Autumn 2005 Review:

        Douglas Macarthur Hanson is a interesting seventeen  year old boy. He is not very social; in fact he does  not have any friends except his best friend, Andy.  Dougy, as he likes to be called is very close with Andy, they live next door and have been friends since they where very little. Douglas is very interested in  model trains and actually has a great model train set downstairs in his basement that he improves upon all the time. When is not spending time downstairs with his trains he is spending time with Andy. Douglas also has a fascination with matches, he shows it often when he sets Andy and his tree house on fire to keep Andy warm and also when he lights up an abandoned house.
 
        Douglas’ parents think he is strange, they say he talks to himself at night in his room. Douglas really is talking to Andy through his window, or so he thinks. Nobody sees Andy but Douglas and then you find out why, when the a banded house caught fire Douglas got out but Andy could not. Douglas has been seeing his friend, making him up. Douglas’s parents decide it is good to send Douglas to a special school where he can get the medical attention he needs, but a twist ending changes all that.
 
    This book is a great read for any age, middle school through high school. Pete Hautman really draws you into Douglas’ world and makes you think that Andy is really there. Hautman makes it seem that Douglas is not crazy but just misunderstood in the beginning then you see it differently. The book is an easy read and it has short chapters, great for people with busy lifestyles and just wants to read a little at a time.  Since reading this book I am very excited about reading some more of Hautman’s stories!

~ Eric Richmond, grade 11, Trumbull County Career and Technical Center

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