A creepy page flipper A good and happy boy weaves the past and present of a troubled man in an effort to understand why he has rejected his newborn son. The protagonist George Davies, at the request of his therapist, writes a series of magazines detailing the shocking childhood events that surrounded the death of his own father many years before. As the magazines progress, it is clear to the reader that Evans has not written an ordinary story of grief and loss, but rather a supernatural horror mixed with demonic possession, poltergeist activity, and a murder mystery. The reader must decide whether George’s diaries reveal the delusions of a troubled child or something deeper and darker.
A good and happy boy it is an exciting book. Evans’ writing technique is deceptively simple and incredibly readable; its style allows for an exploration of classic horror themes without looking clichéd or predictable. Particularly inventive is the author’s description of the land of emptiness in which young George’s ‘Friend’ takes him to the beginning of their sinister relationship, a “warm and joyous, gray and thick” place in which human souls are displayed. like windows of light in a giant. battleship. Evans uses this descriptive ability to encapsulate childish fear and easily convinces the reader of the narrator’s youth, unreliability, and impressionable nature. Young George is well written as a character in need of compassion, help, and protection from himself, well-meaning adult friends, or otherworldly influence, and this character’s tragic nature increases when it becomes clear that he is receiving nothing. A good character in a sea of less good characters, young George shines and becomes a beacon for the neglect of troubled children and the damage that mismanagement of deceptions and demons can cause.
However, there were flaws. Undoubtedly a readable book, Evans has created a fairly one-dimensional page flipper. There’s a distinct lack of subplot, and the brilliantly written young George is overshadowed by a cast of ordinary characters: the hippie, spiritual psychoanalyst, academic feminist, and quote-spilling gay arts teacher. The other characters, particularly George’s mother and his partner Kurt, are left without a level of depth that would have enriched the novel. Also, the supernatural scenes lacked punch and only the final image of the ‘demon’ created something truly chilling. For a book billed as “Unbelievably Scary and Unnerving …” (Brad Meltzer), it fails to deliver much of the truly terrifying.
Overall, despite the novel’s flaws, A good and happy boy it’s a nice read. If you are looking for a truly terrifying supernatural horror story, it would be best to avoid Evans’s novel. However, if you want something readable, well written, and with plenty of room for the audience to interpret, A good and happy boy it may be just for you.
http://justinevans.com/agoodandhappychild/