Stephen Fair

by Tim Wynne-Jones

A masterful new novel about memory, family secrets, and the transforming power of truth. When Stephen turns 15, he is tormented by the same terrifying nightmare--a baby is trapped in a burning treehouse. Determined to unlock the meaning of his nightmare--the same one that plagued his older brother--Stephen embarks on a journey of discovery.

Genres: Young Adult, Childrens, Contemporary, Fiction, Middle Grade

192 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 1998

About the author

Tim Wynne-Jones (born 12 August 1948) is an English–Canadian author of children's literature, including picture books and novels for children and young adults, novels for adults, radio dramas, songs for the CBC/Jim Henson production Fraggle Rock, as well as a children's musical and an opera libretto.

Awards:
Arthur Ellis Award
◊ Best Juvenile (2001): The Boy in the Burning House
Edgar Award
◊ Best Young Adult (2002): The Boy in the Burning House

Reviews

[Chy · Rating 4 out of 5]

"He really didn't know her very well, except in passing. She passed him in looks and height and grades and on her way to volley ball games. He passed her in the hall as often as he could."

Aw, I really liked Stephen Fair. He's a good kid. And there were moments, pages at a time (once or twice), where it was amazing. Just..right on.

What I really appreciated (in a weird way I can't explain) was the fact that I kept expecting something speculative. I've read a lot of books where it seemed you were supposed to think it wasn't speculative, and turned out to be. This one was the opposite, but in a soft way. And I really dug that.

I picked this book up totally by accident, really. But I'm really glad I did. Yeah, see, all I saw was the spine with Stephen Fair and "Wynne-Jones" on it, and didn't regard the hyphen. It was a book sale; I was harried.

I got it home and really looked at it, and still didn't catch the Tim. I didn't catch the "Tim" until right before I read it, and finally caught the hyphen.

Well, whatever. I'm really glad to have read it. To have met all these people and heard Stephen's story. Yeah, there was a point, three-quarters of the way through, here things kinda fell apart. That was because the writer seemed to think the reader (or, more importantly, the main character) wouldn't know what was really going on, and wrote in that way. That was distracting, but not deal-breaking.

Still really liked it, and not just because Lehmann reminded me of Luken.

There are really a lot of dogears in here for a book of such length. Hmm.

[Cricket Muse · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shelved on the library’s discard rack, two questions came up: why was it discarded and why was it cataloged as a juvie read?
First off, despite the odd beginning about nightmares of the one brother and the other brother being the scribe, the story unfolded into something worthwhile. This is a story of how family secrets, if not confessed, can seep acid into the fabric of the relationships.
Stephen, now at fifteen, is suffering the same dreams that his brother did at fifteen. Marcus left home at fifteen and Stephen is wondering about leaving as well since his mother keeps holding back the truth from him.
It is odd that a a story about fifteen year old protagonist with deep family issues would be shelved with the middle readers. It might have fared better as a YA, yet at barely over 200 pages, it seems more story could have been told.

[Dexter · Rating 5 out of 5]

The word for this book is "unprepossessing." That's what it looks like. I realize that's falling into the trap of judging a book by its cover, but it's true. I picked it up at a thrift store almost ten years ago and never actually read it because... well, it just doesn't look very good.

But listen.

This is a story about fathers and families and secrets and art and identity. That in itself isn't unusual. But these characters and settings are all so delightfully odd and real that it makes it special. Stephen Fair and his dreams, Brenda and her secrets, Toni and her barbies, Doug and his Ark, Virginia and her camera, Dom and his trench coat, Lehmann and his movies, Marcus and his absence.

It was the first time in a very very long time that I was up all night reading.

[Gris Calderon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn’t care for the storyline much - it was anti-climactic. However, I loved the characters. The author did a great job with the characters to the point where I felt like I knew them. This is a young adult book that I didn’t read til I was 50, but it triggered some nostalgia as I thought about my friends growing up.

[Lee Torvi · Rating 5 out of 5]

The main character is a teenager, and the adults in the story grew up in the 60s and 70s. The catalyst of the plot is their "hippie" lifestyle/ experiences. I think other aging "boomers", like me, will enjoy the novel.

[Miranda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I feel the need to watch Casablanca now! Nice story here with a strong ending.

[Sara Miller · Rating 4 out of 5]

For me this is a really quick read, I love the flow and how it brings awareness to the fact that other peoples actions can influence you whether you know it or not.

[Miranda Stanley · Rating 3 out of 5]

there was something off putting about the book. idk what it was but there was something.

The book really shows the grubbier side of town, where people live in the woods, within houses that their dads built. while I appreciated that tone of look at how some people live, (sorry not sure if that is offensive or not. you guys can decide.) it kind of read like a dream that I would cook up if I was sick w the flu

[7kuchler_libby · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a well written book. It kept me interested because I was curious to find out what the nightmare was about. A lot of the thoughts were pretty ridiculous, but the author made it so that event the most outrageous plot twists made sense in the plot. The idea of the Ark was really interesting. One of my favorite parts was near the end when Stephen visited his grandmother and the parts that came after. I liked the idea of Stephen Dark and how it recurred throughout the book. I would recommend it to anyone who likes realistic mysteries.

[Mandi]

I see I'm not the only person who picked this one up because of the similarity of the author's name to someone else... Unfortunately I don't remember this one at all, so I guess it wasn't that interesting.

[Rad · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of those mysteries where you don't know quite what's going on, but when all's revealed you don't care that you didn't see where it was going. Did that make sense? It better have.

[Alaska]

AWESOME

[Mordena · Rating 3 out of 5]

A strange, dreamlike book, about dreams and family secrets. Beautifully written.

[Lucia]

Amazing Book highly underrated but very nicely written!

[Lesley]

Loved this book.

[Jolijn Van Wijngaarden]

Its a really good book about how your dreams can take unexpected turns!