Bring Me the Head of Oliver Plunkett (review)
2006; Johns Hopkins University Press; Volume: 59; Issue: 7 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1353/bcc.2006.0159
ISSN1558-6766
Autores Tópico(s)Gothic Literature and Media Analysis
ResumoReviewed by: Bring Me the Head of Oliver Plunkett Karen Coats Bateman, Colin Bring Me the Head of Oliver Plunkett. Delacorte, 2005261p Library ed. ISBN 0-385-90269-7$17.99 Trade ed. ISBN 0-385-73245-7$15.95 R Gr. 6-9 Pat is in the wrong place at the wrong time—playing in St. Peter's church in Drogheda, Ireland, one rainy evening—when thieves come to steal the mummified head of St. Oliver Plunkett. Convinced that he will go to Hell if he doesn't find the head and return it, he follows clues to Belfast, where he joins up with Mo and Eddie, our heroes from Running with the Reservoir Pups (BCCB 1/05). Eddie is still plotting for world domination, but his steps are dogged by the Reservoir Pups, who force him to undertake a mission that gets him entangled with the son of Scarface Cutler, the most vicious criminal in all of Ireland. By a fortunate coincidence, Scarface has in fact stolen the head, and Eddie uses his friendship with Ivan, Scarface's son, and his newly formed acquaintance with a kid who likes to blow things up to hatch a plan to gain access to Scarface's compound and retrieve the head. Bateman's flair for comic action and breathless suspense shines here; he weaves both overstated and understated hilarity throughout the murder of a harmless old priest, a genuine miracle that evolves from a ghoulish Frankensteinian experiment, some twisted revenge on a teacher who fully deserves it, and a visit from the pope himself. Though the book is especially good at getting inside the heads of boys to reveal the ambiguous motivations and dynamics of boy-boy interaction with its nuanced body language and subtle power plays, this is no touchy-feely psychological drama. Cinematic action, droll narration, and imaginative plotting guarantee wide and varied readerly appeal. Copyright © 2006 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois
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