THE GOLDEN RAT

A sullen teen expresses grief over his mother’s death and anger at his father’s quick remarriage by slacking off his studies and unloading resentment on his immediate family. However, this familiar story line unfolds in 12th-century China, where the consequences of teen alienation prove severe. When Baoliu’s stepmother is murdered, he is falsely accused, quickly tried and sentenced to death. His father pays to have a peasant die in Baoliu’s place but disowns his son, believing him to be guilty. Formerly a pampered rich kid, Baoliu is thrown, penniless and despised, into a harshly unforgiving world. Zhou, a streetwise boy, befriends him and together they work to solve the mystery of who the killer was and to clear Baoliu’s name. Along the way, Baoliu and readers get more than a taste of the vile living conditions suffered by the peasantry. The gulf between rich and poor and the brutal oppression of those trying to survive at the bottom of the heap are vividly illustrated, but never overpower the exciting, fast-paced adventure story. A good choice for reluctant readers. (Fiction. 11+)