But no.īecause people are not what they seem and even the worst have the capacity for good and change. And I'm sure that so far it sounds like every typical teen "issue book" filled with the usual melodrama. Not only that, but Doug has a few secret problems that it is becoming increasingly difficult for him to hide. At first it seems like the entire world is out to get Doug, his family have had to move to a small crappy house in a small crappy town, his father is abusive, his brother is a bully, everything good that comes into his life is eventually taken from him.
In this book, Doug Swieteck - a character we first meet in The Wednesday Wars - comes back to tell his own story, one which is far more painful and sad than Holling's. No, more than that, it's bloody brilliant. I should have hated it.īut Schmidt somehow manages to handle his characters so expertly that it's okay. I often find in these kind of stories something horribly cheesy and cliche, so when Mr Schmidt came along with this book and The Wednesday Wars and introduced me to two characters who find comfort in drawing pictures of birds and Shakespeare.
And then there are those young adult books with protagonists who deal with their problematic lives through creativity: art, music, literature. but Please Ignore Vera Dietz and How to Save a Life proved that I just needed to find the novels that dealt with it in a way I could appreciate. As a rule, I tend to avoid like the plague young adult books that are about dealing with the death of a loved one or teenage pregnancy. I used to say I didn't like the traditional or "high" fantasy genre, and then Megan Whalen Turner and Melina Marchetta proved that I had actually just not found the right brand of traditional fantasy to suit me. My favourite books are always those that prove me wrong, that break my own rules. Who would have thought that the public library would turn out to be a refuge and an inspiration, that a snooty librarian might be a friend, or that snarky redheaded Lil would like him-really like him? With more than his share of pain, including the return of his oldest brother from the Vietnam War, shattered and angry, will Doug find anything better than "okay for now"? Newly arrived in town, he starts out on the same path-antagonizing other kids, mouthing off to teachers, contemptuous of everything intimidating or unfamiliar. Teachers and police and his relatives think he's worthless, and he believes them, holding others at arm's length. Schmidt expertly blends comedy and tragedy in the story of Doug Swieteck, an unhappy "teenage thug" first introduced in The Wednesday Wars, who finds consolation and a sense of possibility in friendship and art.Īt once heartbreaking and hopeful, this absorbing novel centers on Doug, 13, who has an abusive father, a bully for a brother, a bad reputation, and shameful secrets to keep.
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