First edition fine

A chivalric tale of 14-year-olds who set out to save their 8th grade teacher from a mysterious man who they believe to be abusing her. Set in a small town in the school year that begins after WWII ends, this YA novel takes on some tough adult issues, including white supremacy, nationalism and the role of women in the work force. Naturally, as this is Parker, the good guys prevail by their wits, and the hero gets the girl. I enjoyed reading Edenville Owls, but I'm not sure I'd recommend it to young adults. I am no good really at assessing how they might respond to it, but my gut reaction is they wouldn't quite buy it all. Probably this one is only for die-hard fans like me, and for Joan Parker, now Bob's widow. It's no coincidence that the hero is Bobby and his best friend and staunchest ally is a girl named Joanie.
Review written in July 2012 ( )

I acquired this particular copy from the most recent local library sale, in fact it's a former library copy of the book. Having my own personal copy, I thought it would be a nice addition to my Little Free Library.

Review from 2/11/15:

I've read several of Parker's books in the past, so when I saw this YA book with his name on it sitting on a clearance shelf, I thought it might be worth a shot. Turns out it was a nice little teenage mystery story.

The book is written with a very simplistic style, short sentences and basic word choice, but that reflects the main character narrating the tale. He is a fourteen year old boy from a small town in post-WWII America. He and his friends play basketball as the Edenville Owls, an amateur team trying to play in a local tournament. They have no coach, so Bobby, the main character, watches the local JV team and takes note of what their coach is teaching them.

Right in the middle of this innocent life comes a mystery. While Bobby and one of his teammates are staying after school, they notice their favorite teacher being harassed by a strange man. Bobby yells out so the man knows he is being watched, and the moment ends, but this leads the boys into a mystery that they feel a strong need to solve in order to help their teacher.

Definitely a fun teen mystery/adventure. The relationship between the Owls is reminiscent of other young groups like the Goonies or the boys in Stand By Me. There is also an interesting relationship between Bobby, the narrator, and Joanie, a young girl who has been good friends with Bobby almost all his life and who wants to be absolutely sure this friendship remains strong forever. It is interesting to see the way Bobby thinks of Joanie, and seeing how he feels the need to push his burgeoning hormonal reactions away because she is his friend and it makes him feel awkward.

Parker really does a good job here of interpreting teenage reactions to some adult situations. ( )

I've read several of Parker's books in the past, so when I saw this YA book with his name on it sitting on a clearance shelf, I thought it might be worth a shot. Turns out it was a nice little teenage mystery story.

The book is written with a very simplistic style, short sentences and basic word choice, but that reflects the main character narrating the tale. He is a fourteen year old boy from a small town in post-WWII America. He and his friends play basketball as the Edenville Owls, an amateur team trying to play in a local tournament. They have no coach, so Bobby, the main character, watches the local JV team and takes note of what their coach is teaching them.

Right in the middle of this innocent life comes a mystery. While Bobby and one of his teammates are staying after school, they notice their favorite teacher being harassed by a strange man. Bobby yells out so the man knows he is being watched, and the moment ends, but this leads the boys into a mystery that they feel a strong need to solve in order to help their teacher.

Definitely a fun teen mystery/adventure. The relationship between the Owls is reminiscent of other young groups like the Goonies or the boys in Stand By Me. There is also an interesting relationship between Bobby, the narrator, and Joanie, a young girl who has been good friends with Bobby almost all his life and who wants to be absolutely sure this friendship remains strong forever. It is interesting to see the way Bobby thinks of Joanie, and seeing how he feels the need to push his burgeoning hormonal reactions away because she is his friend and it makes him feel awkward.

Parker really does a good job here of interpreting teenage reactions to some adult situations. ( )

I'm a big Parker fan and since I've read everything else, I decided to try one of his YA novels. I've read other YAs and haven't seen a lot of difference in the writing, only the subject matter being skewed toward teens; but Edenville Owls writing was pretty simplified (lots of short simple word sentences). Still the story was good and Parker was so good in the writing he even made basketball sound appealing. Overall, a good quick read. ( )