Jumper, by Steven C. Gould

(hb; 1992: first book in the Jumper trilogy)

From the inside flap:

“Davy can teleport. He first discovers his talent during a savage beating delivered by his abusive father, when Davy jumps instantaneously to the safest place he knows, his small-town public library. As his mother did so many years before, Davy vows never to go home again. Instead, he sets off, young and inexperienced, for New York City.

“Davy gradually learns to use and control his powers, first for sheer survival in an environment more violent and complex than he ever imagined. But mere survival is not enough for Davy. He wants to know if there are other people like him. He needs to know if his mother disappeared so completely from his life because she, too, could Jump. As as he searches for a trace of anyone else with powers like his own, he learns to use his abilities for more than escape and theft.

“A young man with nothing to lose, and the ability to go anywhere he wants, can help a lot of people. But he can also make a lot of trouble, and sooner or later trouble is going to come looking for him. The one way Davy can think of to locate other who can Jump is to make himself visible to them, but if he does, the police will surely find him, too...”

Review:

Dark undertides (domestic abuse, terrorism, non-graphic violent death, alcoholism) add reader-intriguing anxieties to Davy's first-person coming-of-age narrative, an expeditious narrative that becomes darker as it progresses. More than mere teleportation-clichéd frippery, this is a quality, not quite classic, read: worth your time, this.

Jumper, the novel, has two book sequels - Reflex, and Jumper: Griffin's Story (which is set for an August 21, 2007 release).

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The resulting film is set for a February 15, 2008 stateside release.

Doug Liman directed the film, from a script by David S. Goyer, Jim Uhls and Simon Kinberg.

Hayden Christiansen played Davey. Samuel L. Jackson played Cox. Diane Lane played Mary Rice. Michael Rooker played William Rice. Tom Hulce played Mr. Bowker. Kristen Stewart played Sophie. Barbara Garrick played Ellen.