NIGHT OF THE MOONBOW, THE

Rating:
Summary: NIGHT OF THE MOONBOW -- MAKE IT INTO A MOVIE
Review: I am suprised Night of the Moonbow was never made into a feature length film.

It would have been good.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I missed Moonbow when it was published and so recently sat down with considerable excitement to reconnect with one of my favorite authors. What a disappointment! While I see the bones of a good story here, he's watered it down so heavily with cardboard characters and predictable plotlines, not to mention scenery chewing melodrama and a saccharine ending that simply had me shaking my head.

He does do some interesting things with characterization; I especially liked his nod to the pre-war Hitler sympathizers, a piece of American history that is generally swept under the carpet. And he does do an admirable job capturing what life in a summer camp is like, and the dynamics of young boys. I also enjoyed the way he gradually stripped away the facades of the so-called heros of the camp. The main character, Leo, is particularly well done.

But in the end, the story itself has no guts, no tension. The build up about the moonbow is over done and in the end, inconsequential. It takes too long to get to the denouement and it is not worth the effort when you do.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I missed Moonbow when it was published and so recently sat down with considerable excitement to reconnect with one of my favorite authors. What a disappointment! While I see the bones of a good story here, he's watered it down so heavily with cardboard characters and predictable plotlines, not to mention scenery chewing melodrama and a saccharine ending that simply had me shaking my head.

He does do some interesting things with characterization; I especially liked his nod to the pre-war Hitler sympathizers, a piece of American history that is generally swept under the carpet. And he does do an admirable job capturing what life in a summer camp is like, and the dynamics of young boys. I also enjoyed the way he gradually stripped away the facades of the so-called heros of the camp. The main character, Leo, is particularly well done.

But in the end, the story itself has no guts, no tension. The build up about the moonbow is over done and in the end, inconsequential. It takes too long to get to the denouement and it is not worth the effort when you do.

Rating:
Summary: twists and turns
Review: Once I started reading this novel I really began to notice just how narrow-minded and ignorant people are. A lonely orphan boy comes to a boys camp(Bible camp full of good Christians no less)and is befriended by his cabin mates. After a series of unintentional screw-ups by the main character, Leo, he is branded as a jonah and is constantly harrassed by the other boys. They play mind games with him, unaware of his hidden past. No matter what he does he cannot be accepted into their society. Even the Reverand shuns him. This book takes on a lot of little twist and turns that surprised me along the way. Especially the ending which was pretty darn nifty. I highly reccommend this book to fans of pyscological suspense novels along with people who are just looking for a good book to read.