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barbaraskalberg's review against another edition
4.0
Great charcters. I loved the two boys. I'm looking into more by this author.
rozlev's review
5.0
A coming of age story that is beautifully written. Wonderful characters, engaging prose. atmospheric, insightful. Storytelling at its best.
lurdesabruscato's review
4.0
Evoking elements of To Kill a Mockingbird and The Body, Eskens perfects his coming-of-age novel by grappling with such heavy topics as racism and death in a small Missouri town. His protagonist Boady is an excellent combination of curious and self-reflective with a naive and tender soul.
bookish_blonde's review
4.0
I don't think I could rate anything written by Allen Eskens lower than a 4 ever. This was another win for me. His writing style, plots, characters, all of it... he is perfection for me. I will read anything he writes.
marilynw's review against another edition
4.0
Nothing More Dangerous by Allen Eskens (Author)
Kevin Stillwell (Narrator)
I really liked the character of fifteen year old Boady Sanden. He's a good, very intelligent, kid who is barely getting through school because he wants to get out of town as soon as he turns 16...he's not going to be here for graduation, he figures, since he is saving up all his part time job earnings, that he doesn't give to him mom for their bills, for the day he can leave. He knows his mom will miss him but is sure she'll get over it. Boady lives with his mom in their tiny house on a rural road that dead ends onto the property where both Boady and his mother work. Boady's dad died when he was five and his mother has never gotten over losing her husband but she loves Boady dearly and gives him the best life possible. Their next door neighbor is Hoke Garner, in his 60s, and a rock in Boady's life because he is just there, usually sitting on his porch, with a chair waiting for Boady or Boady's mom. Some of my favorite parts of the books are when Boady and Hoke are talking or just sitting together. And there are the Elgins, folks who move into the house across the street. Boady's lonely life gets more interesting because there is the potential for a friend in their son, Thomas.
Boady has a tough time at school. He's been invisible until he tripped up one of the hot shot seniors that was going to do something mean to the lone black girl in the school. Boady's new neighbors are black, too, and the mean trio of seniors has been trying to get Boady to deface their property but he refuses to do it. Now Boady is on the hit list of this mean trio and it's all he can do to get to the last day of school with his body intact.
Added to all of this is a missing black woman, Lida Poe, accused of stealing funds from her employers. There is also a secret group that is very much like the KKK. Of course, these people are after the Elgins because they are black and because Mr. Elgin has taken over the head job at the place that is missing money. He's there to find out what really happened to the money and if Lida Poe had help embezzling the money. It's a strange mix, Boady is getting his quiet summer days started, working, fishing, and a friend to spend time with, but the racial and other tensions ramp up and there is a feeling of unease at every turn.
By the end of the story, Boady has an entirely different outlook on life. He was a good kid at the beginning of the book and by the end, he's an even better kid, with a clearer picture of his mom, Hoke, and those around him. I'd been planning to read this book for the last year. Recently I listened to a book that was narrated by Kevin Stillwell and I liked his narration so much that I moved Nothing More Dangerous up my TBR list since he also narrates this book. I plan to listen to more books narrated by Stillwell and will be reading Eskens earlier books, based on how much I enjoyed this book and it's narration.
Pub November 12, 2019
Kevin Stillwell (Narrator)
I really liked the character of fifteen year old Boady Sanden. He's a good, very intelligent, kid who is barely getting through school because he wants to get out of town as soon as he turns 16...he's not going to be here for graduation, he figures, since he is saving up all his part time job earnings, that he doesn't give to him mom for their bills, for the day he can leave. He knows his mom will miss him but is sure she'll get over it. Boady lives with his mom in their tiny house on a rural road that dead ends onto the property where both Boady and his mother work. Boady's dad died when he was five and his mother has never gotten over losing her husband but she loves Boady dearly and gives him the best life possible. Their next door neighbor is Hoke Garner, in his 60s, and a rock in Boady's life because he is just there, usually sitting on his porch, with a chair waiting for Boady or Boady's mom. Some of my favorite parts of the books are when Boady and Hoke are talking or just sitting together. And there are the Elgins, folks who move into the house across the street. Boady's lonely life gets more interesting because there is the potential for a friend in their son, Thomas.
Boady has a tough time at school. He's been invisible until he tripped up one of the hot shot seniors that was going to do something mean to the lone black girl in the school. Boady's new neighbors are black, too, and the mean trio of seniors has been trying to get Boady to deface their property but he refuses to do it. Now Boady is on the hit list of this mean trio and it's all he can do to get to the last day of school with his body intact.
Added to all of this is a missing black woman, Lida Poe, accused of stealing funds from her employers. There is also a secret group that is very much like the KKK. Of course, these people are after the Elgins because they are black and because Mr. Elgin has taken over the head job at the place that is missing money. He's there to find out what really happened to the money and if Lida Poe had help embezzling the money. It's a strange mix, Boady is getting his quiet summer days started, working, fishing, and a friend to spend time with, but the racial and other tensions ramp up and there is a feeling of unease at every turn.
By the end of the story, Boady has an entirely different outlook on life. He was a good kid at the beginning of the book and by the end, he's an even better kid, with a clearer picture of his mom, Hoke, and those around him. I'd been planning to read this book for the last year. Recently I listened to a book that was narrated by Kevin Stillwell and I liked his narration so much that I moved Nothing More Dangerous up my TBR list since he also narrates this book. I plan to listen to more books narrated by Stillwell and will be reading Eskens earlier books, based on how much I enjoyed this book and it's narration.
Pub November 12, 2019
teal2wine's review
5.0
The "closure" of Hoke's story had me tearing up and having to pause multiple times. The other characters didn't measure up after that.
It felt awkward reading about open racism during these times of BLM. But the book is good overall.
It felt awkward reading about open racism during these times of BLM. But the book is good overall.
mindyt's review against another edition
5.0
Another great one from Allen Eskens. I love this author and enjoyed this as much as the others in the series.