Diane Duane Reviews

Added July 13, 2003

A Wizard Alone

Author: Diane Duane
Publisher: Magic Carpet Books
Available At: Bookstores Everywhere
Publishing Date: Available Now
Genre: Young Adult: Fantasy
Format: Paperback
Price: $6.95
ISBN: 0152049118
Author Email/Website: www.youngwizards.net
Reviewer: Sharyn McGinty

When last readers saw Nita and Kit, Nita, Kit, and Nita's mother had just faced the Lone Power. While their battle had added a few weeks to her life, they all knew the cancer was going to take over her body and she would die. It's been a month since her mother's funeral and Nita hasn't been herself. She's tired and listless, her wizarding status on "optional". To make matters worse, she's been having weird dreams about clowns and robots, which for some reason are trying to communicate with her; she just can't understand them.

Kit's been having problems of his own as well. The new DVD player, TV and remote have taken to acting odd: yelling at each other in the middle of the night, picking up alien cable channels. As if that wasn't enough, his dog Ponch has started gaining some odd abilities. Nothing he can't handle, right? Not long after the entertainment system problems begin, he receives a call from the Senior Wizard Advisors, Tom and Carl. They want him to take on a consulting job.

It appears that Darryl Anderson has undertaken his Ordeal, the test that comes after you speak the Wizard's Oath to determine if you really have what it takes to be a wizard. Usually dangerous, it's rare for an Ordeal to take over three months, which is why Tom and Carl asked Kit to find out what's going on. Kit accepts his mission and makes a few visits to Darryl's school. Once there, he learns Darryl is autistic and the only way Kit will be able to reach him is through his mind.

Accompanied by Ponch, Kit begins wandering around Darry's mind, hoping to find someway to reach him. What they find sends fear coursing through them. The Lone Power is in Darryl's mind, constantly trying to kill him and though he fails each time, his attacks have become stronger. Kit knows he must remain an observer, to let Darryl complete his Ordeal, but how can he continue to watch someone endlessly tortured? If only Nita was emotionally stable, she would be able to help.

Once she realized the creatures in her dream were trying to communicate, Nita had the hard task of learning the many different ways wizards can communicate. As she begins to speak with the creatures, she realizes she understands them. They both know the meaning of feeling utterly alone in the universe. It is only after this bonding, do the creatures reveal themselves. They were all versions of Darryl Anderson's psyche.

Together, can Kit, Nita and Darryl stop the Lone Power's attacks on Darryl? Will their abilities prove up to the task?

Magnificent, simply magnificent. A Wizard Alone is the latest in the Young Wizards series by Diane Duane and it is the best. More emotionally involving than the previous novels, it nevertheless has it humorous moments. Watching the children struggle with their own emotional problems, learning to ask for help, and finding their own inner strength was touching. I couldn't stop reading; I had to finish A Wizard Alone in one sitting.

Sometimes too technical in her explanations of magic, Ms. Duane does stay within the bounds of the worlds she created, bringing them to life wonderfully. I look forward to seeing what the future holds for Nita, Kit and the others. With everything that I loved about this book, I suppose the fact one of the heroes was autistic made it a keeper. All too often, autistic characters are painted as helpless and sad. Darryl may have been autistic but he used that to his advantage when dealing with the Lone Power. A Wizard Alone is going on my keeper shelf.

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