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Boonie
Boonie takes place in a war and pollution ravaged world where two children, JD and Aqua battle through many horrors and setbacks in pursuit of their dream.
In constant danger from the evil Silver Men, they must avoid the Ratcatcher, fool the Ragman, escape from Chatelaine and trick Fireless the giant, all in search of a man with his mouth sewn shut.
In constant danger from the evil Silver Men, they must avoid the Ratcatcher, fool the Ragman, escape from Chatelaine and trick Fireless the giant, all in search of a man with his mouth sewn shut.
329 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2013
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156 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
February 10, 2013
This is a book that is very different to other books that I have read recently and being published at this moment in time. In fact it's not a book that I'd expect to be published by a mainstream publisher such as Hot Key Books. Therefore, I definitely congratulate them in championing this book.
The start of the book is not an easy one to digest. The harsh realties of the story are quickly thrust upon the reader and set a sombre tone. In parts, this book is set in a futuristic fantasy world. Although, it is basically about a world of survival in an arid landscape. Both water and food are very scarce; the world is ruled by dictatorship from the Silver Men. These men leave a lot to the imagination - not much is given away about them, which is good in my opinion. It leaves the imagination running wild as to the possibilities of their comings and goings.
The story moves through a lot of bleak action before there is any glimpse of a ray of sunshine. However, that ray of sunshine soon shines through in the form of friendship and will have you hooked.
The main character, JD, is lost in the desert after fleeing from the clutches of the Silver Men. He encounters a strange old man whose mouth has been sewn shut. The element of mystery starts to creep in at this point giving the reader more to think about as the old man reveals a secret. He helps JD to find the city in order to search for his missing mother. At this point the story unfolds into a tale of horror and brutality with enslaved children trapped inside pits scraping for water and food. This is certainly not a light-hearted and happy read. However, it really makes you think - it is an intelligent and well-crafted story.
This is another great book that will stay with you until the very last page has been turned - just like a good old friend. It is a great debut start from an author who has been writing all of his life. Shortlisted for Undiscovered Voices 2012 - this great book, I am sure, is the reason why.
If you would like to read a copy of this book then the author is giving one lucky person a chance to win a signed hardback copy on his website. Why not pop over to enter the competition by following the link here http://richardmasson.com/
Equally, if you would like to read about the author's thoughts on Boonie then take a look at the guest post that he has written for my blog. More details on the competition can also be found here
The start of the book is not an easy one to digest. The harsh realties of the story are quickly thrust upon the reader and set a sombre tone. In parts, this book is set in a futuristic fantasy world. Although, it is basically about a world of survival in an arid landscape. Both water and food are very scarce; the world is ruled by dictatorship from the Silver Men. These men leave a lot to the imagination - not much is given away about them, which is good in my opinion. It leaves the imagination running wild as to the possibilities of their comings and goings.
The story moves through a lot of bleak action before there is any glimpse of a ray of sunshine. However, that ray of sunshine soon shines through in the form of friendship and will have you hooked.
The main character, JD, is lost in the desert after fleeing from the clutches of the Silver Men. He encounters a strange old man whose mouth has been sewn shut. The element of mystery starts to creep in at this point giving the reader more to think about as the old man reveals a secret. He helps JD to find the city in order to search for his missing mother. At this point the story unfolds into a tale of horror and brutality with enslaved children trapped inside pits scraping for water and food. This is certainly not a light-hearted and happy read. However, it really makes you think - it is an intelligent and well-crafted story.
This is another great book that will stay with you until the very last page has been turned - just like a good old friend. It is a great debut start from an author who has been writing all of his life. Shortlisted for Undiscovered Voices 2012 - this great book, I am sure, is the reason why.
If you would like to read a copy of this book then the author is giving one lucky person a chance to win a signed hardback copy on his website. Why not pop over to enter the competition by following the link here http://richardmasson.com/
Equally, if you would like to read about the author's thoughts on Boonie then take a look at the guest post that he has written for my blog. More details on the competition can also be found here
April 23, 2016
First of all, this book would have been better for a younger audience--people aged around 10-12.
The writing was wholly unimpressive. I didn't enjoy the descriptions or the short sentancing that could have been effective, if it wasn't throughout the WHOLE book.
JD annoyed me. He was a character who was simple, and oh, congrats, you can sweet-talk a little. All of the stuff that happened that weren't that important compared to other things, JD emphasised. I would expand, except it would then be a spoiler.
A quick note; please get an editor; I noticed a lot of times where the 'speech marks' were missing. Not only that, but there was a terrible, hurtful, bone grinding and heart-wrenching missuse of the word 'light' IT IS NOT 'he lighted it...' BUT THE CORRECT USE IS; 'he LIT it' THIS HURT ME SO MUCH.
So, moving on. Aqua's character is someone that I usually love reading about, except that she was shoved aside in some parts, forgotten about, rarely expanded on, and in some parts, just plain weak. I mean, for someone who is seen as a strong, stubborn character, she went into a lot of breakdowns, and JD had to be the one to keep them moving, exclaiming all the while how strong she is.
