The Rope Walk by Carrie Brown is one of those books that I probably never would have found on my own.  It was suggested to me by a friend after a conversation we had about a book I wanted to write myself about AIDS. I mentioned another character from a book I was reading at the time who was HIV positive, and my friend suggested I might like The Rope Walk because it too had a character in it who was dying from AIDS. Now, some might find that a bit odd.  It’s like assuming all gay people or all black people know each other, but I accepted the loan of her copy to read and was not disappointed.

After about the first eighty pages, I began to wonder just what this book was about and where it was going.  It wasn’t even close to what the back of the book said which discusses a ten year old girl named Alice befriending a young biracial boy named Theo and the two of them entertaining a dying man by reading to him. It was more about Alice herself and her relationship with her dad and brothers, their eccentricities, the lack of her mother who passed away when Alice was very young, and then there’s Alice’s birthday party where she first meets Theo, who is in town from New York visiting his grandmother.

Odd circumstances cause Theo to become a summer long visitor at Alice’s house, but the two of them quickly become the best of friends.  Brown paints some beautiful narrative of the two young innocent children playing in the woods, building a fort, and sleeping outside in their sleeping bags.  Alice becomes obsessed with the color of Theo’s skin and his unique smell, and how Theo doesn’t seem to be too homesick for his parents back in New York. Even odder circumstances call for the children to entertain an artist named Kenneth who has taken up hospice, dying of AIDS, at his sister’s house nearby. Alice reads to Kenneth and Theo from the diary of Lewis and Clark.  Kenneth shows his gratitude by bestowing gifts up the children, including elaborate mobiles which he is known for. To help Kenneth, the children begin to build a rope walk in the woods so he can go outside and walk around without getting lost.

There are a number of awe scenes that capture the innocent minds of children perfectly.  Theo obsesses over the dangers of New York.  He’s afraid of terrorists, earthquakes, and other disasters. He knows how to do everything and is eager to show Alice his talents.  Alice questions why race is such an important issue among grownups, puzzled by the reactions Theo gets from his relatives. Why would a child want just one color in a box of crayons, she ponders. Their relationship to Kenneth also poses more “grown up” questions about death and dying.

Brown obviously has an appreciation and knowledge of children and nature.  She writes the two just perfectly and truly captures those moments that as grownups, most of us have forgotten about.  That is until a kid of our own or a grandchild asks an innocent question or blurts out a funny statement that only a child would have thought of.  It’s also the magic of summer vacation when everyday was spent outside exploring trees and bugs or building things with what we had.  The book moves at the pace of a long summer day spent with a good friend outdoors.

My only complaint is that while the events involving Kenneth seemed, at first, like it was going to become the center theme of the book, it is not.  It actually becomes a sideline as most of the story focuses on the relationship between Alice and Theo. So, while that might sound like the focus (based mostly on what you’ll read on the back of the book), it isn’t really the main stage here. That being said, yes, scenes of kids playing outside may become redundant to you after a while but Brown keeps the reader thoroughly entertained.  You’ll discover something new on each page just as the kids do.

Beautiful writing!  Superb imagery and imagination.  A nice long read and an excellent way to end my summer!  Be prepared to shed a few tears in the end.  You’ll be glad you made it, but you might just be sad to seethe summer, and Alice and Theo, go.