Boys of Blur

Each character has a distinct voice and that includes all of the adults. I particularly liked Mack, Charlie's ex-football star step-father. I also appreciated how the storyline with Charlie's real father was handled. This sounds like fairly typical MG contemporary realistic fiction at this point, but it isn't. Because there is something not quite alive but not quite dead wreaking havoc in the flats. Old rivalries are tearing the town apart.

The little jealousies, bitter musings, and grudges people have cradled in their hearts are taking over their whole souls. Everyone is turning on everyone else. Charlie and Cotton discover it is due to an ancient evil trapped beneath the muck and swamp lands waiting for her time to take over the halls and bodies of men. Soon the boys find themselves having to face this evil and decide what to do about it. They are brave and foolish. Just as 12 year old boys are. And it all works together so well. The plot is a reworking of Beowulf, the evil being the mother who is birthing man devouring monsters.

She wants to burn the world. It is up to Charlie to stop it. I really appreciated how he had so much assistance though. This is one thing Wilson always does well in his books. In a world of MG and YA novels where adult supervision and assistance are glaringly, sometimes ridiculously, absent, Wilson never abandons his young protagonists to fight their monsters alone. There are always strong, capable, and loving adults there to help.

The themes explored in this novel are sweeping in scope.

Boys of Blur

For such a short, quick read, the book is brimming with symbolism and thematic greatness. What makes a family, what holding on to the negative aspects of life does to a person, when to stand up for right, having courage in the face of overwhelming odds, and knowing what it is you are living for so you can know what it is you are willing to die for are all pulled into Charlie's story. Themes Wilson explores in most of his books, but they all are worth exploring repeatedly and he does it so darn well.

There is also a great deal of diversity in the book, a thing we need more of and is always nice to see. Charlie is white, his step-dad is black. I loved how this wasn't a big deal, it just was. They make some jokes about it, but they're jokes that clearly come from a place of comfort and familiarity with each other. A knowledge that they are family no matter.

The imagery and descriptiveness of the book are pretty much perfect. As I read, I felt like I was right there with the boys. I could feel the stifling heat, the burning, the pain.

And the words just flow together so well: The bicycle pegs swayed beneath Charlie's feet. He felt strange moving so quickly while standing so still, like a man on a chariot. Gravel crunched beneath the tires and Cotton's shoulders rocked under his hands. Moonglow loomed on the horizon. Charlie's skin prickled as night air parted around him.

Every bit of him was hungry to feel and to remember. Florida darkness washed over him, and Charlie Reynolds filled his lungs with it. Maybe he didn't belong in this place, but he belonged in this moment. It smelled like rich earth and hidden water. It smelled like fire. And if all of this weren't extraordinary enough, Wilson managed to write a small town story that is not over flowing with quirkiness.

This line is probably my favorite though because it pretty much sums up the south: Football and church don't cancel for nobody. Boys of Blur is a book that will be an easy sell for any reader, reluctant or book devourer. Football, monsters, boys who are heroes, the fast pace of the writing, and overall shortness are going to make it a hot commodity. If you know a child buy it for them. If you work with children buy more than one to have on hand. My students love Wilson's books and this is going to send some of the boys into a state of pure bliss.

I may get trampled when I book talk it. Boys of Blur is available for purchase on April 8th. Jan 10, Sarah rated it liked it. Wilson is an incredible writer- I would benefit from reading anything of his. That said, this Zombies-in-the-Swamp story was a little much for me. But in this Wilson spoke true: Grace is greater than sin. And if there is any place in the south zombies are likely to show up, it's at the football game. I started and finished it in one day. Its absolutely that good. I like the way Mr. Wilson sees the world and recreates the world and I love the people who live there.

Jul 28, Victoria rated it really liked it.

I keep running into the Wilsons, but I never know what to make of them. Douglas and Nancy Wilson are very hit-and-miss with their "federalist" ways. And everyone and their brother is reading books by ND Wilson these days -- turns out he's their son. Bo I keep running into the Wilsons, but I never know what to make of them. Boys of Blur unites three of my least-favorite things: However, the main themes of family, bitterness, and maturity are beautifully developed and expressed. This book also made me want to read Beowulf, which I never thought I'd say. I'm not going to run out and grab another ND Wilson book, but I'm keeping him in mind for when my boys hit the middle grades.

