Saturday, November 14, 2009

The Night Tourist, by Katherine Marsh

The Night Tourist, by Katherine Marsh. New York: Hyperion Books for Children, 2007. 232 pp. ISBN-13: 9781423106890


“…with a loud pop, Jack felt his body shoot out of the pipe and fly up into the cold, winter air like a champagne cork. His eyes widened as he caught sight of the snow-covered ground some twenty feet below. He gripped Euri’s hand as tightly as he could and frantically flapped his free arm and legs.” p. 58

Reader's Annotation
Finding himself in New York City one afternoon, incredibly brainy but friendless 14-year-old Jack Perdu takes the opportunity to explore Grand Central Terminal. There he meets a very different girl named Euri, who shows him more of the Terminal and the City than most know exists...

About the Author
Katherine Marsh grew up in a New York City suburb near Grand Central Terminal, where The Night Tourist is set. As a child she spent a lot of time reading, and like her novel’s protagonist, studied Latin. She has taught high school English; worked as a journalist for Good Housekeeping, Rolling Stone, and The New York Times; and most recently managed The New Republic magazine. She now writes full time and lives in Washington, D.C. with her husband, son, and two cats.

Genre
Supernatural, mystery

Reading Level/Interest Age
12-14 years

Plot Summary
This 2008 Edgar Award-winning novel (Best Juvenile category) principally tells the story of three days of supernatural adventure in the life of 14-year-old Jack Perdu. Jack is incredibly intelligent, but friendless. Always buried in his Latin texts, social life is passing him by, and he and his dad both still really miss Jack’s mother who passed away a few years earlier. When Jack is hit by a car, his dad sends him to a very unusual New York City doctor. While in the City, Jack decides to explore Grand Central Terminal. There he meets Euri, also 14 years old, who takes him on a tour of the Terminal’s secret places that most don’t know about. Jack soon learns that Euri and everyone else he meets on this tour are actually dead, and this brings him hope that he may be able to find his mother in this underworld. While on their quest to locate his mom, Euri takes Jack on night flights over the City, and to experience the ghostly after-hours life of the New York Public Library and the St. James Theatre, along with many other wonders of the underworld and the afterlife of spirits in limbo. Along the way, Euri reveals her own desire to live again. And all the while, the pair have to remain one step ahead of the underworld guards who relentlessly pursue all living visitors. But as Jack’s time in the underworld begins to run out, he has to make a decision: will he risk being trapped there forever, in order to give Euri the possibility of living again?

Series Note
The sequel to this novel is The Twilight Prisoner (2009).

Critical Evaluation
Although this book won an Edgar, I would identify it more closely with the supernatural than the mystery genre. The mystery it contains does not really become a primary focus of the novel until its last third. But no matter where one classifies it, The Night Tourist is well worth reading by anyone’s criteria. Marsh’s detailed depiction of the New York City underworld will absorb you wholly. Apart from a physical setting which is alternately magically beautiful and bleak, she has also included an inventive array of social mores and rules governing the afterlife, as well as the special abilities and limitations of spirits in limbo. Another wonderful aspect of this novel is its literary references, including the fact that the tale parallels aspects of the Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, and also humorous appearances by late poets such as Dylan Thomas. The novel is suspenseful and moves along at a nice pace, aided by some exciting moments in which Jack and Euri must think on their feet in order to outsmart the underworld guards and their three-headed dog. But I think that by far the great value of the novel lies in Marsh’s inclusion of much insight into human nature, in particular that of teens such as Jack who are self-conscious and still learning how to make friends, and those like Euri, who sometimes make impulsive decisions which they later come to regret. However, given the fact that Jack informs Euri of the heartening find which he made on her parents’ Christmas tree, it is somewhat unsatisfying that her spirit is still not at peace by novel’s end. Yet it is understandable that someone like Euri may, like many teens, have concerns that cannot be resolved with quick fixes.

Booktalking Ideas
• Give an episode booktalk about Jack’s first experience flying over New York City.
• Give a character booktalk as Euri, focusing on her wish to live again.
• Give an episode booktalk about Jack’s first visit to the New York Public Library after hours.

Curriculum Ideas
• Literature: Students read the Orpheus and Eurydice myth, and discuss how the The Night Tourist both parallels and diverges from it.
• Cartography: In teams, students research and make presentations on maps of various aspects of their city (waterways, roads, architectural zones, demographics), explaining how to read them.
• Art: Students paint detailed illustrations of what they think they would see if they flew over their own neighborhoods at night. For fun, they may want to compare these to satellite images.

Potential Challenge Issue & Defense
Mention of suicide:
• Become familiar enough with the book’s content to promote its literary merits.
• Refer to library’s collection development policy.
• Refer to book reviews from authoritative sources such as ALA, School Library Journal, etc.
• Obtain book reviews from tweens who have read it.

Why I Chose This Book
I chose to read this novel for my group genre presentation because its premise is so unique.