The Navigator

November 13, 2006
McNamee (Resurrection Man
, for adults) makes his YA debut with an inventive time travel story. Owen lives in the shadow of a father who committed suicide, but readers barely get to meet the young hero before he encounters a tiny man who warns him, "It has begun... it is to be you." From there, Owen is whisked to the Workhouse, "the center of the Resisters to the Harsh and the frost of eternal solitude that they wish to loose upon the earth." He is taken in by these "custodians of time," who tell him about the Harsh—faceless creatures that "long for emptiness, for cold nothingness." To this end, the Harsh have begun the Puissance, which is causing time to run backwards. In order to defeat the Harsh, Owen and new friend Cati must find the Mortmain, a device of unknown shape and size that can destroy the Great Machine causing the Puissance. The Mortmain recalls Rowling's "portkey" concept—a magical artifact, hiding in plain sight as an everyday object, which may feel a bit derivative to some readers. But the ultimate discovery of that object and its keeper ties the book's ending to its beginning in satisfying fashion. McNamee's setting is certainly unique, and readers who relish the brain-teasing nature of time-travel stories will also relish this book and its planned sequels. Ages 9-12.

April 9, 2007
With a vocal performance that sounds both youthful and polished, Heyborne gamely takes on this spirited, swift-moving fantasy-adventure, the first children's book by Irish novelist McNamee. Though villagers whisper of suicide, Owen is not certain of how his father mysteriously died. He only knows that life without his father has been isolating and difficult, throwing his mother into a depression. While visiting the hillside hideaway that brings him some solace, Owen meets a tiny man (who occasionally sounds like Sean Connery); he foretells the boy's key role in the dangerous exploits to come. The encounter has placed Owen into a sort of time portal; he is soon recruited by the Resisters, those battling a group called the Harsh who have caused time to shift backwards in an effort to wipe out humanity. A plucky girl named Cati is along for the wild ride, which is likely to broaden the appeal of this recording. Though sorting out the logical intricacies of the plot can be a bit tricky, listeners who stick with it will be satisfied by this exciting yarn. Ages 10-up.