I must admit that I was only familiar with this author’s
middle-grade books because I teach middle grades. However, I have
discovered how excellent his adult books are. I am a very eclectic
reader. My mother used to say if it stood still long enough, I would read
it. She wasn’t wrong. I love reading works with a dark side, like this book,
which is full of darkness. What is there to love about All the Silent Bones?
The opening of the book introduces two of the
characters. Both characters have very dark sides. Although the book
begins with the characters as adults, it then flashes back to their
childhood. When Bobby moves into their neighborhood, Ray’s father forbids
him from ever going into their house. We all know what happens when you
tell a kid they can’t do something. I immediately wondered whether his father
knew something or just felt something was off with the family.
The trauma that happens at Blackamore Pond is handled
differently by each boy. Regardless, we can see that each character is still
affected by that trauma years after it occurred. We can see how childhood
violence affects the characters as adults. Trauma stood out the most
because I had several students this year who struggled with family violence in
their homes. When I have students like this, I often wonder how they will
handle it as adults. For me, seeing the makeup of the characters and the
way their past created their present made them feel more realistic. I
liked that.
This book was a bit of a slower read for me, as I am
accustomed to reading middle-grade and young-adult books to recommend to my
students. It took a while to get into the adult frame of mind and
expectations. It had all the things I love and crave in adult books. We
have characters who have been hiding secrets. The characters are fleshed
out so that we see all their sides, including the good, the bad, and the
ugly. I loved the pacing and the twist. The only negative for me is
a personal thing. I am a grown woman, but not a fan of the “F” word. I hear
enough of it from my students. Overall, I would recommend this book and
check out his other adult books.
