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A review by cultclassics
Lucas by Kevin Brooks
5.0
5 stars out of 5 stars.
I have read somewhere that there is a difference between a good writing and a great writing: a good writing holds your attention by having twists and turns every now and then. It flows smoothly and everything makes sense in the conclusion. It is an interesting read - it will make you feel emotions but those emotions will slowly fade in time. However, a great writing does not simply hold your attention; it commands your attention. It is ambiguous enough to urge you to continue reading. It makes you think and ask questions. You can't stop reading because it drives you mad to know the answers. A great writing's goal is not to simply be mysterious but to be the mystery itself. A great writing is haunting because even after you have finished reading, it will still make you wonder. You will find yourself still pondering on it after a couple of years. A great writing sticks to you until it becomes a part of you.
I think this book, Lucas by Kevin Brooks, belongs to the Great Writing category. That's why I gave it a 5-star rating.
The story is set in Hale, an island off the coast of England [I wanted to know whether this place is fictitious or not so I did some research on it but my investigation resulted in vain. I suspect it is Hayling Island, but who knows, perhaps it is part of the book's mystery.]. The surroundings – the sea, the mudflats, the woods, and the town – are clearly and vividly detailed. When the narrator is taking a walk in the woods, it’s like I’m walking with her while hearing the birds chirp in the distance and breathing the earthly smell of the place. Hale Island is one of the highlights of this book which I think make the book unique and the readers won’t forget. The narrator is the 15-year-old Caitlin McCann. From her perspective, she tells the alarming and sad events that have happened in Hale during one fateful summer when a mysterious drifter who goes by the name Lucas arrives in the island. She meets Lucas and from then on nothing in her life is the same. He is that kind of character who makes you utterly curious. Cait does not know who he is, where he came from, what kind of story he has. But she knows he is beautiful. And strange. Beautiful and strange. She can tell he is kind, that he means no harm to others. However, the locals of Hale think otherwise so they start to conspire against him by spreading malicious lies about him. In a small community where everyone knows each other and preposterous rumors – even the smallest senseless lies – have substantial weight, the locals think it’s better to have a monster they know than a mystery they don’t.
In the book’s description, it says that Caitlin had an encounter with the ugly side of humanity. She did. The encounter was infuriating, ridiculous, terrifying, unfair, awful and most of all, sad. It is sad because it is true. What it makes it even sadder is that Cait – or we – can only do so little about it. There are people who know the truth but choose to look the other way; people who know what is right but refuse to listen to reason and instead become driven by the spur of the moment and the crowd’s mood; people who are powerful and vicious to do anything they want and lead others who do not know what they want to do what is wrong. They exist. While I was reading it, witnessing Cait’s struggle to defeat this ugly side and to protect Lucas, I thought, “What can a girl – who is in the midst of adolescence – do about something that seems to be beyond her control?” I can’t help but picture a rabbit surrounded by wolves, all eager to pounce on the lone prey.
On the bright side, Cait did not only see the humanity’s ugly side – she saw its beauty as well. There are people who care for others – who put their faith in them regardless of the consequences; people who will risk their lives and go to a great extent to protect those they care about. They exist too. This book made me realize with complete confidence that people can be good and/or bad, but one thing is for sure: people are unpredictable.
Lucas is the core of this book’s mystery. He is not mysterious; he is the mystery. I love him. Right now I still can’t put in order the thoughts I have about him, but he is definitely a character I will never forget. He will haunt me.
This book has peaceful moments and harsh injustices. It's beautifully sad.
I have read somewhere that there is a difference between a good writing and a great writing: a good writing holds your attention by having twists and turns every now and then. It flows smoothly and everything makes sense in the conclusion. It is an interesting read - it will make you feel emotions but those emotions will slowly fade in time. However, a great writing does not simply hold your attention; it commands your attention. It is ambiguous enough to urge you to continue reading. It makes you think and ask questions. You can't stop reading because it drives you mad to know the answers. A great writing's goal is not to simply be mysterious but to be the mystery itself. A great writing is haunting because even after you have finished reading, it will still make you wonder. You will find yourself still pondering on it after a couple of years. A great writing sticks to you until it becomes a part of you.
I think this book, Lucas by Kevin Brooks, belongs to the Great Writing category. That's why I gave it a 5-star rating.
The story is set in Hale, an island off the coast of England [I wanted to know whether this place is fictitious or not so I did some research on it but my investigation resulted in vain. I suspect it is Hayling Island, but who knows, perhaps it is part of the book's mystery.]. The surroundings – the sea, the mudflats, the woods, and the town – are clearly and vividly detailed. When the narrator is taking a walk in the woods, it’s like I’m walking with her while hearing the birds chirp in the distance and breathing the earthly smell of the place. Hale Island is one of the highlights of this book which I think make the book unique and the readers won’t forget. The narrator is the 15-year-old Caitlin McCann. From her perspective, she tells the alarming and sad events that have happened in Hale during one fateful summer when a mysterious drifter who goes by the name Lucas arrives in the island. She meets Lucas and from then on nothing in her life is the same. He is that kind of character who makes you utterly curious. Cait does not know who he is, where he came from, what kind of story he has. But she knows he is beautiful. And strange. Beautiful and strange. She can tell he is kind, that he means no harm to others. However, the locals of Hale think otherwise so they start to conspire against him by spreading malicious lies about him. In a small community where everyone knows each other and preposterous rumors – even the smallest senseless lies – have substantial weight, the locals think it’s better to have a monster they know than a mystery they don’t.
In the book’s description, it says that Caitlin had an encounter with the ugly side of humanity. She did. The encounter was infuriating, ridiculous, terrifying, unfair, awful and most of all, sad. It is sad because it is true. What it makes it even sadder is that Cait – or we – can only do so little about it. There are people who know the truth but choose to look the other way; people who know what is right but refuse to listen to reason and instead become driven by the spur of the moment and the crowd’s mood; people who are powerful and vicious to do anything they want and lead others who do not know what they want to do what is wrong. They exist. While I was reading it, witnessing Cait’s struggle to defeat this ugly side and to protect Lucas, I thought, “What can a girl – who is in the midst of adolescence – do about something that seems to be beyond her control?” I can’t help but picture a rabbit surrounded by wolves, all eager to pounce on the lone prey.
On the bright side, Cait did not only see the humanity’s ugly side – she saw its beauty as well. There are people who care for others – who put their faith in them regardless of the consequences; people who will risk their lives and go to a great extent to protect those they care about. They exist too. This book made me realize with complete confidence that people can be good and/or bad, but one thing is for sure: people are unpredictable.
Lucas is the core of this book’s mystery. He is not mysterious; he is the mystery. I love him. Right now I still can’t put in order the thoughts I have about him, but he is definitely a character I will never forget. He will haunt me.
This book has peaceful moments and harsh injustices. It's beautifully sad.