Week 32: Reunion by Alan Dean Foster (Random House, 2002, ebook)
I recently ventured into the ebook reader world, and this was my first ebook. I was a big fan of the Pip and Flinx series as a teenager; in fact, I read nearly every Foster book. For my first ebook, I figured I’ve return to see if Pip’s adventures still held appeal.
Although I can see the limitations to Foster’s storytelling now that I didn’t see before, at the end I was still pulled into the narrative. This despite that the fact that there isn’t much action of significance in this novel. I know that Foster just recently published the final novel is this long series, so I could see that this novel was part of a longer story. I expect a reader not familiar with the series may not be as drawn as I was, knowing all the back story.
But for readers like me, who grew up reading these stories, Foster effectively stays consistent and interesting. All I ask for in an adventure read is to keep my turning pages, even electronically. Foster does that, adding new characters without losing sight of the appeal of the relationship between Flinx and his flying minidragon Pip. Flinx matures enough in each novel to grow as a character, yet he still maintains his youthful ambitions and fearlessness.
I just bought the last novel in this series, so I’m eager to work my through the 3 or 4 others in-between.
Next week . . . The Real All Americans by Sally Jenkins.