Book Review: Lowboy

Lowboy: A Novel
8.4 of 10
Writer: John Wray
Buy Hardcover Edition from Amazon
Buy Kindle Edition from Amazon




Gaming has taken most of my time these past few months. Especially the guild events in Warhammer Online -and the lure of of earning guild points to buy things from our vault- have kept me busy and away from reading. Hence, all my reading materials (both books and comics) have piled up on me again. It's a good thing that player vs. player activity in WAR isn't as hectic as it was before. So I took a respite from the game and, after months of disjointed reading, was finally able to finish Lowboy.

Lowboy is John Wray's third novel. While I haven't heard of his last two books -which were also highly praised by critics- I instantly felt the want to read this book after I had read its synopsis. How could I resist it? It's a book about a schizophrenic teenage boy who's off his meds and wandering underneath the New York subway system, trying to find a way to save the world by stopping global warming. It just had too many good aspects -from mental illness, environmental issues and heroism- that would make for an interesting plot.

But the book's plot didn't turn out as interesting as I had hoped for. However, it still remains as an interesting book. Because, instead of a good plot, the book offered an in-depth character study about schizophrenics. Through William Heller, the main character in this book, you'll see and experience the world the way schizophrenics does. Furthermore, other characters -who are also equally interesting as Will- are there for support, giving us a more detailed medical knowledge about the mental condition through fun dialogues.

I'm the type of reader who prefers good plots and stories over characterization. While characterization and character studies aren't my cup of tea (unless they go along with a good plot and story) there's always an exception. Lowboy is now a part of that exception. This book is a page turner. The writing is masterful, and the characters are wildly interesting. If you're looking for a fun and crazy book to read, I suggest picking up Lowboy.

Similar Posts:
Book Review: The Book of Dead Philosophers
Book Review: The Next 100 Years
Book Review: 2666
Book Review: Liberation
Book Review: The Graveyard Book