BORDER CROSSING

Some years ago, Tom Seymour's expert testimony about the psychological state of 10-year-old Danny Miller sealed the boy's conviction of murder. An adult now and free on parole, Danny reestablishes contact with Tom in order to reexamine his past, a process that will prove equally harrowing for Tom. Obviously, the relationship between Tom, whose marriage is withering, and Danny is the heart of Barker's absorbing novel, and Simon Prebble infuses it with an electrical intensity. Without trickery or even a raised voice, Prebble puts a charge into their conversations, conveying the competitiveness, surprise, and pain in their interchanges. His reading is full of nuance rather than flair and is all the more powerful for it. M.O. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC 02/ JAN 03]