Reviews: (by author)

Doorman, Ariel and Joaquin. The Burning City. London: Doubleday, 2003. £10.99 $24.95 Hardcover ISBN 0-385-60481-5, 260 pp. www.kidsatrandomhouse.co.uk

There is no more intimate way to see New York City than on a bike.   There is no more adventurous way to see New York City than through the introspective eyes of sixteen-year old Heler Highland as he slaloms through the urban jungle in the saddle of his bicycle.   The heat and humidity have taken their hold on the city.   The dog days of summer are imposing their annual lethargy on the lives on all city-dwellers.   Soft Tidings does not have the luxury of lethargy.   A message courier service with a personal touch, the company is responsible for delivering personal messages all over the city.   Heler is one of these couriers and sets himself apart from the others not only in his method of delivery (Heler rides a bike while the other couriers roller blade), but more importantly in the grave subject matter of all Heler's messages.   Heler's delivery portfolio consists only of tragic messages, a niche market he's carved for himself because of the detached sensitivity with which he does his job.   For Heler, ignorance is indeed bliss, until of course he's touched by the profound nature of the messages he's until then delivered with such innocent skill.    Through the course of his travels, Heler acquaints a great diversity of people from all walks of life and is personally challenged and enriched as a result.   Heler's summer as a bike messenger is a complicated tale of love and loss.   From emotional obscurity to emotional maturity, Heler quickly learns that unlike life on his bike, there are no short cuts for matters of the heart.  

Not only does the reader have the exhilarating experience of riding tandem with Heller as he traverses the treacherous streets of New York City with reckless abandon, but more fulfilling is the experience of witnessing a young boy come of age and cope with the trying emotions of adulthood.   This transition is dramatic and moving considering the literal, almost stoic nature of young Heller's personality during much of the novel.   He does his job well and that fact is never disputed.   He is prompt, courteous, sensitive and seemingly detached from the emotional rigors of bearing such terrible tidings wherever he goes.   When black and white situations call for precise execution Heller is near perfection.   However, the moment things get somewhat more complex young Heller falls quickly to pieces.   This fact is no more evident than in his relationships with his "best friend" Salim and his adolescent love Silvia.   For the first time in Heller's young life he finds himself on the receiving end of loss and tragedy.   The impact is profound as it dawns on him that life is full of uncertainty, but the experience for him has been cathartic because he now understands that the uncertainty of love and loss is what makes life all the more interesting to live.  

Highly Recommended
Rebekah Tobias, June 2004

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