Louise Lawrence is a classic children's writer who has unfortunately made a few unwise choices. Her last fantasy trilogy was a surprising unoriginal offering from so accomplished a storyteller. However, The Crowlings shows that Lawrence is back on track again with this children's political fantasy. There is a strong ecological element to The Crowlings and Lawrence's initial characters are reminiscent of Native Americans: loosing their culture and dignity beneath an invading high tech society.
The novel falls into three parts, tracing the history of a native clan and their relationship with the technologically advanced 'star-people'. As the world is steadily brutalised by a resource-hungry government and the native wildlife begins to die out, the Crowling tribe, like the avian carrion-feeders that are their namesakes begins to change. As in Lawrence's post-holocaust novel, Children of the Dust, the characters have human personalities with a fair share of selfishness and bravery. Their rites-of-passage are dramatic and moving and the story concludes well with a satisfying climax that emphasises the moral issues of the plot.
