cover image Rebel: A Tibetan Odyssey

Rebel: A Tibetan Odyssey

Cheryl Aylward Whitesel. HarperCollins Publishers, $16.99 (208pp) ISBN 978-0-688-16735-6

Whitesel sets her ambitious first novel against the backdrop of a mysterious, uninfiltrated turn-of-the-century Tibet, with mixed results. When Thunder, an adventuresome and inquisitive boy, goes against his parents' wishes, they send him to live with his uncle in a monastery, where a series of adventures and misadventures unfold. The author intermittently integrates descriptions of the food, mercantile system and customs of the time, and includes a glossary of Tibetan words. But because these details of daily life aren't consistently woven into the novel, they call attention to themselves instead of shedding light on time and place. The narrative brushes over definitions and explanations through the course of the story, leaving readers to flip back and forth to the glossary. The Tibetans here live under the threat of invasion by Fringies (foreigners), against which they furiously, if futilely, attempt to protect themselves; the sense of danger is palpable. But many questions remain unanswered. For example, Thunder is under the tutelage of his lama uncle, but readers never see him at his studies and learn little of what they entail. Also, Thunder is chosen to be the playmate of the new young Tulku lama, but the novel doesn't explain the significance of the Tulku lama to the monastic community or what his daily life is like. Whitesel succeeds in creating sympathetic characters in Thunder, the Tulku lama and Thunder's friend, Seventh Hand, even if she doesn't quite bring their world to life. Ages 10-up. (May)