May 12, Becky rated it liked it. I was like, Oh, okay. Then I was like, Wait, what? Then, hahahahahaha too much. Then, Okay, I think I get it now. Back to "real" life. Reminded me a but of Frank Peretti. Like, it's real world, but then monsters and scary and spiritual stuff, but we're still on earth. Though it's a place with crocodiles and fiery sugar cane fields, so Becky can't relate a I was like, Oh, okay. Though it's a place with crocodiles and fiery sugar cane fields, so Becky can't relate at all. It was a pretty fun read, but not my fave Wilson. Sep 25, Megan Lane rated it it was amazing Shelves: But I liked it.

There was conflict and weirdness and sadness and forgiveness and anger and hate and love and friendship and family and basically all the necessary ingredients for a great story. You should read it. Jan 03, Shanshad Whelan rated it it was amazing Shelves: Review originally posted at Views from the Tesseract: What is it that makes a person a hero? In classic literature you rarely had to guess.

The heroes were set out before you to defeat the challenges and villains before them. And they reappear in our stories, sometimes mere glimmers but still recognizable in form and action. Even in the Review originally posted at Views from the Tesseract: Even in the small town of Taper, Florida.

Charlie Mack has just moved to this town by the Everglades, where boys chase rabbits through the burning cane and the muck of the swamp runs deep and dark with history.

Boys of Blur by N.D. Wilson

Both his father and his stepfather have their roots in this town, and Charlie is just beginning to understand how that inheritance affect him and touches on his relationships with others in the town. But there is more than football and burning cane in Taper. There are the chalk mounds, and the strange monstrous things in the night that rise from the muck and haunt the cane fields. They are the Gren. Heroes will be called upon to risk their lives in the battle between good and evil once again.

Wilson weave that old story into this contemporary fantasy adventure. Charlie is set to play the main protagonist in this story, to take on the age-old fight in the muck and discover its secrets. A landscape that is easy to visualize in language that invites all the senses to experience the deep muck, the burning cane. Added to the wild imagery is the more mundane: Our characters are not far distant heroes, but boys and men who live in reality, but are willing to step beyond that reality to fight the old fights.

Review of the Day: Boys of Blur by N.D. Wilson

The dangerous and hungry force waiting to break free and devour the town. Wilson manages to mix it all together into a satisfying whole that reads with the swiftness of the boys running. Oh, and in case I forget, this is one more fantasy for the year with a multicultural cast—so good to see a sizable number of them this year, I can only hope it continues! Both books feature a young protagonist in a new place. Both books have their protagonist slated to play the role of hero against the looming evil.

In each story our young heroes are seeking to protect and rescue friends and family, and ultimately to be the saviors from a dangerous evil that seeks to reach out over the unknowing modern world. The dirt and life within it. I will admit that when I first heard mention of zombies in connection with this book it almost made me tuck it at the bottom of my reading pile.

The writing is strong and vibrant—and rich as the landscape itself. Mind you, it is a dark adventure tale—so those readers who tend to avoid monster stories and creepy stuff may not be fans. Feb 11, Krysta rated it really liked it. Received from publisher N. Wilson consistently defies the expectations associated with middle-grade fantasy.

In his latest book, The Boys of Blur, he immediately subverts the genre by introducing not just a main character with a stable, loving family but one who forms part of a racially mixed family. Moments like those, moments when you know the author cares about reaching his or her audience and meeting them wherever they are at, whatever walks of life they are are travelling, are wha Source: Moments like those, moments when you know the author cares about reaching his or her audience and meeting them wherever they are at, whatever walks of life they are are travelling, are what makes stories special.

That was the moment when I knew I was going to love this book. Wilson actually has a strong track record of avoiding the infamous middle-grade orphan as well as those annoying prevalent "missing" parents. Reading a bunch of books about children with no one to look after them or care for them is rather depressing, not only because I feel terrible for all those unloved children, but also because it suggests in a way that children with parents cannot have adventures.

