Get ready for a review of the first book on my Magical Readathon TBR that I did not enjoy. I read this one for the prompt of having back under the dust jacket. This one was called Husky by Justin Sayre.
Synopsis: Twelve-year-old Davis lives in an old brownstone with his mother and grandmother in Brooklyn. He loves people-watching in Prospect Park, visiting his mom in the bakery she owns, and listening to the biggest operas he can find as he walks everywhere.
But Davis is having a difficult summer. As questions of sexuality begin to enter his mind, he worries people don’t see him as anything other than “husky.” To make matters worse, his best girlfriends are starting to hang out with mean girls and popular boys. Davis is equally concerned about the distance forming between him and his single mother as she begins dating again, and about his changing relationship with his amusingly loud Irish grandmother, Nanny.
Ultimately, Davis learns to see himself outside of his one defining adjective. He’s a kid with unique interests, admirable qualities, and people who will love him no matter what changes life brings about.
This book just frustrated me. I despised the main character and could not find an inkling of compassion for him. I realize that he was only 12 but he just complained so much. And everything was the end of the world to him which makes sense for someone that age but the problems he was dealing with were all very easily solvable. Yet, he does nothing to make light of the situations or work towards a goal that will make him feel better. Nope, he just wallows in his own self pity.
He made way to big a deal out of something that was really not a big deal and was so dramatic. I felt like the world revolved around him and he didn’t consider anyone else’s feelings when he would confront them. It surprises me that he still has friends because if my friend treated me the way he did and was clearly being crazy over things that were not a big deal then I don’t think we would stay friends.
The book also didn’t really have a plot. I feel like I wasted time because nothing really happened over the span of 270 pages. There were chapters where it would go into excessive detail about him lying in his bed, not getting up because he didn’t feel like it. I just feel like I wouldn’t be missing anything if I never picked this book up. I only finished it because I was using it for the magical readathon otherwise I probably would have DNFed it and that is a big deal because I never DNF books.
The only redeeming quality for me was the fact that his mom is a baker and her descriptions of the food she created. It made my mouth water and I found myself get hungry when I would read about her sweet treats. And the fact that Davis liked opera. This intrigued me but it didn’t dive into the topic as much as I had hoped it would.
I feel like the book had potential if the main character actually tried to come up with a solution to his problems instead of constantly complaining about them.
Book Rating: 2/5
You can buy this book on Amazon and find it on Goodreads.
Disclaimer: I bought this book with my own money and read it because I wanted to.
I know I said I was on a book buying ban but here are all the books I got for my birthday!
Also for all you fantasy lovers out there, my friend Moud Adel (author of the War Remnants which I reviewed in July) has created this new game called Majority Rules where you get to decide what happens in his fantasy story. You will read the story and then vote in a poll for what you want the next scene to be. YOU take control and YOU make the decisions. Every Thursday, there will be new scene options so it is a continuous game! Check it out by clicking on the image below!
