Out of the Wild Night by Blue Balliett

Abstract

Reviewed by: Out of the Wild Night by Blue Balliett Deborah Stevenson, Editor Balliett, Blue Out of the Wild Night. Scholastic, 2018 [320p] ISBN 978-0-545-86756-6 $17.99 Reviewed from galleys Ad Gr. 4-6 The ghost of Mary Chase, long-dead Nantucket Island resident, narrates this story of a group of Nantucket kids, known as the Old North Gang, who are unhappy about changes to the island. They’re especially worried about a real estate developer’s practice of gutting the inside of historic houses, modernizing everything while leaving just enough structure to abide by the laws protecting historic buildings. As the kids rally to defend a neighboring house, they realize that unseen forces are helping them, and that some of those forces could become dangerous. Balliett makes the atmosphere of the island vivid in details of buildings, streets, and coastline, and the picture of the group of kids taking independent action (supported by a few kindly adults) is inviting. However, the focus on Nantucket’s history and social dynamics goes into such length and depth that it buries the story and overpowers the few nicely chilling moments, and the characterization is largely rote. Additionally, the Wampanoag who initially lived there get little more than a passing hat tip, so there’s irony on steroids in the book’s assertion that erasing European-American history is “injustice,” and no Native Americans get a look in amid the hordes of ghosts from Nantucket’s past. Still, there’s a final twist that will surprise readers, and armchair tourists may enjoy the salty touch of island magic. Copyright © 2018 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois