Reviews - Boy's Life | The StoryGraph

954 reviews for:

Boy's Life

Robert R. McCammon

4.32 AVERAGE

backdraft_bookshelf's review against another edition

5.0

Boy’s Life - Robert McCammon

just_jack's review against another edition

4.5

I have mixed feelings about this book, but they're mostly centered around my expectations vs. what the book actually was. I went into the book expecting a fantasy/horror/mystery book with some coming of age elements, but it was very much a small-town coming of as story with some light mystery and horror and some very light fantasy elements. That being said, I think it was an awesome story that was very well told and overall just very craft fully done, but I had a hard time with it at times because it wasn't what I expected. I wish I could unread it and then go into it expecting what it actually was, cause I think it very well could've been a 5 star read for me, but at times my engagement did falter.

flyinghor5e's review against another edition

5.0

6 stars

Incredibly moving.
All the greatest books are magic spells.
This is a very powerful magic.

This might be my favourite book ever.

straylight's review

5.0

Crossing boundaries between reality and fantasy, this story is a true journey through a boy's imaginative childhood. The book seems to be made up of a series of smaller adventurous stories, all interwoven into a thriller of a tale that comes crashing to an exciting conclusion at the end. Many fascinating and well developed characters make appearances along the way. I wasn't sure what to think of this book at first, but by the end of it, I was thoroughly enjoying the tale.

hawkeyegonzalez's review

4.0

dark emotional funny mysterious fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

After having Robert McCammon on my TBR list for almost 25 years, I FINALLY decided to give him a shot. I decided to start with what is his best reviewed book on Goodreads, and I'm not sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

The story revolves around an 11-year-old boy named Cory in the small town of Zephyr, Alabama. It starts off interestingly enough with Cory and his dad witnessing a car drive into a seemingly bottomless lake with a dead person behind the wheel. After that, the book becomes primary a coming-of-age story with the murder mystery in the background but always looming. While I really enjoy the richness of small town life that is on every page, I will say that the first half of the book drags on a little too long. The entire murder mystery is almost completely forgotten about during that time, which is a little jarring. Luckily, the second half picks up quite a bit, and everything ends on a high note.

There are elements of horror and magic sprinkled throughout here, and the magic parts are never really explained. It's like they are just a part of the town itself. At first, that aspect bothered me, but I started to appreciate it more after seeing it through Cory's eyes, since the eyes of a pre-teen are often filled with magic and wonder.

Speaking of which, Cory is obviously the central figure, and the entire book is told from him POV. He's likeable enough and comes off as a genuine 11-year-old kid. However, there are plenty of other memorable characters as well with my favorite probably being Mr. Lightfoot. I always enjoy reading about elderly characters whose wisdom and experience are borderline their own magic. He's a very entertaining character, and I smiled every time he appeared.

I had this book around 3.5 stars until the very end. When a now adult Cory takes his family back to Zephyr, I had to fight back tears. I lost my dad 16 years ago, and it still hurts thinking about it. Cory's conversation with his dad brings back those memories.

Overall, this is a very good book that I would recommend to anyone, but it didn't blow me away like I had hoped. I'll still read more McCammon books in the future, so we'll see how those go.