Boy21

Quick has succeeded again with another inspirational story with Boy21. He has a unique ability to tell a difficult and tragic story, while simultaneously retaining and inspiring hope within his reader. Quick makes you want to believe that everyone one day may find that ticket to Hogwarts and improve his or her situation. He has the ability to find the hope, or silver lining (if you will), in these tragic situations and can get his readers to believe. With Quick, it's all about believing.Quick illustrates the point that every person has a story, and each of these stories is important. In one passage, Boy21 and Finley are talking and Russ says, "So are we- we're stories too." Finley comes from a poor background, in a run-down, beaten-up town, and has endured terrible loss and tragedy in his life, and what Quick is showing us is that this kid- who comes from nothing, has nothing, and feels like a nobody in life- he has a story and his story is important and needs to be told. The same goes for all of us. One might say that "attention must be paid."One of Quick's strengths is the ability to get inside of the mind of someone with a psychiatric issue-- his understanding and representation is on target. The coping skills that Finley adopts- not speaking, playing basketball obsessively- are typical of a child/young adult who has experienced PTSD. This aspect of his writing- his ability to master different disciplines like psych- sets him apart from many other writers who are more one-dimensional and often try to tackle other disciplines with a very limited understanding. This skill in his writing is reminiscent of Faulkner.Matthew Quick is a masterful storyteller, and has the ability to evoke the most heartfelt emotions. Although Boy21 is geared for young adults, it truly is a book for all ages and walks of life- you can't go wrong with it. I can't wait for his next book!

Being a fan of Matthew Quick's, I eagerly awaited BOY21. Even though it was about a boy, basketball, with a little bit of Irish Mob and astrology thrown in there, I just knew that Quick's writing would break down whatever barriers I held within myself that would isolate me from the main character (after all, I'm a female, I don't play basketball and am just starting to appreciate the concept of sports, but I do love the stars.... At first, the main character seemed so far removed from me). But as Quick does, and as all great writing does, those "barriers" were invisible from the beginning. I related to Finely, not as if he were my brother, but as if he were me. I related to Boy21; I related to Erin; all of them were like little pieces of myself. And Quick did this so beautifully; after all, it's not the differences that matter but it's the story that holds the power to change people. As Quick says in the novel: it's our individual stories that make us who we are, and it's those stories that connect us.I sobbed at parts and smiled at others. The tenderness between the characters is sincere and heartfelt. And the messages...they will stay with me for a long, long time.BOY21 is not only a great read (I consumed it like a starving person in two days and want to go back and start all over again, to get the pieces that I missed), but, to me, reading BOY21 was better than years of therapy.I highly recommend that EVERYONE read this book--I think the world would be a better, more compassionate place if everyone did--...and then read it again.

`It's like my mind is a fist and it's always clinched tight, trying to keep the words in.' ~ Finley McManus (a.k.a. White Rabbit), the narrator - Matthew Quick, Boy21Such is the way Finley McManus lives his life. He's not much of a talker. When you're harbouring a secret that is bigger than yourself, it's so much easier to take a backseat through life. The reader gets the sense that if Finley were to start talking, he would just keep going until everything is out. The reader also gets a sense, right from the beginning of Finley's narration of this intriguing story, that there are a lot of secrets behind Finley's silence...a whole boiling cauldron of secrets that could destroy the carefully constructed safety he silently hides behind.Quick gives the reader just enough tidbits throughout Boy21, though, to drive their curiosity. There are whispers of the Irish Mob, of a less than admirable reason for Finley's grandfather's missing legs, of the fact that his mother is dead. We get just enough of the back-story to know a lot has happened to bring Finley to where he is in his life at the narration's onset. We know the back-story is eventually going to explode into the present and reveal the huge dark secret that has affected Finley so deeply, a secret so terrible he is forbidden to speak of it even in front of his father and grandfather--two men who know its intimate details just as deeply as Finley himself knows.This alone gives the reader enough of a reason to read on. Then we are introduced to Erin. Erin is the star of their school's girl's basketball team. She is also Finley's best friend and girlfriend. Together, Finley and Erin plan to one day escape the mean dark streets of Bellmont--hopefully with basketball scholarships to their choice schools.Enter Russ. Russ is new to Bellmont. He's one of the best high school basketball players in the country. But he is so devastated by the recent loss of his parents that he has escaped into an alternate reality where he is known as Boy21--a visitor from outer-space who is just putting in time while he awaits the arrival of his space travelling parents.The basketball coach, Coach Wilkins, asks Finley to take Russ under his wing, shadow him while he adjusts to his new surroundings. This is where I had a slight problem. To be honest, I found it rather vague. I'm thinking the coach was perhaps attempting to help both boys by putting them together. I just felt that it was unrealistic that Finley was given the herculean task he was given. It seemed almost mean-spirited of the coach--and the rest of the school--to set Finley up like this. The boys had all the same classes...also implausible to me that a school would do something like this. Anyway, because of the great writing and the interest I had in discovering the remaining of the story, I tried to overlook this boggling detail.These problems aside, Russ was a great character. I was immediately intrigued by him. His ability to live within his make-belief cosmos as Boy21 was near magical. The friendship that builds between Boy21 and Finley was wonderful. And all the while there is so much bubbling underneath...the promise of so many secrets to be revealed. My desire to see the two boys deal with their heavy burdens was palpable. And, in the end, Quick delivered.The real tribulations begin with Erin. The event that changes things for her also makes Finley begin to wonder if there is not more to life than basketball. This, at the same time his position on the team is threatened by the existence of his new friend Boy21. I have to mention here, that Finley's character arc was one of my favourite things about this novel. It was a fabulous arc...very satisfying to see his growth over the course of the story. It made Finley one of my favourite characters of late.There was so much going on in the last half of this book that I devoured it in under a day. And I believe you may do the same. Give it time. It's one of those books that seems quite good as you're reading it...but then kicks it up a notch and holds you right to the end. And it has an extremely satisfying ending. The last scene with Boy21 and Finley...I'll just say that it's absolutely remarkable. It will get you good!Expectation: Apart from a couple issues I had...minor issues...this was a surprise. I well and truly enjoyed it. Great characters, a LOT at stake...quite the ride. Enjoy!I'll be checking out Matthew Quick's other novels!

