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A review by tyler_j
The Turtle Boy by Kealan Patrick Burke
4.75
TW: Homophobia, Guns, Murder, Suicide, Child Abuse, Drunken-ness
This hooked me from the very start and is at times delightfully creepy. I found it captured the wonder of childhood beautifully, with 11 year old Timmy being the main character. I absolutely loved the characters, especially Timmy's parents!
Timmy has a friend named Pete and Pete's father is a bully, something Timmy's parents call out. At times this short story even made me cry (and ultimately it ended up being heart-wrenching).
I found the writing beautiful and atmospheric.
Despite being short I found it touched on several things. The wonder of childhood, an adult being a bully, child abuse, how people think they are entitled to a traumatized child's story that ends up everywhere in the news, even to the point of when they don't get what the want making shit up. Sadly that happens in real life all too often. People don't stop and think of how anyone else feels, they are just desperate for that story!
TW: Fire-personal rant
It reminds me of after my house fire, I went to the hospital (even though I got lucky thanks to my neighbor saving me with a ladder, I had inhaled a bunch of smoke) and some news people ended up coming to the hospital begging for me to tell them what happened. I had a damn breathing mask on my face, had just lost EVERYTHING, my house and everything I owned and some pets, and almost my life, and you want cameras in my face at that moment so you can get your damn story?! FUCK YOU. Ahem....(also the hospital turned them away, thankfully) So yeah, I know people are like that all too well. Their story comes before anyone's trauma...*mumble-rages about people lacking all empathy*
back to the story
I didn't see the twist ending coming and it really fucked me up (in a good way). It's powerful when I thought about it. I can't stop thinking about the entire story.
I loved the writing, the atmosphere, the steady pace and plot, the characters and the messages. Ultimately I found this book a lot more than a short horror story. It was thought-provoking and heart-breaking. I absolutely loved it and can't wait to read more!
This hooked me from the very start and is at times delightfully creepy. I found it captured the wonder of childhood beautifully, with 11 year old Timmy being the main character. I absolutely loved the characters, especially Timmy's parents!
Timmy has a friend named Pete and Pete's father is a bully, something Timmy's parents call out. At times this short story even made me cry (and ultimately it ended up being heart-wrenching).
I found the writing beautiful and atmospheric.
Despite being short I found it touched on several things. The wonder of childhood, an adult being a bully, child abuse, how people think they are entitled to a traumatized child's story that ends up everywhere in the news, even to the point of when they don't get what the want making shit up. Sadly that happens in real life all too often. People don't stop and think of how anyone else feels, they are just desperate for that story!
TW: Fire-personal rant
It reminds me of after my house fire, I went to the hospital (even though I got lucky thanks to my neighbor saving me with a ladder, I had inhaled a bunch of smoke) and some news people ended up coming to the hospital begging for me to tell them what happened. I had a damn breathing mask on my face, had just lost EVERYTHING, my house and everything I owned and some pets, and almost my life, and you want cameras in my face at that moment so you can get your damn story?! FUCK YOU. Ahem....(also the hospital turned them away, thankfully) So yeah, I know people are like that all too well. Their story comes before anyone's trauma...*mumble-rages about people lacking all empathy*
back to the story
I didn't see the twist ending coming and it really fucked me up (in a good way). It's powerful when I thought about it. I can't stop thinking about the entire story.
I loved the writing, the atmosphere, the steady pace and plot, the characters and the messages. Ultimately I found this book a lot more than a short horror story. It was thought-provoking and heart-breaking. I absolutely loved it and can't wait to read more!