The great reward of writers for the young is that they are expected to tell stories. The readers look for secondary worlds to find themselves in and the critics examine 'How does the author do it?' The virtues of narrative, response and criticism meet in this remarkable novel [The blue hawk], the story of Tron, the young priest in an Egyptian (?) land where the Gods hold sway and the priests make the rules. Rarely have I read such vividly imagined scenes as that of the dead king's barge floating down the great river and the lifting of an age-old curse. It is a spiritual autobiography, the kind of book written with power and commitment for which no adult outlet exists. I will promote this story with fervour, but only experienced readers could read it, and they usually want something else. (p. 146)

Margaret Meek, in The School Librarian...