Revolver by Marcus Sedgwick

Argh! The selection of my favorite book for the Mock Printz Workshop was just made more difficult by the reading of this excellent book, Revolver by Marcus Sedgwick.

A boy sits in a cold, bare shack somewhere north of the Arctic Circle, alone but for his father's body lying on a table, frozen both by rigor mortis and the manner of his death. The boy's older sister and stepmother have gone for help. And then there is a knock on the door: outside is a giant of a man asking for the boy's father.


This is as stark a beginning as you can imagine. And it gets worse. The giant is convinced that the dead man has stolen his gold. He isn't going to leave without it – and he has a gun. But so in a way does Sig, the boy. -Mary Hoffman for The Guardian.co.uk

Revolver  is a very short book, just 200 pages. It can be read in one sitting, which is good because it is so taut and tense I never wanted to put it down.  Every word in this psychological thriller seems necessary and purposeful.  It's opening line sets the stage for the tension that follows: "Even the dead tell stories." Sig must discover what his dead father has to tell him in order to survive himself.

Several reviewers say that this is a coming-of-age story.  I don't disagree though I think of it more as a survival story and so much more. When asked by students what the book is about I tell them it is about a revolver, a gun, which plays as important role in the book as any other character. Obviously the title, Revolver, will attract male readers, which I'm always looking for, but I think it will have general appeal to all readers, including adults.Whether this book wins a Printz Award or not in January, I will be purchasing additional copies to place on my Nifty-Fifty Book Cart. I hope by doing this as many students as possible read this book.  You should, too!