Boy's Life by Robert McCammon

How I Heard About It:  While browsing at the wonderful Anderson's Book Shop in Naperville, I was checking out the novels written for adults.  This cover caught my attention.  I read the blurb and then checked out some reviews on GoodReads and Amazon.  All of them were very positive.  I not only wanted to purchase a young-adult novel and middle-grade novel, but a novel for adults as well.  

What It Is About:  This story takes the reader back to 1964 to the town of Zephyr, Alabama.  It is a quiet town where everyone knows everyone and life is pretty stable and easy.  Cory is twelve years old and lives with his mother and father.  His dad is the local "milkman".  One morning Cory tags along with his father on his route.  During their route, they witness a car plunge into the "mysterious" lake.  Cory's dad jumps into the lake to attempt to save the man in the car only to find out that the driver has been handcuffed to the steering wheel and is dead.  While Cory watches from the side of the lake, he notices a man across the lake watching them.  He also find a green feather like none other he has every seen.  As Cory and his dad move forward from this horrific event, they both try to forget what they saw and carry on with life.  This is not easy for either one of them.  While time passes, Cory begins to put pieces together and thinks he knows who is responsible for the murder and it is the last person anyone would expect to commit this horrible crime.  

What I Thought Of It:  I so enjoyed this "mega" story.  It was a long novel at about 600 pages.  This summer I spent most of my reading time with young-adult and middle-grade novels.  I wanted to get in more novels for adults, but there is only so much time in a day.  I'm glad this was one of my adult reads this summer.  The writing was stellar and the story unfolded with ease and grace.  While being a bit of a mystery, it was more of a character driven story telling about a particular time in Cory's life.  There were some "magical" elements sprinkled throughout the story which added greatly.  Cory's parents were heart-warming and the kind of parents you could just picture in the 1960's.  As I read, I could picture the town of Zephyr and the way of life.  This novel really had everything in it and will satisfy any reader.  

Who Should Read It:  I was not familiar with Robert McCammon before finding this book.  I guess he has written quite a few novels.  If you have read his other works, then I would recommend this incredible story.  I believe that adults and/or high school avid readers would enjoy the story of Cory and the circumstances he found himself in during 1964.  Happy Reading!  

Rating:  4 STARS out of 5 Stars