I have always been a sucker for a well-designed cover or an extremely catchy/intriguing title. The Life We Bury by Allen Eskens was already on my radar with both those features, so when I found it on a list of titles recommended for reluctant male teen readers, it was an easy sell! I tend to love books that make those kinds of lists because they are usually page-turners, so decided to give it a go. I have no regrets!
Joe Talbert, a college student, has landed in an English class in which he is assigned to write someone's biography. After procrastinating as long as possible on starting his assignment, he finds himself at a local nursing home in search of a person about whom he can write. Through a set of complex circumstances. he ends up interviewing and writing about Carl Iverson, a man convicted of raping, murdering, and burning the body of a 14 year old girl many years ago. Iverson, a cancer patient, has recently been released from prison to the nursing home because he is not expected to live long.
As Talbert interviews Iverson, investigates his case paperwork, and digs into his past, what seems like a fairly open and closed case against a man who should be reviled starts taking on the complexity of a kaleidoscope pointed toward the light. He cannot reconcile the man he is getting to know both in person and on paper with the cold-blooded perpetrator of the awful crime.
He takes it upon himself to investigate the leads that were available while the case was being prosecuted, and in doing so, finds himself in life-threatening situations on more than one occasion. Someone is not happy. Someone wants Carl to quietly die and have the blame buried with him.
This harrowing tale made me simultaneously feel like I HAD to continue reading, because it was essential to know what was going to happen, but sometimes I just could not make myself turn the page, knowing that something awful was just around the corner.
Although the novel does present a captivating story that pulls the reader through page after page with a need to discover the secrets they hold, I am not entirely confident it will hold the promised appeal for the reluctant adolescent audience. It is a great read, and it will absolutely click for many who like to read while perched on the edge of their seats, but at a tiny bit over 300 pages, the length might be off-putting for the truly reluctant reader. It's definitely worth a shot, though!
No comments:
Post a Comment