DATE: Tuesday, September 16, 1997           TAG: 9709160069

SECTION: DAILY BREAK             PAGE: E6   EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: Book Review 

SOURCE: BY KRYS STEFANSKY, STAFF WRITER  

                                            LENGTH:   33 lines

GRIPPING TALE OFFERS KIDS HISTORIC LESSON

YOUNG READERS will find an unexpected hero in Luke, a deaf boy who lives with his mother in the early 1800s, when the Underground Railroad transported slaves to freedom.

The book, ``Secret Signs'' (Boyds Mill Press, $15.95) begins as Luke's mother tells him that she has to carry a message to her contact at the general store. Slave catchers have burned down a safe house and Mama has to pass on the location of the slaves' new hiding place.

As they sit making sugar eggs, a slave catcher pounds on the door and takes Luke's mother hostage. Now everything is up to Luke. He must be brave and go to the general store and pass on the secret message to a girl in an indigo shawl. The clever way he does it makes this an unforgettable tale.

Watercolor and gouache illustrations by author and illustrator Anita Riggio are gripping in their color intensity and perspective. The slave catcher's face is wicked. Overhead views show Luke's vulnerability.

This suspenseful story and its historical basis in fact may be too mature for the age the publisher recommends.

There is also the parent/child separation theme to consider. But it would make thoughtful reading for 5- to 9-year-olds and is a magnificent way to point out the potential strengths of handicapped peers. ILLUSTRATION: Photo of book cover

ANITA RIGGIO/Boyds Mills Press

``Secret Signs'' follows the suspenseful adventure of a deaf boy.

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