Review: The Outside Boy by Jeanine Cummins.

Main Character: Christy Hurley
Love Interest: Finnuala Whippett aka Amy
Series: None (that I can gather)
Author: Website|Facebook|Twitter|Goodreads

Ireland, 1959: Young Christy Hurley is a Pavee gypsy, traveling with his father and extended family from town to town, carrying all their worldly possessions in their wagons. Christy carries with him a burden of guilt as well, haunted by the story of his mother’s death in childbirth. The peripatetic life is the only one Christy has ever known, but when his grandfather dies, everything changes. His father decides to settle down temporarily in a town where Christy and his cousin can attend mass and receive proper schooling. But they are still treated as outsiders.

As Christy’s exposure to a different life causes him to question who he is and where he belongs, the answer may lie with an old newspaper photograph and a long-buried family secret that could change his life forever…

I got this book for review and though it’s not really a YA book, the main character was a young man named Christopher Hurley and he was a Pavee. A Pavee is like a gypsy where a group (usually family) traveled from one place to another, never really settling in one spot for too long before moving on to a new place. After Christy’s grandfather dies, he comes into a small newspaper picture of a young woman who is wearing an identical necklace to Christy’s own necklace that he wears all the time and when he finds out that the young woman holding the baby in her arms is his mother, Christy starts digging into his own personal history with the help of the lady at the bookstore (who’s name I totally forgot).

This book takes place in 1959 and is told through the eyes of a young boy who is struggling to find out who he is and where he came from. It was a lot deeper than I thought it was going to be but no less entertaining. The relationship that Christy has with his cousin Martin kept me laughing from time to time and seeing Christy grieve for his grandfather and then trying to find out more about his mother made for some great reading.

This book was interesting and it was good. Christy was a bright young boy who was easy to fall in love with. The book is also rich with Celtic history and I enjoyed reading it. Watching as the mystery surrounding Christy’s mother came to light kept me at the edge of my seat because I was dying to know what was what with her.

What was interesting about this whole book was the mystery that Christy is trying to uncover. The mystery surrounding his mother. Over the course of this book, I grew to love Christy and I was just as anxious to find out what the whole deal with his Mom was really about. Every time he asked his Dad for answers and walked away with none, my frustration built but with the help of the bookstore lady, Christy starts to uncover some truths about who he really is and where he belongs.

I really enjoyed this book. From the way that it’s told to the way that everything comes together, I enjoyed it all. Christy was such an amazing character and it was so easy to fall in with his story because he was such a likable character. The way that his story unfolds was captivating and Christy himself was such a charming character. I loved that the story is told exactly the way that Christy talks and I loved seeing his world come to life through his POV.

Would I recommend this book? Of course though I should warn everyone that this book isn’t necessarily a Young Adult book. It’s an adult book told through an almost 12 year old boy but it’s a good book, it’s got strong characters and a narrator that you’ll come to love. So yes, I definitely recommend this book.

..and that’s your scoop!

Buy the book: B&N|Borders|Amazon|Book Depository
Book cover and blurb credit: http://barnesandnoble.com

Related Posts