Rating: 3 1/2 stars

Childhood isn't easy, and making the transition from child to teenager is fraught with emotions and complications that adults often forget. When Willie is run down by a mysterious truck, losing his arm in the process, the parents of this small town see to it that a curfew is enacted. Unfortunately it's summer, and boys will be boys. Hampered by his missing limb, Willie struggles to keep up with his best friends, James and Reggie, as they search the town for the mysterious truck and the "monster" waiting in the shadows.

As Willie springs back from his near-fatal attack, it becomes apparent that he can no longer keep up as he did before. Though his friends are reluctant to leave him behind, they chafe under the strain of bringing Willie along. Rumour has spread through the town of a "monster" on a local farm and the boys intend to see it, even if they have to break a few rules to get there. What they find isn't quite what they expected and it brings the boys to a newfound awareness of life and just how misleading stories, and people, can be. The boys will be faced with a choice: band together as men or split apart under the strain of too many changes, too fast.

This is one of those stories that sneaks up on you and catches you unawares. It started slowly, very slowly, but the pace picked up as the boys learn more about their town, their parents, and each other. It's a good reminder of the kind of monsters that haunt children, even if, as adults, we can see things as they are. The scary things aren't always hiding under the bed but no matter where they are, we have to face them in order to grow up and move on.
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Reading level: Young Adult
Hardcover: 256 pages
Publisher: Delacorte Books for Young Readers (August 11, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0385737335
ISBN-13: 978-0385737333