Finally, I’m here with a book review after a long spell of two months. And, gosh, it’s good to be back.

Knuckleheads is the first in a three-part series, written by Dan Antion. The book was released on 31/5/2022. The genre of the book showed, Paranormal and Urban Fantasy. ‘Not my kind of book’ was the first thought that came to my head and I did not pick it up. However, sometime in June, this year, I read a review of Dan Antion’s books which made me pick them up immediately. This review is on part 1 of the Dreamer’s Alliance series.

My background knowledge of books about boys : I’m afraid I haven’t read many books on boys other than Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn, David Copperfield and Oliver Twist. When a number of my classmates read Hardy Boys after completing the Nancy Drew series, I didn’t. So, this book, a coming-of-age story of two boys is one I read after a long haul.

About the book

Knuckleheads is a story set in the sixties in America. It begins when Zach’s thirty-two-year-old daughter, Abbie, hands over a note from Billy to Zach. Billy apologizes for not coming to the retirement party and ends with a ‘See you soon.’ Seeing a change in Zach’s expression on reading the note, Abbie asks him, ‘What’s wrong?’ The story is told as a conversation between Zach and Abbie. The difference between growing up in the sixties vis-a-vis the nineties is brought out as a remark or a question during the conversation between father and daughter. the book is sure to bring back memories of growing up in that era as it did for me (if you’re a product of the sixties, seventies or eighties) or will give you a glimpse of how we survived, a few decades ago (if you’re a millenial).

I especially enjoyed getting a peek into the culture in schools in the US during the sixties. I don’t think much has changed with regards to students there working along with school or the need for certificates other than academic ones to get admission to University. Sadly, it hasn’t changed in India, too. We only begin work after we graduate or do our Masters. It’s probably because labor is cheap and the population is huge. So, there’s no need for students to work unless they are trying to make ends meet.

The friendship between Zach and Billy and the father-son relationship have been beautifully portrayed in the book. Zach’s father is the only one who knows of his son’s ability to see lucid dreams and Billy’s ability to see the future and is supportive of children like Billy with disabilities. He teaches Zach to stick up for himself and be humane.

The story throws light on the workings of a bowling center (Zach’s father owns it), the stigma associated with being crippled (Zach’s friend, Michael is on a wheelchair because of polio) or having a learning disability (Billy is called ‘retarded’) in the sixties.
Although the manner of living was different in the sixties or is different between the US and in India, basic human emotions have not changed over the ages. The book highlights how school can be hard for some- the divide between popular kids and the ones trying to fit in, that teens have the innate tendency to be mean, labels in school stick and not everything about school is fair. Whoever said, ‘School days are the best days of one’s life was obviously looking at a small percentage of children at school.’

While Zach’s ability to dream, enter his dreams and return to reality with an object from his dream may be paranormal, this accounted for a small, though interesting part of the book. For the most part, it was about school, friendship, community, and growing up in a small town where everybody knows everybody else; I enjoyed that.

The end of the book does not answer why Zach’s expression changes on seeing Billy’s note. It manages to create a sense of intrigue as Abbie has never met Billy which is strange because Zach and Billy practically grew up like brothers. Also, while Zach can enter a dream, he still hasn’t learnt how to exit a dream. And last but not the least, I would like to know how love blossomed between Ronnie (Zach’s classmate in school) and Zach. Hopefully, the author discloses it in the second series of the book and I don’t have to wait until Part 3.

On the whole, Knuckleheads is a feel-good interesting book and I totally recommend it if you want to read a heartwarming story that follows the life of two boys from the age of 9 or 10 to 18, mixed with some amount of paranormal (that’s not scary but fun) and a large amount of good life wisdom.

Book Blurb

Zachary Amstead and William Ignatius Terrance have been friends since elementary school. They share a birthday, although Billy is a year older, and their lives are similarly complicated by the presence of paranormal powers. Zach has lucid dreams, and he has the ability to participate within those dreams. When this ability began to emerge, he could observe scenes as they happened in the places his dreams would take him. Over time, his ability grew to the point where he could step into the dream-scene. Finally, well into his adult life, his prowess over this ability allowed him to wake up inside the scene he was dreaming about.

Billy has always been a seer. He has visions of the future. Not a general world view, only the future around him. Like Zach, his capability grew as he became older. He was more certain about his future, and he was better able to distinguish what might happen from what would happen. His ability also extended to friends with whom he was close. He didn’t see their future with the clarity of his own, but he saw it well enough to help them avoid serious problems.

“Knuckleheads” is the story of these two boys as they were only beginning to understand these skills. They didn’t understand them at first, and they had very little control over the way these abilities manifested themselves. They were scared, tempted, and frustrated. Experiencing this growth in a world controlled by adults was frightening. They frequently found themselves in trouble.

Zach’s father became aware of their situation. He didn’t understand what they were going through, or where the limits to their skill might lie, but he knew they needed help. He knew what could happen if they didn’t find a way to “get ahead of these abilities,” as he liked to say.

In addition to the extraordinary capabilities, they were attempting to master, Zach and Billy were growing up in the tumultuous period between the early nineteen sixties and mid-nineteen seventies. The world around them was one of drugs, racial strife, and protests against the war. The adult world was struggling with those challenges, the pressures of post-war growth and having to contain a generation of children that was busting out at the seams. There was no room for children with special needs or abilities.

This short bit of speculative fiction is told by Zach to his adult daughter, Abbie, shortly immediately following his retirement. The story is interrupted by Abbie which leads to some sharp lively and sometimes snarky dialog. The book is a fast and fun read.

The story is told two days before the events chronicled in the second and third books in this series begin. While the second and third book tell a story which can stand on its own, the core of this series begins in the long-forgotten days of their childhood. Reading Knuckleheads first will make you feel like a participant in their tale rather than just an observer.

The book is available on Amazon on this link . It’s free for KUL subscribers.

________________________________________________________________________

My debut novel, ‘Coming Home,’ is available on Amazon. If you like to read a feel-good story on family, relationships, and self-discovery, then check it out. For the Kindle and paperback edition of the book, please click here. The book is available in most countries.

You can get your copy of the paperback edition in India by clicking here.

‘Coming Home’ is free for Kindle unlimited subscribers.

Grab your copy now, read and share a review.

Copyright@smithavishwanathsblog.com. All Rights Reserved.