Jeremy Visick, by David Wiseman, for Timeslip Tuesday

Time slipped from my fingers this past month, so it's been a while since last Timeslip Tuesday.  But here I am, offering one of the best time travel stories of the last few decades of the 20th century that I've ever read--Jeremy Visick, by David Wiseman (1981).

It starts with Matthew, a modern boy in Cornwall, telling his teacher that history is rubbish.  Instead of fury, the teacher decides to prove that this is untrue, and sets the class to find interest in local history.  So Matthew and his neighbor Mary end up in the local cemetery, contemplating the names of the dead.  (interjection- it is clear that though at present misguided re history, Matthew is a pleasant sort of boy, such as one enjoys reading about).  

In the graveyard, Matthew and Mary find a stone commemorating Reuban Visick and two of his sons, lost in an accident at Wheal Maid, one of the many local copper mines a century ago, with a sad bit of afterthought carving--

    And to Jeremy Visick, his son

    Aged 12 years, whose body still lies

    in Wheal Maid.

And Matthew becomes caught by Jeremy's story as past and present meet, finding himself slipping back in time to see Jeremy as he was in life, and finally, horribly, inevitably, going with him down into Wheal Maid.  The tragedy happens, killing Jeremy's father and  brothers, leaving Jeremy and Matthew to climb up and up through endless rock tunnels.  It is horrible, and sad, and Matthew tries so hard, but ultimately the two boys fall into exhausted sleep.  Matthew wakes to hear voices come to rescue them, but when he reaches for Jeremy, the 19th century boy he was with is gone.  All he can do know is see that what remains of Jeremy's body will no longer lie in the darkness of Wheal Maid all alone.  And it is so well done.

I was all set at this point to give the book five glowing stars on Goodreads, but then the author betrayed me. After working up the powerful emotional engagement between Matthew and Jeremey's tragic fate, the book throws it all into the trash by having Matthew grinning about how he knows what life was like for kids in the mines. My own tears were not yet dry, so to heck with that.

Also I did not like that Matthew is probably damaged for life by undiagnosed concussions sustained both at school (while sticking up for an underdog) and thanks to his father knocking him down in a fit of rage (Father needs anger management classes).  

On the plus side Matthew's history teacher is great, and both wandering in local cemeteries and reading books like this are great way to learn about the past.  I have just come from opening the book to check a few details, and almost read it all over again.  It is a keeper for sure.