Dave Young, who lives in Saskatchewan, has always been fascinated by tales of the North and is determined to go to the Arctic one day. His father's business is not being successful, and, as tensions build at home, Dave finds himself retreating more and more into a series of incredibly vivid narrative dreams each night - dreams in which he is a cabin boy on Sir John's ship, sails with him across the Atlantic and endures four winters frozen in the Arctic ice in the vicinity of King William Island.

      The story is cleverly told, tying in Dave's increasing loneliness at home and Davy's isolation on board ship, hinting at reasons why, for example, the officers should be dying at a more rapid rate than the common sailors (they ate more of the "high class" tinned food contaminated by the lead solder used to seal the cans) without resorting to anachronistic musings on the part of Davy or other members of the crew. Dave, on the other hand, tells us enough of his present-day research into Franklin's voyage that we recognize just what is explaining what, giving us a pleasurable sense of our own cleverness.

      The accompanying guide (free with the purchase of a classroom set of twenty books) includes copies of archival materials, and photographs, as well as suggestions for extended use of the book in the classroom. It also includes a useful enlargement of the map which is printed on the inside cover. Indeed, my only complaint about the book is that the map is too small and is on the inside front cover, while the legend explaining it is inside the back cover. Otherwise it is a well designed book.

      The question that occupied me for the final third of the book was how the Dave/Davy identification could be resolved without killing off the modern protagonist. Rest assured - Wilson manages a very plausible and satisfying ending to the Franklin story. The resolution of Dave's home difficulties is less absolute but offers some hope in that his parents finally agree that there is a problem and that a family therapist might help. How satisfying you find this depends on your faith in family therapy!

Highly recommended.