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Loading... The Homeward Bounders (1981)by Diana Wynne Jones
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What I love about Jones' books is how perfectly she builds up reader empathy with her protagonists. We go along with them, step by step, believing that they are wonderful and misunderstood, like we ourselves are; it is a blow to the throat when they abruptly realize their own weaknesses. "Hey," they think, "I was really childish back there." And the reader -- who thought nothing of the regretted action at the time -- goes, "Yeah! You really were quite childish back there, come to think of it! And the protagonist says, "And that person? That I hate? That person actually has some good qualities." "Yeah! You totally misjudged them, now that you mention it!" shouts the reader. Jones manages to wrap the reader utterly in the protagonist's natural solipsism, and their inevitable rude awakening is doubly rude for the unsuspecting reader. The protagonist only has to confront his own prejudices; we have to confront our gullibility in initially endorsing those prejudices. The genre of YA fiction is full of creaky moralizing and obvious "life lessons", but Jones is the only author that I've read who can successfully sneak behind the reader and sock them in the head when they least suspect it. She is full of cunning and guile, and I adore her for it. Diana Wynne Jones was full of original ideas which has made her one of my favorite authors for years. The Homeward Bounders is an interesting concept, where the characters are forced to become pieces in a war game played by demons. I don't believe I have ever read another book with a similar plot. I did enjoy this book, however I don't feel it is as good as some of Diana Wynne Jones' other books. I read it several years ago and could not remember anything about it before reading it this time. It did not make any lasting impression on me, though I can see myself reading it again several years from now. no reviews | add a review
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Once he becomes a pawn in a game played by a powerful group he calls Them, 12-year-old Jamie is repeatedly catapulted through space and time. No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)823.914Literature English English fiction Modern Period 1901-1999 1945-1999LC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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Jamie goes on by himself for a long time, ageing very slowly and unable to settle anywhere because after an interval, which can be hours or months, he experiences the 'call', a very uncomfortable sensation which pulls him to the nearest boundary where he can cross over. Eventually he encounters people like himself, but most are adults to begin with no interest in him. He also finds an unusual man chained to a rock, whom he manages to give a drink to and who will eventually become a key factor in the story. It is only when Jamie encounters the strange and prickly Helen who wears her hair over her face that he begins to find friends to share his plight and eventually work with him against Them. Helen's world knows much more about the other worlds and they are able to travel together and eventually find a boy called Joris who is an apprentice demon hunter, slave to a man he idolises, Konstam. Konstam and Joris were able to travel through worlds together to hunt demons, as They allowed this, and it slowly becomes clear that They might be a form of demon themselves.
I found the story sagged a bit around the middle or a bit later though it did eventually pick up to the surprising conclusion. It was obvious to me
Against the fantasty backdrop, a lot of the story deals with how people develop tolerance of others and learn to get along with others including those with unusual differences. The ending itself is certainly not a standard happy ending that might be expected in a book for this age group, and has a bitter sweet element. ( )