Throw any sort of competent authority figure in the picture and evidently you're destined for boredom. Wilson's stories, however, show just the opposite. In his worlds, magic waits around every corner and its free for anyone who comes. Transporting elements of Beowulf to Florida is, in that sense, a rather genius move. As a young nation, the United States lacks that great sense of depth that makes the magical seem plausible in other settings such as England.

However,with a flick of his pen, Wilson creates that magical mythical background for America. Wilson's may not really reach back to the times of the Anglo-Saxons though it's hard to know but it feels ageless enough to satisfy any young readers who mourned a distinct lack of King Arthurs or Robin Hoods in their own backyards. And this really is a story for young readers, one of those classic coming-of-age tales where the hero digs deep inside himself to discover what really matters and what it will take for him to be the kind of person he wants to be.

As always, Wilson pulls no punches and the truth may be bigger than expected--in this world, love is what matters and the greatest way to show one's love is to give one's life. There is a certain amount of respect from Wilson in laying this down that I think his readers will not fail to appreciate. The young, like the old, are called to give of themselves, and Wilson believes they can do it. That they should do it. Perhaps there is nothing so terrible for children as wanting to be needed, wanting to do good and being told they cannot.

These are the types of themes commonly called "universal", but The Boys of Blur is deliberately set in a very particular place with a very particular cast of characters. This is a story that seems as if it could never be set elsewhere besides the swamps of Florida and the burning sugarcane. There is that much love poured into the setting. You can identify with a character, the story seems to say, but identification has to go beyond noting the similarities into realizing--and celebrating--the differences. Welcome to Taper, Florida. You'll learn to love it, too. The Boys of Blur is admittedly rather different from what I have come to expect from Wilson after reading the Cupboards trilogy and the first three books in the Ashtown Burials series.

The magic is a little more subtle. The evil somehow darker, more sinister. But the Wilson trademarks--the magical interspersed with the everyday, the heroes learning what "heroic" really means, the strong bonds among family--are all there. And like every Wilson book, this is a journey you'll want to take. Apr 10, Joshua Whiting rated it it was amazing Shelves: My review, posted on granitemedia. Taper, Florida is a town filled with history and muck, sugar cane fields and football fields. He is a little bit afraid to run across his biological father. Instead, with his newfound My review, posted on granitemedia.

Instead, with his newfound cousin Cotton, he runs into something far worse, an ancient evil that has been festering in the stanky swamps and threatens to take over the whole town. Equal parts realistic relationship-based fiction, football poetry, and horrific swamp zombie-hunting mayhem, this book has hooks to spare for all sorts of potential readers. As the blurbs say it does indeed follow in the great footsteps of Holes and Jerry Spinelli titles, but Wilson ups the horror factor quite a bit.

The writing is beautiful and the characters are extremely real. This book gets extra points on the WeNeedDiverseBooks front for departing from the common trope of the cartoonishly terrible step-parent by displaying a strong, positive, yet complicated and completely realistic interracial relationship between a boy and his stepfather. So many kids have to navigate relationships with both biological and step parents in real life, and it is modeled well here. It also gets extra literary points for incorporating elements of the ancient epic poem Beowulf of all things, while still remaining a quick, engaging read.

Highly recommended for all reasons stated. Jun 07, Lydiathekicker rated it it was amazing Shelves: This book was fun, scary, and exciting. He believes in the light and in goodness and in right being strong If a reader did not have a Christian worldview or even a strong theology of God , I wonder if they would not recognize the hat tip Wilson gives to what is right and true. Jun 27, Kyle rated it liked it. I read this book with my son, and while there are some interesting themes and plot, I thought some of the themes were too quickly introduced and not fully developed. For example, a great deal is made early on about Charlie's abusive father and excellent step-father, but I didn't think the the redemptive theme in either case was explored as well as it could have been.

Moreover, the depiction of evil in this story did not take on for me a clear picture. I sensed more of a generic darkness than a s I read this book with my son, and while there are some interesting themes and plot, I thought some of the themes were too quickly introduced and not fully developed. I sensed more of a generic darkness than a specific evil and it left some of the plot flat. Dec 30, JosiahLady rated it it was amazing. Yet another triumph by one of my favorite authors. Will the awesomesauce ever end? I sure hope not.

