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CM . . .
. Volume IX Number 8. . . . December 13, 2002
excerpt: "Ted," said the voice once more. "Who is there?" I asked, my voice so low that I could scarcely hear the words I spoke. "Who is there?" "A friend, " he said with a threatening laugh. That laugh. I knew it well, knew who it belonged to. Against my will my hands loosened their grip and I felt myself beginning to turn toward the person who had called my name. A tall man stood there, his hands outstretched in front of him, reaching for me. "Master Percy," he said. "I've a score that I've not yet settled with you." He took a step towards me. "No," I said. "Leave me alone. Please...." The words trailed away and I stood in silence, staring at the tall figure of James Barry, murderer. He took another step and once more I heard the sound of his laughter, a sound I would never forget. I saw around his neck the thick, tightly knotted rope of the hangman's noose. Then I began to scream. "Theodore Percival MacIntosh, stop this. Be quiet, son. Wake up." Set in Barkerville in 1868, Ann Walsh's The Doctor's Apprentice continues the story of 14 year-old Ted MacIntosh. It has been several months since the trial and hanging of James Barry, but Ted is still plagued with nightmares. In hopes of overcoming these demons, Ted apprentices with the local doctor, J.B. Wilkinson. The prescribed medicine seems to work, and, for a while, Ted's demon leaves him alone. As Ted becomes more comfortable with J.B. and his position, he begins to come into his own. It isn't until he helps with the delivery of twin boys that he begins to notice the doctor changing. It becomes evident that the good doctor has his own demons to overcome. After an absence, the doctor returns, and things fall back into a routine. It continues until Ted is asked to sit with a dying Chinese man, and everyone is forced for one final time to face the ghosts of their past. Ann Walsh succeeds in capturing the essence of a small town. Her characters likewise are developed and multi-dimensional. She makes them seem real and strong in spite of their faults. Ted and his reluctance to apprentice with the doctor because he is afraid of fainting is understandable in a person of fourteen as is his apprehension about helping with the delivery of the twins. Yet, in keeping with the times, he is also asked to be a man and contribute to the house. The plot also develops smoothly. The only question that seems unanswered is, "Whom did Ted really see carry out the Chinese man?" As a reader, the only hope is that this tidbit will be revealed in Ann Walsh's next book. Although it is a continuation, this novel can easily stand on its own as reflection of life in a small town and dealing with the life's complications. Recommended. Christina Pike is a Learning Resource and English teacher at Ascension Collegiate, Bay Roberts, Newfoundland.
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