1997, Simon & Schuster, Simon Pulse, 234p., $4.99. Ages 13 to 18. Reviewer: Paula Rohrlick; KLIATT SOURCE: KLIATT, March 2002 (Vol. 36, No. 2)

School Library Journal

Gr 6-9-Jess is a competitive swimmer and her grandfather is a professional artist. Kindred spirits, they share an admiration and sensitivity for one another's talents. After a heart attack, his patriarchal power over the family becomes ever more imposing. He insists that Jess's parents take him from the hospital and journey to his boyhood home, and they are no match for his determined and willful temperament. Coupled with the reality of his dwindling health is an underlying ripple of tension between Grandpa and Dad. At the isolated cottage, Jess is drawn to the river that Grandpa wants so passionately to capture on canvas. He wrestles with his art as ardently as he wrestles for his life. While he paints, Jess explores the river, always with the sense that someone else is nearby. She discovers the "river boy" and learns of his goal: to swim the river from "source to ocean." As Grandpa's time runs down, this haunting river boy reaches toward Jess, pushing her to stretch herself and swim with him. River Boy is about the embodiment of hope, the circle of life, and an artist's spiritual quest. Its premise is creative and deeply tender. In the end, Dad has some resolution to the vague conflict between him and his father. Readers never learn what that was and, consequently, are left feeling as though a piece of the story is missing. Bowler's lyrical metaphors and fluid writing style are disrupted by this void.-Alison Follos, North Country School, Lake Placid, NY Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews

Jess's grandfather, a noted painter, has suffered a heart attack. Grandpa insists his family carry on with plans to take him to his remote childhood home, obsessed as he is with finishing a painting titled "River Boy" in which there seems to be no "boy." Arriving at their vacation rental on the river, Jess begins to feel the presence of, and soon sees, a mysterious boy she calls the River Boy. Says the enigmatic young man, "If your grandpa died fulfilled, would you bear his loss better?" He then advises Jess to help finish the painting by being Grandpa's hands. The River Boy himself needs Jess's help. He wants to swim the river from source to sea and, fearful of swimming alone, wants Jess to swim with him. As the River Boy materializes from mere presence to actual boy, Grandfather fades. Then, the painting finished, he dies. The journey to the sea completed, the River Boy also vanishes at the moment of Grandpa's death. While the writing is quietly poetic, the theme universal, and the metaphor of the river that flows from source to sea apt (if not entirely fresh), the story does not compel. Thoughtful readers will easily predict that the elusive boy is Grandpa and that the death will be timed to coincide with the boy reaching the sea. Readers who do not, though, may tire of the repetitious family dithering over an old man who is tyrannical, emotionally remote, and self-absorbed. Sadly, his decline makes for reading more painful than engrossing. (1998 Carnegie Medal) (Fiction. 11-13)