When the Whistle Blows
by: Fran Cannon Slayton
Published by: Philomel Books (June release)
Buy From Amazon.com
Reviewed by Harold N. Walters
Jimmy Cannon, the young narrator of When the Whistle Blows, dreams of being a machinist for the Baltimore and Ohio railway. He wants to crawl underneath steam engines to ensure they are working properly. His father shatters his dream, however, by refusing to allow him to quit school as his older brothers have done.
There is no future in steam engines anymore. The diesels are coming to Virginia, and Rowlesburg, a town dependent on the railway, will be devastated by change.
Fran Cannon Slayton uses a series of 1940’s All Hallows’ Eves to map Jimmy Cannon’s developing character. On Halloween Night 1943, Jimmy and his brother Mike spy on The Society, a clandestine group meeting in the local funeral home. In 1944 Jimmy and his buddies, the Platoon, while executing Operation Halloween Revenge on their nemesis, Stubby Mars, mistakenly ambush Deputy Marauder with a barrage of rotten cabbages. Eventually, in 1945, mysteries are revealed and conflicts are resolved.
As well as following Jimmy Cannon’s growth from callow boy to reflective young man, Slayton’s novel explores the nature of a one-industry Virginian town during the war years. It examines the devotion to football and the traditions of the hunting season. It shows community response to a new school principal, a Yankee who vows to bring civilization to hick town Rowlesburg.
From the Halloween antics of young boys, to the sobering realities of mortality, the events in When the Whistle Blows occur against a backdrop of steam engine whistles—near and far and fading, like the fate of the railway itself.
When the Whistle Blows is likely to be more interesting to boys than girls, and one thing boys in their early teens will certainly find hilarious is Slayton’s description of spitting, using words such as “wad” and “lump” and “thick.” Should young girls—sisters of those boys perhaps—read the book this same vivid expectoration will cause them to shudder with revulsion, much to the delight of the boys, I’m sure.
Slayton has written of inexorable change, symbolized by the emergence of the diesel and the passing of the steam engine.
Armchair Interviews says: Interesting focus for young adult readers.
Author’s Web site: http://www.FranCannonSlayton.com
From our armchair to yours...
