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4.32 AVERAGE
4.32 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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:
Complicated
This is my new favorite book
So what is there really to say really about a book I loved from beginning to end A book that made me cry a few times while reading and definitely sigh when I came to the end.
There is a central mystery to Boy's Life that the main character Cory is trying to figure out, but really the main plot really is the magic that Cory tries to hold onto while he is on the cusp of leaving his boyhood behind.
Cory Mackenson lives in Zephry, Alabama in the 1960s. While taking a ride with his father in his milk truck one day, they come across a car going into a nearby lake. What they find there changes Cory's father and him. Cory's father grows depressed, distant, and feels as if the world he thought he knew is just a lie. Cory instead starts to do some digging, because he swears he saw a man standing there watching him and his father.
The entire story is told in the first person by Cory. There is not much to say besides the fact that I thought that Cory was wonderful as a character. Robert R. McCammon perfectly captures an 11 year old boy who loves his family, friends, and his loyal dog. Watching as Cory starts to understand the power of words, telling stories, and ultimately writing down his stories was great.
The secondary characters in this story shine too. Cory's father and mother are good people trying to do the best that they can. What hurts though is that Cory starts to see that his family is flawed. You remember that feeling when you were a kid when you realized that your parents were not these omnipotent beings? Well Cory starts to have those feelings too. What you love about it, is that through dreams (visions) Cory is fighting really hard to make sure that he keeps the magic that he knows to be true inside of him even with everything that is going on.
The other characters, Cory's best friends are great. I cheered on Johnny, cried over Davy Ray, and cracked up over Ben's doubting Thomas act. I felt like I was right there with them while they flew, biked, camped, and fought.
There are also other characters that I absolutely wish we could have spent more time on such as the so called Lady and her community that lived in Bruton. One of my favorite scenes with her involved her and Cory and Cory actually going backwards to see how the Lady looked and realizing how powerful she really was.
The writing was wonderful. There were several times while reading that I cried. This book really takes a hard look at death and you get to see Cory react differently to it each time he is faced with it. Besides the central mystery that Cory is trying to solve.
We also have the book looking at racism in the 1960s. There was some ugliness with some of the characters and for those who don't like to read the "N" word, that is in there as well. I do applaud McCammon though for including it and not trying to pretty it up. One of the reasons why I did get annoyed by books such as "The Help".
The flow was great. Though some readers may get annoyed that the central mystery takes so long to unravel, I did not. Frankly I don't like it when a book somehow has the main character figuring out who done it 2 days later. And it was realistic with everything else going no with Cory, that the mystery would not be uppermost in his mind.
The setting of Zephyr, Alabama was magical. Everything about the town and the people. The way that the author describes it you think you could find it and explore it yourself and point out landmarks here and there.
The ending made me happy and also sad. You get to read about what became of Cory, his family, and his friends. And you also get to read about what became of the town of Zephyr.
I cannot recommend this book enough.
There is a central mystery to Boy's Life that the main character Cory is trying to figure out, but really the main plot really is the magic that Cory tries to hold onto while he is on the cusp of leaving his boyhood behind.
Cory Mackenson lives in Zephry, Alabama in the 1960s. While taking a ride with his father in his milk truck one day, they come across a car going into a nearby lake. What they find there changes Cory's father and him. Cory's father grows depressed, distant, and feels as if the world he thought he knew is just a lie. Cory instead starts to do some digging, because he swears he saw a man standing there watching him and his father.
The entire story is told in the first person by Cory. There is not much to say besides the fact that I thought that Cory was wonderful as a character. Robert R. McCammon perfectly captures an 11 year old boy who loves his family, friends, and his loyal dog. Watching as Cory starts to understand the power of words, telling stories, and ultimately writing down his stories was great.
The secondary characters in this story shine too. Cory's father and mother are good people trying to do the best that they can. What hurts though is that Cory starts to see that his family is flawed. You remember that feeling when you were a kid when you realized that your parents were not these omnipotent beings? Well Cory starts to have those feelings too. What you love about it, is that through dreams (visions) Cory is fighting really hard to make sure that he keeps the magic that he knows to be true inside of him even with everything that is going on.
The other characters, Cory's best friends are great. I cheered on Johnny, cried over Davy Ray, and cracked up over Ben's doubting Thomas act. I felt like I was right there with them while they flew, biked, camped, and fought.
