Denny's Tapes

The product of a failed interracial marriage, Denny has been brought up by his white mother. But he ruefully notes that no one is ""only'' half-black. When his stepfather hurls a racial epithet at him, Denny takes off on a cross-country search for his roots, both black and white, with his portable tape recorder for a companion and diary. His stops include Chicago, for a visit with his jazz-musician father's relatives; he is shocked when he meets his mother's redneck family. After encountering a genuine cowgirl in Colorado who saves him from belligerent Okies (the only characters and situation that don't ring true), Denny finally reaches San Francisco, where he hopes at long last to meet his father. It's a sign of Denny's growing maturity that he still considers his journey a success even though his father is in Europe on tour. This is a sensitive, probing book that takes a hard look at racism, people's foibles and the pain of coming to terms with oneself and family. Ages 14-up. (October)