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4.33 AVERAGE
4.33 AVERAGE
One of the best reading experiences I've ever had. A great nostalgic story about a boy on the cusp of adolescence right at the point when he stops believing in the magic of childhood. "Boy's Life" has a little bit of everything - magic, fantasy, horror - all done with exceptional storytelling. This is the best Stephen King book that isn't by Stephen King that I've come across, and I liked it better than all of King's best books.
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
It was rather slow but once I got into it, I was immersed and by the end of Cory’s journey I was enamored. It was truly a beautiful book and held a lot of magic and heart and hurt. I will be thinking of Cory forever now, here and there, he lives on forever that’s for sure. If I miss him I’ll just return back to his story just so I can experience him again.
Definitely not what I expected, but a good read nonetheless.
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I read this book as a teen and I absolutely loved it. It brought to mind for me other amazing coming of age stories such as The Body by Stephen King and Summer of Night by Dan Simmons.
I just loved this book; it was wonderful.
I just loved this book; it was wonderful.
5 Stars and well-deserved, in my very humble opinion.
Well written story of a boy's life. 1964, when the world was on the verge of so much change; we enter Cory Mackenson's world. A tween on the verge of manhood; but still able to hold onto is childhood just a little longer. Cory and his friends embark upon adventures, real and and not so real; or are they? He also encounters the evil that men do and learns, as children always do; the hard way; but he learns.
I really did not think this book would interest me. I mean, what do I have in common with preteen boys?? A lot; after reading this book. The characters are relatable and you can feel your own story being told. I remember the bullies, horrible teachers, creepy kids and even creepier adults; but I also remember the magic of childhood. I remember when my imagination went far and wide. I remember when I was the heroine of the story. I remember stepping into other lives, other stories and creating new worlds. I remember it.
Boy's Life tells your story and sings your song. I hope you listen.
Well written story of a boy's life. 1964, when the world was on the verge of so much change; we enter Cory Mackenson's world. A tween on the verge of manhood; but still able to hold onto is childhood just a little longer. Cory and his friends embark upon adventures, real and and not so real; or are they? He also encounters the evil that men do and learns, as children always do; the hard way; but he learns.
I really did not think this book would interest me. I mean, what do I have in common with preteen boys?? A lot; after reading this book. The characters are relatable and you can feel your own story being told. I remember the bullies, horrible teachers, creepy kids and even creepier adults; but I also remember the magic of childhood. I remember when my imagination went far and wide. I remember when I was the heroine of the story. I remember stepping into other lives, other stories and creating new worlds. I remember it.
Boy's Life tells your story and sings your song. I hope you listen.
Well, I finished it. Finally.
This is a book about the magic of childhood, where the magic is like the jelly in a doughnut that has been filled with a firehose...There is a lot of it, far more than necessary, and quite a lot of it has ended up on the walls.
"Magic realism" is the style of course, but the realism is a thin film. Magic there is in excess, in a veritable superabundance. It's everywhere. And the realism, what there is of it, is so gilded with sententious nostalgia that it reads as fantastical and unreal. All the life lessons are trotted out at intervals with the sparkling gilded polish of an episode of Leave it to Beaver. "Jeepers pa, why don't he like them?" "Well son, we call that racism." "Wow pa, that sure is dumb!"
There are innumerable callbacks to a nostalgic time that didn't even really exist in the 60's, more like a myth of childhood, which I suppose is appropriate in a book with so many myths, but still felt preachy and saccharine. It's heavy-handed to a point where it's off-putting, even if you agree with the sentiment.
I found it a slog. A number of the magical asides left me cold, the drumbeat of every possible childhood lesson dished out in rapid succession left me wondering when this kid had time to sleep, much less go to school. Seemed he had time for nothing else but to have valuable life lessons strewn across his path by good-hearted grownups and bad apples that were the cartoonish caricature of whatever bad example they were meant to be. It doesn't help that our hero acts in the way that we'd have all liked to have acted, looking back on our childhood selves, and not how we actually acted, little shits that we were. Smacks of revisionist history.
It's like Henry Huggins, Homer Price, and Tom Sawyer with the rough edges ground down, and the whole thing drowned in syrup and glitter. If that appeals to you, as it seems to appeal to many, then this is your book. It did not work for me.
This is a book about the magic of childhood, where the magic is like the jelly in a doughnut that has been filled with a firehose...There is a lot of it, far more than necessary, and quite a lot of it has ended up on the walls.
"Magic realism" is the style of course, but the realism is a thin film. Magic there is in excess, in a veritable superabundance. It's everywhere. And the realism, what there is of it, is so gilded with sententious nostalgia that it reads as fantastical and unreal. All the life lessons are trotted out at intervals with the sparkling gilded polish of an episode of Leave it to Beaver. "Jeepers pa, why don't he like them?" "Well son, we call that racism." "Wow pa, that sure is dumb!"
There are innumerable callbacks to a nostalgic time that didn't even really exist in the 60's, more like a myth of childhood, which I suppose is appropriate in a book with so many myths, but still felt preachy and saccharine. It's heavy-handed to a point where it's off-putting, even if you agree with the sentiment.
I found it a slog. A number of the magical asides left me cold, the drumbeat of every possible childhood lesson dished out in rapid succession left me wondering when this kid had time to sleep, much less go to school. Seemed he had time for nothing else but to have valuable life lessons strewn across his path by good-hearted grownups and bad apples that were the cartoonish caricature of whatever bad example they were meant to be. It doesn't help that our hero acts in the way that we'd have all liked to have acted, looking back on our childhood selves, and not how we actually acted, little shits that we were. Smacks of revisionist history.
It's like Henry Huggins, Homer Price, and Tom Sawyer with the rough edges ground down, and the whole thing drowned in syrup and glitter. If that appeals to you, as it seems to appeal to many, then this is your book. It did not work for me.
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A great read, it felt like I was in the world, the adventure of the book was amazing
4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5 stars
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No