CHASING THE BEAR

This short novel by mystery master Parker is his third novel aimed at a younger audience. This time the author explores the teenaged years of his iconic gumshoe Spenser, who was raised in some unnamed Western town before he packed off to Boston and a new life. The narrator is Parker's son Daniel, who nicely pulls it off. His voice sounds as Spenser's might have in his middle teens, and his pacing is professional. There are no sound effects or other distractions, just the straight story—well done. D.R.W. © AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine [Published: MARCH 2010]