Red Kayak

"Each must make his life as flowing intumbling block or a stepping stonewhile common people like you and mewe'll be builders for eternityeach is given a bag of toolsa shapeless mass and the book of rules"-- Llewellyn/Morgan/Sibbles, "Book of Rules""From where we stood, you could see down the grassy slope behind our house, on past Dad's shop and the dock, to the creek. And out there, heading our way, was Mr. DiAngelo's new red kayak."Brady Parks is a hardworking thirteen-year-old son of a Chesapeake Bay waterman. He and his two longtime friends, Digger and J.T., are waiting for their ride to school one April morning when they see that red kayak go by in the distance."Cupping his hands around his mouth, Digger pretended to call out: 'Paddle hard, you sucker!'"He and J.T. exchanged this look I didn't quite catch, and J.T. started laughing, too."But I shook my head. 'He shouldn't be going out there today. When he gets down to the point--he'll fly down the river.' I was sure Mr. DiAngelo didn't know about how the wind picked up once you left our creek and hit the open water. Not to mention the spring tides. Sometimes they were so strong they'd suck the crab pot buoys under. I doubted whether Mr. DiAngelo knew that; he'd only had the kayak a few weeks." 'Really, guys. We ought to yell something,' I said soberly."Although he's quite fond of the man's wife and little boy, Ben, for whom he's baby-sat, Brady and his friends are not fans of Mr. Marcellus DiAngelo, who has bought Digger's grandfather's farm, replaced the old farmhouse with a mansion, and eliminated the boys' access to the surrounding lands where they've always been able to play, and which Digger had always used as a getaway from his abusive dad."Sneering, Digger stuffed his hands in his pockets. 'Look Brady, if he's stupid enough to be out there today, he can take what's coming. Besides, he deserves it.' "So they don't call out a warning.And then later that morning, when his father comes to take him out of school to assist with search efforts, Brady learns that it was actually Mrs. DiAngelo, taking Ben out for a ride, who had been paddling the red kayak in those frigid waters. Thus begins Brady's moral journey through this action-filled page turner.Brady's rescue and resuscitation of Ben makes Brady a hero for a day--until Ben dies from the effects of his exposure. Brady's friends distance themselves from him, and he is left alone with the secrets of the trio's actions and inactions."My mind sure was drifting. Looking back, I could see there were things we three did that I would never forget. Boy, like the day we were playing ice hockey and I went through the ice on that cow pond. It was Digger who saved my life. I can still see him sprawled toward me, his chin bleeding, his tooth chipped forever, reaching both of his bare, cold hands out to me while I thrashed around in that freezing water and couldn't get a grip because the edges of the ice kept breaking. 'Grab on, Brady! Grab on!' And J.T. in the background, holding Digger's ankles so he wouldn't go down with me."The long-term process that Brady navigates in his attempts at discovering "the right thing to do" is paralleled by that of Brady's dad. Mr. Parks is seeking a solution to his own problems involving decreasing income due to the dwindling inventories of crabs in the Chesapeake fishery. Dad must decide whether or not to participate in the political actions being organized by his fellow watermen who are calling for less restrictions on their crab harvesting."Pressure pushing down on mePressing down on you no man ask forUnder pressure that brings a building downSplits a family in twoPuts people on streets"--David Bowie/Queen, "Under Pressure"Another parallel involves the loss by Brady's family--prior to the story--of his little sister Amanda from SIDS. Brady's previous experience makes him quite cognizant of the effect Ben's loss must be having upon Mr. and Mrs. DiAngelo. The pressure within Brady builds as his complicated feelings about guilt and friends and family consume his days and compel him to seek a way out of the dilemma."I thought I'd wake up feeling relieved the next morning. Like a weight had been taken off my shoulders because of the action I'd finally taken. But it didn't start out that way, and I wondered while I poked at the scrambled eggs Mom had made whether it was something I just had to get used to first, like a new haircut."RED KAYAK provides a winning balance between the outdoor action and settings, and Brady's inner turmoil. From the muck on the crab traps to Brady's yellow lab tearing through the tall grass to retrieve a ball, the descriptions brought me gladly back to locales I've previously explored with the likes of Dicey Tillerman and Tunes Smith. Readers will surely be caught up in Brady's story of life and death on the river, as he finds himself trapped between a rock and a hard place, while killer currents and dangerous obstacles just under the surface threaten to take him under.

An excellent young adult novel centered around a powerful moral dilemma. The pacing is fast and engaging, and the plot structure progresses simply. The best parts of the novel take the reader along as the protagonist struggles to find the right thing to do. It certainly left me thinking how I would react in similar situations, and has been a wonderful addition to my 8th grade curriculum in a unit on moral dilemmas.

My daughter is reading it for school (5th grade) and LOVES it.

Other reviewers have adequately addressed issues of character development and ethical dilemmas. Sadly, despite claiming to have consulted a raft of experts, the author so badly botched the Chesapeake boating details that I almost threw in the towel on reading past the completely implausible rescue. We’re expected to believe that the protagonist navigated the Corsica river, then the approx 3 mile width of the Chester to the peninsula on which Rock Hall is located (not to mention that Rock Hall itself would require rounding the peninsula and passing a half dozen or more marinas) all while continuously performing CPR. And although the protagonist wished he had called out to the kayak to warn the kayaker about the conditions, presumably meaning he thought the kayak was close enough that his voice would carry to the kayak, none of the three boys present were able to tell that the kayak had a woman and small child on it rather than a full-grown buffed man. And no one considered any possibility of foul play when the mother who survived described the kayak sinking even though kayaks are near impossible to sink absent physical damage. Books set on the Chesapeake are rare, and I was saddened that the Bay was so poorly dealt with in this one.

great book awesome addition to my collection

This book was assigned to my 7th grader who really loathes reading (ugh!). He lost his book the school gave him, so I bought this as a replacement. He actually liked the book! So much so that he actually found his lost book, but told me to keep this one because he might read it again! What?!?! That’s HUGE!! I didn’t read it, so I don’t know what it’s really about too much, but I know that it peaked my son’s interest and that’s a win in my book!

I am a kid in 6th grade who was asked to read this book for the summer. I was actually ok with that because it was a relatively short book. Honestly, I had no idea that such a short story can be so impactful. Near the end when Brady is in court, I was on the edge of crying. This book truly consists of beautiful writing, and I would like to thank Priscilla on that. I highly recommend this book for someone looking for a short, beautifully crafted read. Thank you!-Kinsley Reid, J. Reid’s daughter

Shipping was fast, great condition. My son has to read this summer for fall English class. He thinks it's a awesome book to read. He's 13 yrs old.

Fucycududufydydjfufudufjchcuchcghxhffuuffufufuv uvucu ci. UCI di più a me piace il tuo orticello di un mio amico che è la verità non mi ha fatto la foto