This was the second book of this author which l have just finished and enjoyed both of them simultaneously.Thank you very much

Silver Linings Playbook is one of my all-time favourite books. I have also read his latest three books and also enjoyed them so I made it my mission to go back and play catch-up with the rest of his back catalogue.In this book, we meet Finlay, he is fast approaching his senior year at school and, being something of a whizz at basketball, he is looking to use this as his escape from his home-town of Belmont. He spends most of his time shooting hoops with his girlfriend Erin, a star in her own right on the woman's team and things for them are more or less ticking along nicely. Until that is one day his coach comes to him and tasks him with a special mission. He wants him to help a fellow student. One who has suffered some personal tragedy and has, shall we say, gone a wee bit off kilter, Russ is convinced he is from outer space and wants to be known as Boy21. He is, or was before this all happened, a bit of a basketball star too, and coach reckons that Finlay is the right person for the job as he also suffered tragedy in his past too. Basically, coach wants Finlay to get Russ playing basketball again. Problem is, Russ plays same position as Finlay so, if Finlay succeeds, he will lose his starting position and, if thus happens, his dream of escape will go south...There is just something special about the characters that this author creates. He has a great skill in creating credible wounded souls without them being over the top. He also puts them into some rather interesting situations and really tests them. Here is no exception. Finlay is called upon to help his coach and, a good player, always obeys his coach. Problem is, he has to do it with the chance that success in his mission will possibly mean he will personally lose out. Dilemma indeed. If that wasn't enough to contend with, there is also the issues of his town, his family, his girlfriend and the mob which all add a whole other spin on most everything that happens.Gosh, I do paint the book as a bit doom and gloom. Well, some of it is rather emotional in that way, but we also have quite a lot of positive stuff going on too. There are some very funny moments as well as quite a few tender ones and, of course, there's always hope.I guess it helps that I am a big basketball fan as it does feature quite heavily in the story. It probably also helped that my fave player (Tim Duncan) wore 21 so I think that connection made the reading experience a bit more personal for me.All in all, a thoroughly satisfying book that I got totally immersed in, reading start to finish in only a few hours. Mr Quick is soon becoming one of my favourite authors.

This is a fresh story with basketball used thoughtfully as the background for the conflict. The characters are compelling, and almost completely believable. The conclusion of the novel requires a significant leap of faith on the part of the reader. It doesn't work completely. The pace of the novel, which is a strength, creates a bit of a problem when something so surprising and ironic occurs.

Story about a person Finley who residing at place which quite despair including drug peddlers and murderers. He had only one happiness in life : his beautiful and caring girlfriend.Very lucid writing makes you like you're with Finley. in sometimes you will feel helpless for Finley's situation. but it give you a story to recreate .Ending was gross. i really wouldn't like if son went to create good life but by paying cost of father and grandfather who stays in that deary place..thank you to matthew quick who wrote this fine art.

Boy 21A very unexpected story: I didn’t know what was coming. Complex story of teenagers confronted with the difficult pasts and uncertain futures. A world where adults reconcile themselves with youngsters and where youngsters help each other get over their problems.Clear, stronger writing, with complex characters, but credible. The problems are dealt with in a plausible manner, and the world depicted is realistic in that it is neither all good nor all bad, and there is a certain optimism underlying the entire novel.Highly recommended reading for 15+ yrs. A certain maturity is required.