Synopses & Reviews
Review
'\"A flowing quest explores industrialization and personal magical talents through three likable characters...nice blend of introspection and action.\" KIRKUS'
Review
'\"The main characters make an entertaining trio, with different strengths, goals, and mindsets....[a] richly inventive...fast-paced fantasy adventure.\" BOOKLIST'
Review
'\"Whitlock has created fully realized characters....Carver\'s struggle to find his identity will ring true with adolescent readers.\" SLJ'
Review
"A flowing quest explores industrialization and personal magical talents through three likable characters...nice blend of introspection and action." KIRKUS Kirkus Reviews
"Whitlock's prose is smooth and lively, and his characters are well-defined." BCCB Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
"The main characters make an entertaining trio, with different strengths, goals, and mindsets....[a] richly inventive...fast-paced fantasy adventure." BOOKLIST Booklist, ALA
"Whitlock has created fully realized characters....Carver's struggle to find his identity will ring true with adolescent readers." SLJ School Library Journal
Synopsis
Thomas Painter was born with the wrong name. Though his father was a brilliant painter, Thomas couldnt be less of one. His talent is woodcarving. Yet because he lives in a place where ones name dictates his trade, he is forced to be a painters apprentice.
Destiny intervenes when a tree branch falls from the sky. For the branch, at least in Thomass hands, is a magic wand. Thomas renames himself Carver and sets off downriver in search of someone who can teach him to use the wand. Accompanied by Raven (the bemagicked girl who dropped the wand in the first place) and the bondservant Fireboy, Carver ventures into a world filled with wonders, some glorious, some terrible, and some beyond his imagining.
Masterful storytelling and appealing, memorable characters mark this journey into a magical, beautifully realized world readers wont soon forget.
About the Author
Dean Whitlock is the author of SKY CARVER and RAVEN as well as several science-fiction short stories for adults. He enjoys being on the water, building canoes (he's made two), and dreaming about sailing to exotic places. He lives in Thetford, Vermont, with his wife and their son.