cover image Shadow Walkers

Shadow Walkers

Russ Chenoweth. Scribner Book Company, $13.95 (0pp) ISBN 978-0-684-19447-9

Three unusual youngsters on Cape Cod set out on a trek to deliver medical supplies to a nearby community. They must brave the greatest danger in the world--humankind. For Sara, Tom and Peter are rats, part of a peaceful, scholarly community that uneasily co-exists just beneath human sight. In the course of the journey, Sara discovers her calling as a writer in this singular and intriguing first novel. Chenoweth depicts human nature and human folly as seen from a utopian viewpoint. Calling to mind Robert O'Brien's rats of NIMH, Chenoweth's rodents discuss philosophical matters and lead idyllic lives in pursuit of knowledge. Dramatic tension in this world comes not from possible discovery, but by the inevitable destruction of the environment by humankind. A thought-provoking and welcome addition to the genre of independent-animal books such as A Wind in the Willows and Charlotte's Web. Ages 10-up. (Apr.)