There are also other characters that I absolutely wish we could have spent more time on such as the so called Lady and her community that lived in Bruton. One of my favorite scenes with her involved her and Cory and Cory actually going backwards to see how the Lady looked and realizing how powerful she really was.
The writing was wonderful. There were several times while reading that I cried. This book really takes a hard look at death and you get to see Cory react differently to it each time he is faced with it. Besides the central mystery that Cory is trying to solve.
We also have the book looking at racism in the 1960s. There was some ugliness with some of the characters and for those who don't like to read the "N" word, that is in there as well. I do applaud McCammon though for including it and not trying to pretty it up. One of the reasons why I did get annoyed by books such as "The Help".
The flow was great. Though some readers may get annoyed that the central mystery takes so long to unravel, I did not. Frankly I don't like it when a book somehow has the main character figuring out who done it 2 days later. And it was realistic with everything else going no with Cory, that the mystery would not be uppermost in his mind.
The setting of Zephyr, Alabama was magical. Everything about the town and the people. The way that the author describes it you think you could find it and explore it yourself and point out landmarks here and there.
The ending made me happy and also sad. You get to read about what became of Cory, his family, and his friends. And you also get to read about what became of the town of Zephyr.
I cannot recommend this book enough.
DNF. Cliche after cliche after cliche. Some of the laziest writing I have ever encountered.
I really loved this boy and it's unique, American Deep South take on magical realism. The audiobook was marvelous, giving wonderful voice to character that jump off the page. If a murder mystery could have a lyrical feel, this book does. I will miss these characters, until I read the book again.
What a wonderful book. Somewhere between Mark Twain and Hayao Miyazaki. Full of magic and life, every chapter feeling like one of those Great Stories that lingers in your memories. So much of this is quintessential, the American coming-of-age story to top them all. An incredibly entertaining, funny, wistful celebration of the idiosyncrasy of a small-town childhood and all the quirks that come with it, and an optimistic, if not quite nuanced, examination of the uglier attitudes and traditions of rural America and how it conflicts with innocence (with some precarious threads of representation but I think the overwhelming goodheartedness wins out). A couple of the stories might not reach the heights of the Spring section, and it gets a little silly in the late chapters with the reveal of a villain, but that last chapter? I'm not made of stone. Very surprised McCammon isn't as popular as King.
To say I enjoyed this book is an understatement. I laughed out loud one minute and cried the next. I've loved Robert McCammon since I read "Swan Song" many years ago. I'm not sure how this book went under my radar for so long. This is a thoroughly enjoyable read. It took me back to the carefree days of childhood and life in a small town. The magic of youth is a wonderful thing. Highly recommend.
Makes me wish to have grown up in 1964
I loved it, but I might have loved it more without the main plotline. Everything else was enough, the driving force was, perhaps, a bit too much. Still, a wonderful read.
I loved it, but I might have loved it more without the main plotline. Everything else was enough, the driving force was, perhaps, a bit too much. Still, a wonderful read.
I’m really confused about the high rating of this book and so many people saying this is their favorite book of all time. To them I say, “Have you read any other books?” I have been scrolling through reviews trying to get it and I still can’t figure it out. I have also been scrolling through to see if there are any black people that read this book and liked it. I picked this one up and read it because if it’s high rating and so many people saying it was their favorite and I must say that I feel deceived. I am not one to abandon a book (I know I should because there are so many good books and only so much time) and I maybe should have abandoned this one. I kept thinking, there’s something I’m missing or there’s going to be a moment where I am in awe of this book. That moment never came. I know this was written in the 90’s and it was set mostly in the 60’s, but I can’t figure out why this white author needed to use the n word so much. We get it, these people were terrible and ignorant but damn! Needless to say, this is not my new favorite book.
Just a beautiful book. I found myself re-reading passages and just sort of getting lost in the prose. Very reminiscent of "Summer Of Night" and "It" following the life of a boy for one year in a small town - very steeped in nostalgia with bits of magical realism. This was not a quick read for me, while I loved the writing, I did find myself plodding through. The book followed several story lines, and I found myself very vested in solving the murder mystery, and I wish the pacing on that could have been a bit faster. The Epilogue also tripped me up just a bit - I usually love an epilogue (I tend to like things all tied up neat and tidy at the end), but I felt like the epilogue in this story didn't add anything for me.