ND Wilson's writing is so rich.

And I don't mean simply his allusions to ancient history or jabs at heavy British novels. Boys of Blur horrifically portrays the radical corruption of man- man is born to trouble as the Sparks fly upward. We die by living, and yet we live by dying. One, however, cannot truly grasp this author's cadence until he grasps The Author's creed. Feb 14, Christopher rated it really liked it Shelves: Tighter, clearer, and ironically less breathless than his some of his more frenetic fiction-- this is good ND, including some of the best elements from his fantasies, but hearkening back to the neatness and readability showcased by Leepike.

Also note to all ND's writing is best read out loud. Apr 10, SevieReads rated it it was amazing. Can a book about fast boys and swamps and monsters be beautiful? Yes, and this is a beautiful book. The writing is amazing This books makes me want to read Beowolf again. How many young adult books make you want to read Beowolf?

Apr 01, David rated it really liked it. An impressive feat to fit such a complete story in less than pages. There are full characters, well written bad guys, and some excellent channeling of Jim Wilson's booklet on how to be free from bitterness. Sep 21, Josiah Brown rated it it was amazing. This was the first book I read by N. Wilson, and I have to say that I was impressed and immediately drawn into it. It is a book packed with action and adventure, and has an awesome correspondence with Beowulf.

I highly recommend this book! May 31, Courtney Carlson rated it really liked it Shelves: I can imagine that those who read this book and haven't yet read Beowulf might find the story odd and a little violent - I have read Beowulf and I still found it odd and rather gory. As is usually the case with his writing, though, the book is clever, well-written, and a little verbose. Mar 16, Betsy rated it it was amazing Shelves: Review to come closer to release date. But if you have a copy already in hand, READ.

Boys of Blur 1 7 Oct 01, Videos About This Book. Trivia About Boys of Blur. Examples of some of his particularly good lines:. The book moves at a rapid clip, but not at the expense of the characters. From early in the book, we know certain things about Charlie that are to serve him well in the future. And when there are choices to be made, he makes them.

He decides what he should and should not do in any given moment and acts. The sugarcane fields themselves are explained a bit late in the narrative. On page 64 or so we finally get an explanation about why the boys are running through burning fields to catch rabbits. All about swords and fighting and football and dangerous runs into burning sugarcane fields. The football is particularly fascinating.

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Small town football almost NEVER makes it into books for kids, partly because baseball makes for a better narrative by its very definition. For an author to not only acknowledge its existence but also give it a thumbs up is almost unheard of. Yet Boys of Blur could not exist without football. The book begins by burying a coach, and there are long seated animosities in the town behind old high school football rivals. For many small towns, life without football would be untenable. And Boys of Blur acknowledges that to a certain extent. The women that do appear are few and far between, but they are there.

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And he did go out of his way to add a couple additional females to the line-up. Take that as you may. We veer close to Caliban country here, but Wilson already has one classic text to draw from. But in reality, Wilson gives her much more credit. And most interesting, Wilson will keep cutting back to her in the narrative. It goes against the grain of the usual narratives, wakes you up, and makes for better books.

Where do heroes find their courage and resolve? In previous books Wilson had already gone underground and into deep dark places. In Boys of Blur he explores the dual worlds of cane and swamp alike. Really, it can only be read by the right reader. To make them appreciate the language of a tale as much as the action.

And yes, there are big smelly zombies that go about killing people so win-win, right? Some may say the book ends too quickly. Like the boys in the cane, this book speeds out of the gate, quick on its feet, willing to skip and hop and jump as fast as possible to get you where you need to go. Read some of the book yourself to get a taste. Remember, if you will, that Wilson both shot and narrated the following book trailer. One of the best of the year, too:. She has served on Newbery, written for Horn Book, and has done other lovely little things that she'd love to tell you about but that she's sure you'd find more interesting to hear of in person.

Her opinions are her own and do not reflect those of EPL, SLJ, or any of the other acronyms you might be able to name. Follow her on Twitter: Has the Beowolf connection been widely publicized about Boys of Blur? Super cool concept and goal! Beowulf is actually name checked in the text. Review of the Day: Boys of Blur by N.