Blackwater Swamp - Hardcover

Wallace, Bill

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0823411206 ISBN 13: 9780823411207

Publisher: Holiday House, 1994

Synopsis

Ted thinks the Louisiana bayou swamp witch is just a tall tale, until he sees her for himself, and when she is blamed for a series of recent break-ins, Ted learns something about prejudice. By the author of Danger in Quicksand Swamp.

About this title

About the Author

Award-winning author Bill Wallace started writing after a tough year of teaching fourth graders. As he says, “Trying to read to a class of 25 kids who aren't listening is downright MISERABLE. Finally, students asked me to tell stories about when I was growing up. I soon ran out of these, so they decided I should make up new stories. I became a writer so I could survive my first year as a teacher. The class loved the stories I wrote for them and persuaded me to get somebody to make us a real book.” Shadow on the Snow, Trapped in Death Cave, and A Dog Called Kitty all started out as books for his students. However, it took ten long years for his first book (A Dog Called Kitty) to be accepted for publication. Since then, this former elementary-school teacher has written over 25 books and won numerous awards. Other favorites include: Red Dog, Buffalo Gal, Danger in Quicksand Swamp, Beauty, Aloha Summer, Watchdog and the Coyotes, and Coyote Autumn.

Wallace was born on August 1, 1947 in Chickasha, Oklahoma. He is married to Carol Ann Priddle (who also taught elementary school) and has three children, Laurie Beth, Amanda Nicole, and Justin Keith. He attended university and graduate school in Oklahoma. 

Reviews

Grade 3-6-A fifth-grade boy living in a small Louisiana town narrates this story of adventure and mystery. The ingredients include a spooky swamp, a mysterious old "witch" woman, and a rash of unsolved break-ins and robberies. A subplot is Ted's struggle to find an appropriate friend in his new town. Jimmy, interesting but also rude and ill-behaved, accompanies him to spy on the witch, who has a shack on an island in Blackwater Swamp. The plot turns ugly when Jimmy's redneck cousin Bubba leads a crew of his friends, lynch-mob style, to burn out and torment the old woman. Ted predictably comes to her rescue, but ends up being protected by her. Ironically, his new best friend could be the witch herself, who is merely the small town's only homeless person, an elderly black woman. In general, characters are type cast and superficial; adults are unrealistically peripheral to the story, their presence vague and unconvincing. In an attempt to destroy one stereotype, another is employed: the somber anti-prejudice message, delivered through revelation of the woman's true identity, is inconsistent with the extreme caricature of Bubba and his boys. Jimmy, the abused child in a family of thieves, is lumped into that group of thugs, offering little insight into the actions of a disadvantaged child. Some youngsters will be pleased to pick up the clues more quickly than Ted, but others will find him exasperating. Literary weaknesses aside, the elements of adventure and suspense will keep the pages turning, and the exotic setting and activities of the witch will fuel readers' imaginations.
Valerie Lennox, Jacksonville Public Library, FL
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Gr. 4-6. Start with an eerie setting in a small bayou town. Add a reclusive old woman believed to be a witch, a fifth-grade boy struggling to fit in, a rash of burglaries, and some rotten bad guys. What you get is this lively mystery-adventure. Ted, who's had trouble making friends since his family's move to Lakeview, is pleased when Jimmy Weston befriends him, even though Jimmy's behavior sometimes troubles him. When Jimmy suggests the boys explore Blackwater Swamp to find the house of the witch who's supposed to live there, Ted apprehensively agrees. Jimmy flees when the boys are spotted, leaving Ted to discover that the "witch" is actually a woman named Martha Timms. It's Martha who eventually helps Ted catch the crooks who are responsible for thefts in the town. A nicely paced story with enough clues to solve the mystery, enough action to keep reluctant readers happy, and an exciting climax. This one will be easy to booktalk. Chris Sherman

Edition details

• Publisher: Holiday House
• Publication date: 1994
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0823411206
• ISBN 13: 9780823411207
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 185