Rat Life
by Tedd Arnold
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After developing an unusual friendship with a young Vietnam War veteran in 1972, fourteen-year-old Todd discovers his writing talent and solves a murder mystery.Tags
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Set in 1972, this is the story that Todd tells of his short friendship with a boy/man called Rat during the summer of the great flood. Todd lives on the outskirts of New York city where the flood plain and suburbia collide. Todd is 14 and lives with his parents and slowly-turning senile Grandmother in a motel complex and his hobby is writing. One day, while riding home along the banks of the river he discovers a stray puppy. He picks it up but unfortunately a cement truck spooks it, it bites him and then it gets hit by the truck. As it lies squealing in pain on the road, that Rat appears and tells him to put it out of his misery.
Later, their paths cross again and Rat offers Todd a job at the Drive-In where he works - picking up rubbish show more and collecting tickets. Todd soon discovers that Rat keeps his cards close to his chest - he knows that Rat was in Vietnam and that his mother is a dope-fiend but that is all he knows - not even Rat's real name. While he tries to put the pieces together to figure out his friend, there is something more sinister happening in the background - a body has been washed up murdered in the river, a menacing drunk has terrified his senile grandmother and then driven his car through the motel, Todd has found a cap in the river that seems to belong to Rat's mysterious Uncle who has disappeared,and how can Rat have been a soldier when he seems not much older than Todd himself? To top this all off, the weather has become more menacing with violent winds and rising water levels.
This mystery novel has great twists and turns and looks at the treatment of the soldiers who came back from the Vietnam War as well as how some boys as young as 13 were able to enlist and serve. I particularly liked how Tedd Arnold writes how Todd discovers what his opinion of the war is. p.120 "Yesterday I had told Rat I didn't know how I felt about the war. But last night, trying to fall asleep, I realized - I did have an opinion. It must have formed without my even knowing. Of course I didn't like the war. But beyond that? All the news over the years - the protests, the body counts, the burning villages - had gradually piled up on me. "
I like this book for its complex characters, unusual setting (place and time) and most of all, its unpredictability. show less
Later, their paths cross again and Rat offers Todd a job at the Drive-In where he works - picking up rubbish show more and collecting tickets. Todd soon discovers that Rat keeps his cards close to his chest - he knows that Rat was in Vietnam and that his mother is a dope-fiend but that is all he knows - not even Rat's real name. While he tries to put the pieces together to figure out his friend, there is something more sinister happening in the background - a body has been washed up murdered in the river, a menacing drunk has terrified his senile grandmother and then driven his car through the motel, Todd has found a cap in the river that seems to belong to Rat's mysterious Uncle who has disappeared,and how can Rat have been a soldier when he seems not much older than Todd himself? To top this all off, the weather has become more menacing with violent winds and rising water levels.
This mystery novel has great twists and turns and looks at the treatment of the soldiers who came back from the Vietnam War as well as how some boys as young as 13 were able to enlist and serve. I particularly liked how Tedd Arnold writes how Todd discovers what his opinion of the war is. p.120 "Yesterday I had told Rat I didn't know how I felt about the war. But last night, trying to fall asleep, I realized - I did have an opinion. It must have formed without my even knowing. Of course I didn't like the war. But beyond that? All the news over the years - the protests, the body counts, the burning villages - had gradually piled up on me. "
I like this book for its complex characters, unusual setting (place and time) and most of all, its unpredictability. show less
Todd is a writer, and it is his writing that pulls the reader into the story right away as he struggles to find the right first line to start his tale. Rat Life grips the reader from the very beginning and doesn't let go until the end. When Todd meets Rat, there is just enough mystic behind Rat's character to make you ask - where did he come from, how old is he, and what's his story. Rat Life is hard to put down, and has a very satisfying but unexpected conclusion.
I can see how this won the Best Young Adult Edgar Award in 2008. The writing is tight; the type of craftsmanship that makes writing look easy. The mystery is not all that mysterious but then it's not meant to be. The star here are the three-dimensional characters and the intertwining relationships.Arnold, known primarily for his picture books, turns 180 degrees with this tale; it's dark and oft-times presents disturbing images. While geared toward a young adult audience, this is not Harry Potter. It is a clever, well drawn slice of life with characters that will stick with the reader throughout the journey.
Todd is an aspiring writer and the events that he is part of during 1972 certainly lend themselves to his stories. During an incident that haunts Todd when a stray dog he had tried to protect gets struck by a truck, his path crosses with a slightly older boy named Rat. To say Rat has had a difficult life would be an understatement. He has abusive, often absent parents and a mom who arranged for him to serve in Vietnam when he was just 14! Todd is interested in Rat and wants to really understand this mysterious kid who seems to somehow be linked with a dead body found in the river.
This book, with its short chapters and layered storytelling, was a quick read that was as much an exploration of character and story telling as it was a mystery.
This book, with its short chapters and layered storytelling, was a quick read that was as much an exploration of character and story telling as it was a mystery.
At 14, Todd is largely unaffected by the Vietnam War being fought so far away from his New Jersey life where he works at the family motel and spends his free time entertaining himself and his friends with his writing. With a bit of encouragement from his English teacher about his writing potential, Todd becomes more aware of the many “stories” all around him. He eventually meets Rat, who is just slightly older than Todd, but who has already served time in Vietnam.
