The Dead Boys

This book is pretty creepy. For me, the creepiness was compounded by the "about the author," which appears at the beginning of my ARC, telling a bit about Buckingham's childhood in Richland, downstream from a nuclear power plant and with a huge and gnarly sycamore tree in his back yard. If this ends up coming at the end of the published book, I think it'll add a little chill after everything is over and done with. Because I read it at the beginning, I kept thinking, "This is a real place!" even if the things happening in it are clearly fiction.

Warped by toxic nuclear waste that was dumped into the river during the Manhattan project, the tree next to Teddy's house has decided that it no longer likes to draw it's energy from the sun and show more the water. It likes to suck energy from twelve-year-old boys. And it's been doing just that for decades. Teddy, new to town, is looking to meet new friends and runs into a few of the trees past victims. At first these boys seem a bit odd to him, but not so out of place that he doubts their existence. The bell bottoms and "wiseacre" sayings were a big tip-off to me that these kids were visiting from the past, but middle grade readers might, like Teddy, just think he's moved into a tiny town in the middle of nowhere and so a little behind the times.

Teddy is slow to figure out what is really going on, but not so slow that I wanted to shake him. Near misses with the tree also kept the suspense at a high, distracting me from Teddy's sometimes sluggish sleuthing. By the time he gets it all sorted out, Teddy is either going to be the tree's next victim or the tree's downfall. In trying to save himself, he has to decide if he wants to/can also save the boys who have been trying to help the tree, the only kids he's met at all in Richland.

Again, this was a creepy book. Those chapters about the tree breaking in to Teddy's window while he's sleeping are best not read right before bed. Surprising choices about loyalty and doing what is right verses doing what is best for you right now make The Dead Boys a slightly more substantial read than your average horror book.

Book source: ARC picked up at ALA show less

When Teddy Matthews moves with his mother to the desert town of Richland, Washington, he is not overly thrilled. He's left his friends and school behind and has moved into a new home where he'll have to start anew.

Upon his mother's bickering that he cannot remain indoors and must venture out to make new friends - he finds himself drawn to the giant sycamore tree in the yard of the abandoned house next door. A tree that has been mutated by nuclear waste - which in turn has taken a life of its own. This tree is like no other, for it feeds on the life energy of boys that it ensnares with its living roots. Teddy, at first, doesn't understand why he is drawn to the tree or why every time he meets a new boy in the neighborhood they somehow show more disappear - right before his eyes. Something is terribly wrong with Richland and he quickly learns that what's wrong is the tree - a tree that has its sights on its next victim.

This book was so deliciously creepy. I actually started reading it right before bedtime and ended up having to put it down and wait till the following morning to pick it back up. I found myself caught up in the mystery of the tree, the dead boys, and Teddy's fight for his life. He was a great character - brave, strong, one who respected his mother, and although there is a slight altercation of breaking and entering, an all around good boy. When Teddy crosses over into a dream-like world where the tree is supreme and above all - I was literally sitting at the edge of my seat. I felt his anxiety, his dread and his fears.

Mr. Buckingham positively delivers a frightening tale with good ambiance and lots of creepy moments, mysterious shadows, creaky windows and menacing elements that make this a successfully atmospheric read. It will definitely appeal to reluctant readers with its fast pace and chill factor. This is a great read for young and old alike that like a good spook before bedtime.

This book was provided for review by Planned Television Arts. show less

Richland, in Washington state, has long been famous and infamous as the location of the Hanford Site, the most contaminated nuclear site in the United States (it produced plutonium for most of the nuclear weapons developed by the U.S.) and the focus of the nation’s largest environmental clean up. As if this disaster on the Columbia River wasn’t sufficiently horrifying, Buckingham uses his hometown as the setting for a story that combines an unconventional serial killer, its victims, and a smart protagonist.

Twelve-year-old Teddy’s nurse mother moves him to Richland a month before the new school year begins, then pushes him outdoors to find new friends. Teddy is a smart, likeable, shy, and brave protagonist, and down by the river show more he meets Albert, dressed in old-fashioned bell-bottom jeans. Albert warns Teddy about the local bullies, led by a kid named Henry, and hints at a greater danger, but before he can share more, the bullies appear. Albert slips into the river to escape, leaving a bewildered Teddy to deal with Henry on his own. Teddy meets other boys around town, all of whom talk and behave—then disappear—in odd ways. Just as odd and even more intriguing is an enormous sycamore tree growing in the yard of an abandoned house next door. Fairly quickly, Teddy figures out the tree, the Hanford Site, and the mysterious boys are connected and that the tree, which scratches at Teddy's window with long, grasping branches, seems determined to lure Teddy closer. When the tree takes drastic, dangerous action, Teddy realizes it will stop at nothing to bring him under its control, and he learns that it knows—and will use—Teddy’s deepest fears to achieve its goal. There’s a wonderful scene in which a black widow spider threatens Teddy; our hero’s decisive action made me squirm, and undoubtedly it will please everyone who reads it.

