The Fetch by Laura Whitcomb
Whitcomb, Laura. The Fetch. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009. 380 pages. $17.00 ISBN 9780618891313
Readers Annotation: Calder, a Fetch with the charge of taking souls to the afterlife, breaks his vow with God and returns to earth in search of his Squire, a young woman.
Plot Summary: Calder is a Fetch. He safely takes souls from earth through the four stages necessary to get to heaven. He's always felt a little out of place in heaven, and in the Aisle of the stages, but hasn't ever questioned it. On one of his trips to earth to guide a soul he sees a beautiful woman, one he cannot get out of his head. He is so moved by her love for her infant son that he wills the baby to live. He is consumed by her, and much to his surprise he is taken again to the house of the woman, to retrieve the same boy. Still later he is sent to retrieve Grigori Rasputin and discovers that Rasputin knows the woman he has longed for. She is none other than the Empress of Russia. He decides to switch places with Rasputin, taking over his dead body while allowing Rasputin to roam in the Land of Lost Souls. Calder soon realizes he made a terrible mistake but is unable to go back to heaven with out his Squire, or Fetch in training. The woman he wanted as his Squire refuses to leave her family and instead Calder gives his Key to her son Alexis. Calder, mistaken for Rasputin, is murdered twice and finally wakes up to find the Tsar and his family on the verge of being executed. Calder finds Alexis and Ana still alive however and they set off in search of the Key and their way into heaven.
Critical Evaluation: The Fetch is a very interesting take on an issue we, as humans, can know very little: the afterlife. The idea that there are celestial beings that take human souls to heaven through a series of trials and tasks is thought provoking. Another aspect of the story that is quite interesting is the theory of what happened to Alexis and Anastasia after their family was assassinated. Whitcomb's alternate history of the brother and sister make for a very interesting read. The only issue I have is with her portrayal of time passing while on their journey basically around the world. It seems as if no time at all passes while they travel from Russia to Japan, to California, to New York and on to England. It doesn't seem believable, but then neither does a story about the afterlife.
Information about the Author: Laura has published two young adult books, The Fetch and A Certain Slant of Light. She has also published two books on how to write and publish novels.
Genre: Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Romance
Age Level: Ages 14 and up
Curriculum Ties: An interesting inclusion into a unit on the Russian Revolution.
Book talking ideas: Discuss alternate histories and how they can try to explain events that seem unexplainable.
Challenge Issues: The portrayal of the afterlife may be an issue for some parents who have different belief systems.
Why I included it: I included this book because of the praise she received for A Certain Slant of Light. I also found the idea of the Fetchkind and the reason for Anastasia's disappearance very creative.
Whitcomb, Laura. The Fetch. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009. 380 pages. $17.00 ISBN 9780618891313
Readers Annotation: Calder, a Fetch with the charge of taking souls to the afterlife, breaks his vow with God and returns to earth in search of his Squire, a young woman.
Plot Summary: Calder is a Fetch. He safely takes souls from earth through the four stages necessary to get to heaven. He's always felt a little out of place in heaven, and in the Aisle of the stages, but hasn't ever questioned it. On one of his trips to earth to guide a soul he sees a beautiful woman, one he cannot get out of his head. He is so moved by her love for her infant son that he wills the baby to live. He is consumed by her, and much to his surprise he is taken again to the house of the woman, to retrieve the same boy. Still later he is sent to retrieve Grigori Rasputin and discovers that Rasputin knows the woman he has longed for. She is none other than the Empress of Russia. He decides to switch places with Rasputin, taking over his dead body while allowing Rasputin to roam in the Land of Lost Souls. Calder soon realizes he made a terrible mistake but is unable to go back to heaven with out his Squire, or Fetch in training. The woman he wanted as his Squire refuses to leave her family and instead Calder gives his Key to her son Alexis. Calder, mistaken for Rasputin, is murdered twice and finally wakes up to find the Tsar and his family on the verge of being executed. Calder finds Alexis and Ana still alive however and they set off in search of the Key and their way into heaven.
Critical Evaluation: The Fetch is a very interesting take on an issue we, as humans, can know very little: the afterlife. The idea that there are celestial beings that take human souls to heaven through a series of trials and tasks is thought provoking. Another aspect of the story that is quite interesting is the theory of what happened to Alexis and Anastasia after their family was assassinated. Whitcomb's alternate history of the brother and sister make for a very interesting read. The only issue I have is with her portrayal of time passing while on their journey basically around the world. It seems as if no time at all passes while they travel from Russia to Japan, to California, to New York and on to England. It doesn't seem believable, but then neither does a story about the afterlife.
Information about the Author: Laura has published two young adult books, The Fetch and A Certain Slant of Light. She has also published two books on how to write and publish novels.
Genre: Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Romance
Age Level: Ages 14 and up
Curriculum Ties: An interesting inclusion into a unit on the Russian Revolution.
Book talking ideas: Discuss alternate histories and how they can try to explain events that seem unexplainable.
Challenge Issues: The portrayal of the afterlife may be an issue for some parents who have different belief systems.
Why I included it: I included this book because of the praise she received for A Certain Slant of Light. I also found the idea of the Fetchkind and the reason for Anastasia's disappearance very creative.
