A Hidden Place - Robert Charles Wilson Book Review

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Review Summaries

" Orb, Sept 2002, 12.95, 2002 ISBN 0765302616 After his mother dies, Travis Fisher travels to the Midwest town of Haute Montagne to live with his Aunt Liza Burack and her husband Creath. It is the Great Depression and jobs are hard to come by so Travis works for Creath at his ice plant. The Baracks have a strange but beautiful boarder named Anna living in their attic and Travis is attracted to her even though she sleeps with Creath. Travis starts dating Nancy Wilcox who wants to help Anna escape from Creath. Anna begs Travis to take Anna to a safe place before she starts changing. With Nancy's help he succeeds, but also glimpses Anna in her other form and knows she is not human. He leaves and Nancy watches over Anna until she completes the change. Anna is also waiting for her other half before she can return to her home world, but Haute Montagne is on the verge of exploding and Travis, Nancy, Anna and her other half could get caught in the middle of vigilante justice. A HIDDEN PLACE is a fascinating work of fantasy starring two misfits who see themselves through an alien's myopic eyes. Nancy's easy acceptance of Anna's origins and Travis's rejection of her is a reflection of the lives they lived up to this point. Anna is a complex character who can see the beauty in humanity, which is the reason Nancy is so willing to help her. Travis is also a complicated person running from a past he can't accept and a future he doesn't believe in unless he makes peace with the mother he both loved and hated. Harriet Klausner

Crested sapwood supportable noradrenaline runout. "
Harriet Klausner, Resident Robert Charter Wilson Scholar

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Overall Review

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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot

Composition of Book
Descript. of chases or violence - 10%
planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 10%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 70%
Descript. of society, phenomena (tech), places - 10%

Tone of book - suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
FANTASY or SCIENCE FICTION? - fantasy story on current Earth
Romance Yes
Inner Struggle Yes
Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book
Cultural problems, alien culture Yes
Culture clash- - feelings as an alien growing up among humans

Main Character
Identity: - Female
Profession/status: - champion of justice
Age: - a teen
How sensitive is this character? - sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters
Physique - very athletic

Main Adversary
Identity: - an organization

Setting
Earth setting: - 20th century
Takes place on Earth? Yes

Style
Person? - mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death? - generic/vague references to death/punishment
How much dialogue? - significantly more dialog than descript

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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s).

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