Noah's Castle
by John Rowe Townsend

    NOAH'S CASTLE by John Rowe Townsend
    Category:  Contemporary
    Age Recommendation:  Grades 6+
    Release Date:  3/22/10
    Publisher:  October Mist Publishing
    Reviewed by:  John Jacobson, aka "R.J. Jacobs"
    Rating:  5 Stars


    16-year-old Barry Mortimer is a fairly carefree person, living with his domineering father, Norman, his
    complacent mother, and his siblings in fair comfort.  But a crisis is on the rise – the UK is producing more and
    more money, yet it gets harder and harder to afford to buy items as prices rise.   If matters weren’t confusing
    enough, Barry’s father goes and buys the family a large, looming house that’s much too big for them, and
    begins putting up hundreds of shelves down in the basement.  

    When the signs of the crisis begin to show, with food prices insanely high, the old are left to afford almost
    nothing, and the talk of food rationing begins.  Barry’s suspicions of his father grow.  When he discovers his
    plans – to hoard several years’ worth of nonperishable foods in their basement, hidden from the rest of the
    community – Barry’s met with an important decision:   To keep his family safe for the long haul and risk being
    discovered, or to go against his father’s wishes and refuse the stores.  

    NOAH'S CASTLE was originally published in the 1970’s, so the book reads as a contemporary-historical
    novel, though that in no way detracts from the power of the story.  Townsend has a great voice in Barry;
    simple but strong.  While readers will identify with him, his sister Agnes, and some other characters that come
    along, the real star of the novel is Barry’s father, Norman.  Norman’s character is written as amazingly
    complex, with every emotion and motive shaded grey.  There is no easy side for the reader to take, and the
    excitement over the moral issues alone will keep you wanting to read.  Action-wise, the story moves along
    quickly, each and every scene flowing with tension and emotions that really capture the dystopian setting.  

    The setting, as mentioned, is one of the novel’s strongest points.  With novels like INCARCERON and HOW
    I LIVE NOW gaining acclaim in the same genre, this really stands out.  What makes it do so is its
    believability.  It has no magic or vampires, just the plain old world going through a realistic crisis.  It almost
    scared me as to how easily I could see this happening.  (And indeed, it actually did.  Townsend based the
    events off of a German economic upheaval after World War I.)  Every moment seems real, adding a horror
    novel-like aspect to it that’s hard to shake away.

    Most notably, Townsend managed to write a novel with little fault to it.  Some of the characters could have
    been fleshed out more, especially the women.  Understandably, the time period reflects some of these
    behaviors, so it’s not as bad as something that would be written and originally published today, but he still
    could have done more.  What he did do was still intriguing enough to make me enjoy reading about them.  

    Overall, it’s an enjoyably quick read that will send your mind whirling.  Five Stars and the Gold Award.