Buckingham adapts the villainous tree motif by adding ecological terror in the form of the Hanford Site, a nice touch by the author, a Richland, WA, native. The Dead Boys, of course, isn’t unique in using a tree as villain: Apple trees make Dorothy Gale’s life briefly miserable in The Wizard of Oz; hundreds of kites were lost to one greedy tree, courtesy of Charlie Brown and Charles Schulz; and Buckingham’s giant sycamore bears a strong resemblance to a gnarled tree that loomed outside the home of the hapless Freeling family in Poltergeist.

The story benefits from fast pacing and action that doesn’t encourage reflection, an asset in a story that, judged by the most lenient standards, fails just about every logic test. Why, for example, does the tree only crave 12-year-old boys? Engaging as each boy proves—and Buckingham does deft, quick characterizations of each—wouldn’t the boundless energy of 5- or 6-year-olds provide enough power for entire forests? What does the tree have against girls? Adults? Or dogs and cats, for that matter? Equally puzzling is why the police don’t seem to realize that over the decades there’s been a systematic series of disappearances among the 12-year-old boy population; has the tree cast some form of glamor over the entire town? The climax, in which Teddy negotiates the dim, dusty world of the sycamore, proved so visually confusing I gave up trying to make logical sense of it and let myself succumb to a surreal vision—it worked for me.

When I closed the book, I wondered how the boys Teddy saved would cope with their new lives, devoid of family and many familiar landmarks; and I liked Dead Boys even more for having provoked such questions. Highly recommended. show less

I could feel the goosebumps while reading this book. Remember those moments as a child where you look out the window and the tree nearby looks eerie and even human-like? The Dead Boys takes this fear and adds a dream-like world on top of that. The horror elements in this book are supremely well done. The fear is real enough to feel, and the mystery is heightened as Teddy gets closer to solving the secret of the dead boys. These are important to enjoy a horror novel and I think the author does a good job in heightening those senses. It’s a quick read, as the book isn’t very long, but you’ll find the story does capture your attention and you’ll want to read this from start to finish in one sitting.

What I thought was really neat show more was the illustration at each chapter featuring the tree and its’ arm like branches reaching out towards the child. As the story progresses, you notice the branches getting longer (or shorter) depending on the plot. I thought that was a nice add on to the story and it was a subtle hint as to what is to come in the following chapter you’re reading. I really liked that part of the novel it’s certainly something you don’t see in just any regular book.

The ending was good although I expected a more ‘horror-like’’ ending. I think this is because perhaps the book is catered towards a younger age group. This book could be considered for middle grade children or young adults nevertheless I think it’s a wonderful creepy story (a perfect read for those rainy windy days!) and regardless of age, everyone should give this one a try. Just make sure there’s no tree near your window. show less

Such a fun and creepy book. Takes place in our own Richland, WA and tells the story of a tree that lives off the energy of 12 year old boys. Keeps you on the edge of your seat throughout the entire story. I book talked this book to 5th and 6th graders and they showed extreme interest in reading this book. Very appealing to both genders. And I have heard excellent responses from the students who have read it since that book talk. I really enjoyed reading this chapter book and have been recommending it to teacher friends and others.

I was worried about this book since it was an award nominated book and it needed to be in the library...but all of you who worry about the title, don't. This science fiction /fantasy book is great, and the illustrations of the tree reaching out for the boy at the beginning of each chapter helps. It is creepy and not for every reader--especially if you get scared easily and you have a big tree outside your bedroom window. The time travel element in the book is interesting, but it took me a little while to figure out that the dead boys were coming from the past.

Teddy, with his mom, move to a new house in a new town when she gets a new job at the nuclear plant. Mom is anxious for Teddy to make new friends but he finds that it isn't going to be easy especially when the boys he does meet are in strange situations and then they disappear. It turns out the boys are somehow related to the sinister sycamore tree in the neighboring yard that seems to be trying to get him..

The mysterious boys, the creepy tree and Teddy's adventures kept me entertained and wanting to read more. Interesting and scary plot will keep young kids reading as well. And moms, it isn't too scary but if you have an easily frightened child check it out first. This book is meant for middle grade kids. Good book to get boys show more reading.

This book was passed on to my 11 year old nephew and I look forward to hearing what he thinks about it. He loves all things scary. I think he will enjoy it. show less