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Zephyr, Alabama, is an idyllic hometown for eleven-year-old Cory Mackenson -- a place where monsters swim the river deep and friends are forever. Then, one cold spring morning, Cory and his father witness a car plunge into a lake -- and a desperate rescue attempt brings his father face-to-face with a terrible vision of death that will haunt him forever.

As Cory struggles to understand his father's pain, his eyes are slowly opened to the forces of good and evil that are manifested in Zephyr. From an ancient, mystical woman who can hear the dead and bewitch the living, to a violent clan of moonshiners, Cory must confront the secrets that hide in the shadows of his hometown -- for his father's sanity and his own life hang in the balance....

Boy's Life is somewhat like Mystic River in how it portrays the excitement, despite the ignorance, of youth. Yes I know that Mystic River focuses on childhood very briefly, but it was the first book that came to mind as I read Boy's Life. Both books seem to glorify (with good reason) childhood; life was simpler when we were younger. And while both books also revolve around plots which require the boys grow up in a hurry, the details surrounding the loss of innocence are very different from one book to the next. We can draw parallels all day long to other works about children -- Stand By Me comes to mind quickly -- but that isn't fair to the book or its author.

Every once and awhile a book makes you pause. It may be for only a moment or maybe longer. It may be just once or maybe more. These seemingly rare occasions happen to reflect on a genuine appreciation for the writing, which I certainly had for Robert McCammon as I read Boy's Life. It has been a long time since I read a book like this.

The story, at times, became strange. A few pieces of the plot revolved around unbelievable and even supernatural events. They were central to the story, but they still felt out of place in it. A story about a boy growing up in the south, however, needs some excitement to make it worth reading. I feel comfortable in saying that your childhood was nothing like the one chronicled in Boy's Life.

Best friends. Bullies. That brand-new bike. Baseball. McCammon describes each of these themes in Boy's Life. Each is celebrated in its own way and none becomes cliché. With the nostalgic thoughts which will swirl around in your head, so too come harsh realities. We grow up. We drift apart from those to whom we were the closest. The world moves on, but sometimes people, places and relationships cannot keep up.

The supernatural elements to the story made it unrealistic to be sure. However, without them the story could not have progressed. If you are looking for a writer's words which will hold you with the tenderness of a mother's arms please do not be discouraged by the sometimes-bizarre nature of the plot.

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