Todd is fascinated with Rat, and as they share experiences and conversation, Todd begins to suspect that Rat may be involved in the mysterious murder of a dead man found in the river. The story is engaging and engrossing with the descriptive elements, as well as the show more action. Todd’s consciousness of bigger issues, like the war and family abuse and neglect, grows as the truth begins to unfold. show less
Todd is fascinated with Rat, and as they share experiences and conversation, Todd begins to suspect that Rat may be involved in the mysterious murder of a dead man found in the river. The story is engaging and engrossing with the descriptive elements, as well as the show more action. Todd’s consciousness of bigger issues, like the war and family abuse and neglect, grows as the truth begins to unfold. show less
Rat Life, the 2008 winner of the Edgar Award for Best Young Adult Mystery, is set in a small town in New York. The main character, an eighth grader named Todd, is an aspiring writer who works for his parents at the motel they own and operate. While trying to help a lost dog avoid getting hit by a cement truck, Todd is bitten and has possibly contracted rabies. It is during this suspenseful incident that Todd meets Rat, a boy a bit older than himself who is an isolated loner. Rat lives on the outskirts of town behind a drive-through movie theater. Rat convinces Todd to take a part-time job at the drive-in. While working together, Rat and Todd begin to form a friendship - of sorts - one with boundaries, as Rat has painful secrets that show more effect him deeply, and he's unwilling to share. When a dead body is found in the river, Todd becomes intrigued by the mystery; shortly before the body was discovered he found a baseball cap in nearly the same location on the riverbank. The police are unable to identify the body and have no clues as to killer's identity. But, Todd might.
Todd gradually learns more about his friend Rat and ultimately pieces together a connection between Rat's drug addicted mother, his abusive father, and the murder victim before the police are able to. In the intense climax to the novel, Todd confronts Rat at his home while the river has broken it's bank and a flash flood is encroaching on the small town. In a quick series of events, Todd arrives at Rat's home to discover the door wide open, and a dead man laying just inside. After Rat unexpectedly points a gun on Todd, both boys are swept away by the flood waters. Rat is knocked unconscious and Todd struggles to hold both of their heads above water while they are swept along with the raging torrent. Almost to the point of exhaustion, Todd is able to grab onto the edge of a stone bridge and hold his and Rat's faces out of the water while it pounds against them. Just as he is overcome with weakness and about to let go, Todd hears a voice behind him and the boys are rescued by a man in a small boat and taken to the hospital. At the hospital, the boys unravel the mystery of the two murders and Rat's connection to both victims. show less
Todd gradually learns more about his friend Rat and ultimately pieces together a connection between Rat's drug addicted mother, his abusive father, and the murder victim before the police are able to. In the intense climax to the novel, Todd confronts Rat at his home while the river has broken it's bank and a flash flood is encroaching on the small town. In a quick series of events, Todd arrives at Rat's home to discover the door wide open, and a dead man laying just inside. After Rat unexpectedly points a gun on Todd, both boys are swept away by the flood waters. Rat is knocked unconscious and Todd struggles to hold both of their heads above water while they are swept along with the raging torrent. Almost to the point of exhaustion, Todd is able to grab onto the edge of a stone bridge and hold his and Rat's faces out of the water while it pounds against them. Just as he is overcome with weakness and about to let go, Todd hears a voice behind him and the boys are rescued by a man in a small boat and taken to the hospital. At the hospital, the boys unravel the mystery of the two murders and Rat's connection to both victims. show less
Arnold, having penned his first novel for the young adult reader, hits his stride keeping in step with the classic amateur detective mystery, starting with the male amateur detective, Todd. The dead body is mentioned early in the story, along with the introduction of budding writer Todd and his sidekick Lee. The suspects all come into focus in Todd’s young mind. The guilty and the innocent are revealed to Todd via clues in and around the river, and the wrath of mother-nature consumes the town, determined to mete out its own justice, engulfing everything in its path as the river overflows its banks.
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Tedd Arnold was born in Elmira, New York. He earned a fine arts degree from the University of Florida. He and his wife, Carol, lived in Tallahassee where he worked as a commercial illustrator. He has now published over 50 books as author and illustrator. His book, Hi! Fly Guy received a 2006 Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor from the American Library show more Association. He now resides back in Elmira with his family. He has two grown sons, Walter and William. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
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- Dedication
- To Mary Jane Auch, Patience Brewster, Bruce Coville, Cynthia DeFelice, Robin Pulver, Vivian Vande Velde, and Ellen Stoll Walsh -- fantastically talented writers without whose enthusiastic encouragement and critical commentary... (show all) this book would have never happened.
And to Lauri Hornik, my fine and trusting editor, willing to take a giant leap of faith on a first novel. - First words
- A list of possible first lines:
1. A dead guy washed up from the river. I think a dead guy showing up is always a great way to start a story. I mean, if that was the first line I read in a book, I'd keep reading. Wou... (show all)ldn't you? But someone said, when you're brainstroming, you should never stop with your first idea. Maybe I can come up with something better. - Quotations
- "Her idea of saving my life? She sent me to Vietnam."
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)The sequel would be called Leaky Life, obviously!
Your pal,
Lee
Classifications
- Genres
- Fiction and Literature, Tween, Teen, Young Adult
- DDC/MDS
- 813.54 — Literature & rhetoric American literature in English American fiction in English 1900-1999 1945-1999
- LCC
- PZ7 .A7379 .R — Language and Literature Fiction and juvenile belles lettres Fiction and juvenile belles lettres Juvenile belles lettres
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