Finn's Going

by Tom Kelly

Take Finn. He may be the burping champion of the universe. He may be the demon farter of the planet—capable of mind-boggling impressions (a hissing cat, a creaking door in a haunted house, a boiling egg). Or not. Take Danny. He may be the burping champion of the universe. He may be the demon farter of the planet—capable of mind-boggling impressions (a hissing cat, a creaking door in a haunted house, a boiling egg). Or not. Danny and Finn. Identical twins. Best friends. Big brothers to Angela. Playing with Donut the dog. Sons of Mum and Dad. Living together in a house on Holt Street. Happy. All of that is about to change.

Genres: Realistic Fiction, Young Adult, Childrens, Grief, Family, Fiction

288 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

Tom Kelly was born in New Jersey, spent his childhood in Belfast, Ireland, and now lives in England with his family. FINN'S GOING is his first novel.

Reviews

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Danny or Finn? That is what the identical twin boys were asked constantly at school. That is what I was left asking at the end of this story. It seems to be told by 10 year old Danny as he is running away from home. Six weeks earlier his twin brother Finn died and the whole family has disintegrated under the weight of their grief. Nothing is the same any more. Danny is leaving so he won't remind his family of their loss any more and to try and cope with his own grief and guilt about his brother's death. His journey takes him back to an island the family visited once on holiday.


This is a first book for Tom Kelly and I like the first person narrative style with lists, chapter headings and use of fonts to illustrate meanings. A book about grieving loss is very intense reading but the final chapters bring realistic resolution to the stroy even though I still cannot work out Danny or Finn. Perhaps that is the way it always is with twins.

[Sheila Quealey · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Thing with Finn is a carefully written book about the experience of loss of a close family member. Tom Kelly tells this story from the point of view of a 10 year old boy and he manages to translate complex, confused emotion into the terminology of childhood. However, while I loved this touching book the girls from my book club hated it. They found it confusing and boring. They felt that nothing really happened in it. While there wasn't a great deal of actual activity the emotional journey of this boy and his family was, for me and adult, very readable. Kelly allows the boy to work through his grief in what I would consider a "normal" way i.e. as anyone who has lost a loved one will tell you there is no way to deal with it. Everyday is different and the inner turmoil of coping with the world that remains the same is erractic to say the least. After our discussion the girls recognized what Kelly was trying to do - but the point is they needed to be told. I don't know if this says something about the girls passive reading habits or the failure on Kelly's behalf to reach his target audience - which of course is the kids. Some of the girls are going to re-read the book armed with the knowledge of our book club discussion. I think it is worth it. I felt the grief this family experienced was real and the reveal was unusual. I would recommend this to both kids and adults.

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book so much! It was a re-read for me, and deals with a whole lot of issues; suffering, loss, religion, fate, optimism, pessimism, etc. The whole lot! The story revolves around the protagonist Danny, who is a ten-year-old identical twin. However, his twin brother, Finn, died. The story shows how Danny deals with Finn's death - how he copes with not having a brother to help him grow up and learn. He then runs away because he doesn't want to remind his family what has happened, and blames himself for his brother's death. He travels to the island where they last went on holiday; the last 'Big Thing' they did together before Finn died. Here he camps in a deserted boat house, and stacks bricks all day - bricks that have three holes in, like the brick he threw through an old man's window to squish his stuffed otter. A man takes care of him whilst he is camping out, bringing him food, a sleeping bag, and other necessary resources. They become close, and Danny truly discovers who is, and how to deal with the thing with Finn.

POSITIVES:
-The best thing about this book in my opinion, was the style of writing. Very basic, stripped back, yet very metaphorical. I loved how the thoughts of Danny were clearly displayed to the reader. Kelly's style of writing made me look upon the book as a 'male version of My Name Is Mina (And I Love The Night)' which is one of my favourite books ever.
-The chapters in this book were extremely short, some as short as half a page. Loved that! (Good chapters are ALWAYS good). It made it feel like I got through the book quicker.
-The character of Danny is an all-around guy. By this, I mean sometimes we feel sorry for him, and other times we want to scream at him yelling 'What did you do that for?!' but always in a good way, if that makes any sense. We grew to love him, particularly towards the end.
-Other characters were brought into it a lot, having their own background story; particularly his family. We get to know their little, annoying habits, and how they reflect upon dealing with the death of Finn.

NEGATIVES:
-There were only a few negatives for me in this book. One was that it was a little rude; some of the younger children may find it offensive, or might be shocked. Apart from that there wasn't anything else really, except the fact some bits didn't feel like they needed to be there - however, in every single book you have them moments.

I gave this book a five out of five star rating because overall it was a beautifully told story about dealing with loss, and trying to find yourself. Yes, I'm going to say it. It was a beautiful coming of age story!

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is excellent. It is the best book I have read in a very very long time. The narrator is a 10 year old boy, twin brother to the Finn of the book's title, and struggling with events around his brother's "going" (I won't say more to avoid spoilers). The book plays perfectly on the emotional struggle, offset by a rare and authentic 10 year old humour. The writer understands 10 year old boys, and really makes you believe that this book comes from the mind of a 10 year old. It is so well done, that you suddenly realise how badly all the other books do it.

