Lizard - Softcover

Covington, Dennis

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0440214904 ISBN 13: 9780440214908

Publisher: Laurel Leaf, 1993

Synopsis

With sea-green eyes more on the side of his head than most people's and a nose that lies on its side, Lucius Sims resembles a reptile. That's why he was sent to the Leesville Louisiana State School for Retarded Boys even though no one ever proved he was mentally handicapped. but the state school is no place for a wide-eyed thirteen-year-old boy who wants to see the world. So when a shoe salesman from up north arrives claiming to be his father, Lizard takes a chance. Lizard knows his real father is dead, but he also knows that this impostor could be his only ticket to freedom.

About this title

Review

Have you ever felt like a freak? Well, then you'll relate to Lucius Sims. Because he resembles a reptile, people call him Lizard, and they treat him like an alien because he's different. He's even put into a school for retarded boys even though there is no proof that he has a learning problem. Hang on tight, though, because Lizard is about to embark on a madcap adventure. On the road to freedom he might even find a way to accept himself! Covington won the Delacorte Prize for this sensitive novel about the oddball inside of us all.

From Kirkus Reviews

Walleyed and misshapen, Lucius (``Lizard'') looks bizarre; at 13, he's never been to a regular school. Now the guardian he calls ``Miss Cooley'' dumps him at a Louisiana state school for retarded boys. Callahan and Sallie, down-and-out actors who come to the school to enact Treasure Island, spirit him away to Birmingham to join a ragged troupe as Caliban in The Tempest. Along the way, Lizard makes friends with Rain and her brother Sammy, two black kids who have lived alone since their mother's death and hope to be rescued from their abusive preacher- guardian. Throughout his modestly understated narrative, Lizard is quietly discovering who he really is. He never quite understands Shakespeare's words, but learns their meaning and turns in a creditable, resourceful performance; he stands up to the alcoholic Callahan, weathers their battles, and finally finds in him a kind of father figure; he tastes happiness during a playful swim with Rain and Sammy, trades stories with them, and establishes a mutual trust that sustains them all later. Lizard lives in a cruel world where adults are often harsh and unjust to the young (like Prospero to Caliban), yet he focuses on the generous spirits he encounters and manages to evoke the best in some others: in a gesture of reconciliation, he even goes back, at least temporarily, to Miss Cooley, who turns out to be his mother. A first novel (Eighth Annual Delacorte Press Prize) with a fresh, memorably sweet picture of its offbeat characters and singular, compelling events. (Fiction. 12+) -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Edition details

• Publisher: Laurel Leaf
• Publication date: 1993
• ISBN 10: 0440214904
• ISBN 13: 9780440214908
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 208