This book was recommended to me by a friend, and it got written down on all my various lists to remember for a different day. When I saw it at the Green Valley Book Fair in July I snatched it up for a mere $3.75. It's been a rough couple of months for my reading interests (between vacation in Florida and then the babe's motorcycle accident and recovery), but cruising through Baby Wise last week helped me remember a little bit about what it was like to actually read a book and I snatched this one up figuring a shorter, easier read would be even more helpful in getting me back into the habit. (A quick thought: isn't it crazy how easy it is to get out of the habit of reading? I have found that how I spend my free minutes cycles between TV and books; when I'm in the habit of filling dead time with Netflix or an SVU marathon on the TV it's what I fill all my free time with and forget that books exist. But when I get in the habit of keeping my book by my side and grabbing it to fill free time, I discover how much free time I have to read little snippets at a time and the TV or iPad or even my phone don't seem as tempting. So this is me trying to get back into that mindset, because books will probably always be more healthy than the TV. Even really good TV.)
Matthew Quick's Boy 21 is a little strange. I'm not going to lie to you. I enjoyed it a lot, but the basic plot is pretty odd and takes a while to really get into. Finley (or White Rabbit, as his friends and teammates call him) is about to start his senior year of high school in a very racially divided, rundown city that there seems to be no escape from. His only source of happiness and satisfaction come from his basketball skills, and he spends all his time in the off-season preparing to be the best. When his coach shows up at his house the night before school starts and asks him to befriend a new kid in school who has gone through a hard time, Finley does what is asked of him. Little could prepare him, though, for the friendship that would be formed with this new kid who preferred to be called Boy21 and who claims to be an alien from a different planet, sent to study Earthlings. In many ways, Finley and Boy21 are the perfect pair, and learn a lot from each other over the course of the basketball season.
Like I said, a little bit of a goofy concept - he thinks he's a what?! - but it grows on you and it does all start to make more sense as the book progresses. The picture of friendship is pretty interesting as well, and even though Finley isn't a perfect character he does really shine in a lot of areas; his patience and understanding with Boy21 is impressive. I wouldn't say that this is the most profound or incredible book I've ever read, but it does have some twists and shocking moments, and it also shows a truly heartfelt picture of friendship even in less than ideal circumstances.
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