School Library Journal - Gr 6-9: “A powerful, beautifully written tale about the evils of early-19th-century slavery. In 1818, orphaned Philip leaves Liverpool to find his uncle in New Orleans. Two years later, after living with a kindly couple and helping out in their chemist shop, he finds the man, who is a ship captain. After joining his uncle’s crew, he realizes that the Captain is a slave trader who firmly believes that buying and selling human beings is part of the natural order of things. Philip, however, sees only brutality, especially after he is forced to brand a captured African. Before the ship ends its mission, illness and death have ravaged both the enslaved and the sailors. Torrey does a fine job of showing history through the eyes of a teenager who has to deal with something he knows is evil. The characterization is strong and believable, and Philip is a compelling hero. This gripping story provides readers not only with a vivid picture of a shameful past, but also with an understanding of its cruelty.”

Kirkus Reviews, Starred – (Fiction. 12-15): “The most intense and harrowing of Torrey’s nautical Chronicles of Courage takes a young British orphan from the workhouse to New Orleans, and then to Africa as Surgeon’s Mate aboard his uncle’s slave ship. At first, Philip is delighted to find his only living relative to be a genial, prosperous ship’s captain with an important job for him. That enthusiasm dims when he learns, mid-voyage, that he’s become involved in an unsavory, illegal trade (the year is 1821), and changes to outright horror when he’s charged first with helping to brand the gathered human ‘cargo,’ then with treating its escalating ills as below-decks conditions quickly go beyond hideous on the return voyage. That voyage becomes even more shot through with terror and despair when all on board, captives and crew, are blinded by conjunctivitis. But it gives Philip, the first and one of the few to recover his sight, a chance to at least try to make amends by tricking his uncle into sailing east rather than west. Though this has some parallels with Paula Fox’s Slave Dancer (1973), it’s definitely for audiences with stronger stomachs. (author’s note, glossary)”

Booklist – Gr. 8-11: “English orphan Philip Higgins, 14, is delighted to learn that he has an American uncle who is a successful ship captain. After searching for several years, he finds his relative-and despite the good life he has had with kind foster parents, he accepts a position as surgeon’s mate on his uncle’s ship. Excitement soon turns to horror, however, when the ship heads to Africa to bring back slaves, and Philip witnesses his uncle’s heartless, inhumane behavior toward his passengers. Then the crew and the slaves are stricken by ophthalmia, which causes blindness. Phillip alone regains sight, and he uses the opportunity to take the Africans home. The story works on multiple levels: as a suspenseful nautical adventure; a heart-wrenching account of the slave trade; and a coming-of-age story. Philip is a well-developed character whose powerful narrative (including some graphic descriptions), incorporates abundant historical detail, which Torrey explores further in an appended note. A glossary completes this engrossing and eye-opening historical novel, which examines one boy’s response to a call for action.“

www.yourmedianews.com – Too old for ‘Dick and Jane,’ too young for ‘Life of Pi’ – “Tween boys have a tougher time finding good books; unlike girls, they don’t have dedicated imprints at their service. One book that will appeal to them is “Voyage of Midnight,” the third book in Michele Torrey’s “Chronicle of Courage” series. Philip Higgins is an orphan in a British workhouse in the early 1800s, forced to work at dangerous jobs, suffering from illness and deprivation. After a long-lost uncle, a dashing sailor, promises to send money to care for him, Philip believes his life will change – but he is still sent out to work, and is beaten anytime he asks about the money. Eventually, Philip sets off for New Orleans, where his uncle offers him a position as the surgeon’s mate on his ship. Philip jumps at the opportunity, but soon realizes that his uncle is a slave trader, and the boat is heading to Africa to pick up a new load of ‘cargo.’ When an eye infection sweeps through the ship and blinds his uncle and the crew, Philip seizes the chance to take charge of the ship. There are battles with other ships, massive storms, fights among the crew and a striking portrait of life on a slave ship – the smells of the hold, the depleting rations, the relentless sun. This story is riveting, horrifying – and quite a lot of fun.”