On top of this it is just an excellent piece of writing. It deserves to be a classic. It deserves to be more widely read, and if it isn't it just shows how so much of what makes a book sell is how well it is marketed. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.

This is an easy read, although the book has hidden depths. It can be just an enjoyable story, or it can really make you think - but that is your choice. It works either way. It will rightly take its place amongst my all time favourites.

[Petya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful, the most wonderfulest book! I cried my eyes out and all I wanted is just to hug this boy, to hold him forever and love him. But he had to do this on his own; find a way back to himself. And he is already loved.

An amazing story told by a boy about the thing with Finn and about many, many other things that he thinks and worries about.

READ IT!


~~~

Ich habe es mir endlich gekauft (damals war es aus der Bibliothek ausgeliehen) und lese es wieder. Und ich bleibe dabei: absolut fantastisch!

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a slow start, but got you hooked when finally got into it. The ending is unexpected and makes you want to reread the book, like the movie "The Sixth Sense" made you want to resee the movie to really understand it. A good book for a person dealing with the loss of someone close to them.

[Childrens · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book-it is a bit sad plotwise, but so fantastically written. I can't believe that even though we all use the same words, the way some writers can put them together to create characters and mood blows me away and reminds me why I read instead of write

[Horace Mann Family Reading Challenge · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is really good! Except kinda insulting to otters. They get hit by a brick with three holes. M.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun trial read before buying for friends.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read it in one sitting. Takes you through so many emotions. A great book for 10+.

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is excellent. It is the best book I have read in a very very long time. The narrator is a 10 year old boy, twin brother to the Finn of the book's title, and struggling with events around his brother's "going" (I won't say more to avoid spoilers). The book plays perfectly on the emotional struggle, offset by a rare and authentic 10 year old humour. The writer understands 10 year old boys, and really makes you believe that this book comes from the mind of a 10 year old. It is so well done, that you suddenly realise how badly all the other books do it.

On top of this it is just an excellent piece of writing. It deserves to be a classic. It deserves to be more widely read, and if it isn't it just shows how so much of what makes a book sell is how well it is marketed. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.

This is an easy read, although the book has hidden depths. It can be just an enjoyable story, or it can really make you think - but that is your choice. It works either way. It will rightly take its place amongst my all time favourites.

[Angelika Rust · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dieses Buch werde ich lange nicht aus dem Kopf kriegen. Sehr, sehr gut.

[CanadianReader · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a very literary--too literary, I think, for the target audience--work focusing on sibling grief: one brother's feeling of responsibility for the accidental drowning death of his identical twin, Finn. Not much happens for probably the first 100-150 pages. The first person, rather random (and sometimes highly metaphorical) narration by protagonist Danny, is difficult to penetrate--even for an adult. There are lists, odd footnotes, and acronyms added into the mix. I can't see the kids I know persisting with this book. Furthermore, the very British idiom creates a further barrier for young Canadian and American readers. This is a quality work, but not a sufficiently accessible one. The many references to farts and excretory processes/products seems a bit too studied and forced--the author's effort at realism or an attempt to leaven otherwise quite somber material?

[Alice Visser · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the story of 10 year old Danny, whose identical twin brother has died. We don't find out how until well into the book but we know Danny runs away because he can't cope with the pain his identical face brings to his family. The 10 year old voice in the book means it has a slow start (lots of references to poo etc) and the story does stretch credibility in several ways, but the author gives real insight into grief, and I did find myself getting involved in the second half of the story.

[Red · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked up this book at a buy one get a free galley copy, sale. This book is more Y than YA for my taste. The protagonist is a 10 year old British boy, Danny, who's identical twin brother Finn, has recently died. The book covers coming to terms with that loss. It's told in an unusual format, and Danny has a clear voice.

[Lia · Rating 3 out of 5]

For a preteen like me, it was pretty confusing. I did enjoy the last parts of the bookBut for the first 150 pages, there wasn't much explanation so I didn't want to read it. But when I read some reviews from different people I got inerested and just ignoted the confusing thought. But overall it is a really good book. Something you can learn from.

[Tanner Pettitt · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a really good book. I liked how the author tried to put joke in some of the paragraphs to make the book more funny. When Finn was running away they talked about how much he missed his family and would do anything to be with them again. i recommend to all to read this book.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely a book that will go over the heads of most kids, even though it is meant for kids. Tough subject matter, but well written . Leaves you wondering Who actually died and who is left, for twins who lose the other, I think it was quite well done.

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finn's Going by Tom Kelly (2007)

[Amy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Got bored half-way through -- I think I can skip disfunction and unhappiness. Don't need that!

[Jana · Rating 5 out of 5]

eins meiner Lieblingsbücher ⭐️

[Makenna]

have no clue what it;s about..... but hopefully i will soon.......