That brings me to another point. I could sense a lot of vague gender roles. I don't think this was intentional--but there were a lot of points were I wanted to scream and ask where the actual hell any women were. I can count on one hand the amount of women; most obviously, JD's 'Ma', Aqua and the Chantelle woman (I can't spell her name, and I really didn't pay any attention to her--I really didn't care about her at all)
**********FROM NOW ON THERE ARE SPOILERS***********
Ok, first; Ma. THIS WAS RIDICULOUS and COMPLETLEY unbelievable. A mother selling out her own son? I get it that her time there was shitty, I really do, I mean, that would break a person (something that wasn't actually expanded on--the horrifying circumstances there were disgusting, but of course, who cares, right? Living in filth, breeding children, most likely being raped every 9 months or so, but whatever, they are just fat breeders, right?) but the fact that a mother sold out her first child, the one that she raised for 13 years, and sentancing him to death, or worse, physical and mental torture until he dies a long death of malnutrition, or a nice quick death being splattered against rocks. And if she didn't know that that would happen, I mean, is it that hard to guess? How can you really hate the world enough that you would essentially kill or torture your own son? And the other women? They'd have been there longer, have no emotional attachment to JD, would gain a lot (and they knew it), and yet all they decided to do was yell about his presence, and therefore increase the likelihood of ANOTHER person reaping the benefits? How can MULTIPLE strangers who had been tortured for longer, be more compassionate towards some random boy than HIS OWN MOTHER?
So as for my point there, Masson had painted this woman to be uncaring, self-involved, inhuman and a worse parent than his father.
Aqua. As I said earlier, while I love the stubborn and strong female character, I hated Aqua. Stop crying, get a grip. She had been in that world longer than JD, running around the streets, evading the Leaders or Silver Men or whatever you call them, and then suddenly a nice male protagonist comes along, and she's shoved to the side, become some weak little girl who needs JD to keep pushing her to fight, and then she does one small thing and all of a sudden she's seen as a strong character. I admit, living in a world like that would have caused a lot of stress, but JD never really broke down, and yet he has to pull her along with him. The one time she TRIES to do something, she gets caught, and JD has to help both of them get out. Masson has held men and women in two different standards; the men strong and helpful, the women meek and a small act is blown out of the water, because, heck, as if they could do any better. This annoys me SO MUCH--a few small things that had to be done, and she's held in the same respect as if she'd just kneed a Silver Man in the balls.
The final woman; Chaetelle or whatever her name is. The only other evil character; all the Leaders were men, the ones who formally held power were all men; she was the only person in controll of something and female, and not only that, but I had no idea what the hell was the point of having her there; did she run the household? Was she in control of a Pit? Probably not, because that was all men doing those HARD jobs. Not only that, but a character that COULD have been a strong, empowered figure, even if they were evil, was just an old crone who was such a stereotypical evil figure, that I wanted to just roll my eyes. She was SO BAD, that I couldn't even take her seriously.
A little sidenote; when JD bit her arm and caused, alleged peices of her flech hanging off, a flash of bone and blood coming out; blood would be pouring out, pooling on the floor within minutes, not only that but SHE WOULDN'T HAVE TIME TO GET ALL THE BOYS TO LOOK OUT OF THEIR CELLS. Soon she would be suffering from blood-loss and have to get BLOOD TRANSFUSIONS because SKIN WAS TORN AWAY FROM THE BONE, arteries would have been at least PUNCTURED, the whole thing was ridiculous, it annoys me just remembering.
So those were the only significant characters. None of them could achieve their goal, at least, not without a male character; Ma couldn't be free, Aqua couldn't escape, and I don't even know the other one's goals, but she sure as hell couldn't keep Aqua as a prisoner, she couldn't even catch JD, and her goons couldn't apprehend anyone.
The plot was boring; I had to force myself to read, everything was unrealistic (do I have to outline the being bitten in the arm scenario once more?) and I just didn't like any of the characters (which reminds me--JD's grandfather, Godrum, was the only decent character, and he was average, not only that, but his two sons were idiots, who only JUST managed to realise that they shouldn't relate their whole plan in front of JD and Aqua. Not only that, but JD could relate his plan to Aqua about how they were going to get away, because a malnourised, dehydrated little boy was faster at running up stairs than a fully-grown man. And said fully-grown man didn't realise that MAYBE JD was running ahead to discuss a plot against him with someone?)
I could go on, but I'm not bothered--I won't be recommending this to anyone, and the unrealistic parts of the plot that are added to an already unrealistic storyline (no one would notice all our water is running out--and no government would realise that this was MAYBE a bad idea?) it was all just too fustrating.
The writing was wholly unimpressive. I didn't enjoy the descriptions or the short sentancing that could have been effective, if it wasn't throughout the WHOLE book.
JD annoyed me. He was a character who was simple, and oh, congrats, you can sweet-talk a little. All of the stuff that happened that weren't that important compared to other things, JD emphasised. I would expand, except it would then be a spoiler.
A quick note; please get an editor; I noticed a lot of times where the 'speech marks' were missing. Not only that, but there was a terrible, hurtful, bone grinding and heart-wrenching missuse of the word 'light' IT IS NOT 'he lighted it...' BUT THE CORRECT USE IS; 'he LIT it' THIS HURT ME SO MUCH.
So, moving on. Aqua's character is someone that I usually love reading about, except that she was shoved aside in some parts, forgotten about, rarely expanded on, and in some parts, just plain weak. I mean, for someone who is seen as a strong, stubborn character, she went into a lot of breakdowns, and JD had to be the one to keep them moving, exclaiming all the while how strong she is.
That brings me to another point. I could sense a lot of vague gender roles. I don't think this was intentional--but there were a lot of points were I wanted to scream and ask where the actual hell any women were. I can count on one hand the amount of women; most obviously, JD's 'Ma', Aqua and the Chantelle woman (I can't spell her name, and I really didn't pay any attention to her--I really didn't care about her at all)
**********FROM NOW ON THERE ARE SPOILERS***********
Ok, first; Ma. THIS WAS RIDICULOUS and COMPLETLEY unbelievable. A mother selling out her own son? I get it that her time there was shitty, I really do, I mean, that would break a person (something that wasn't actually expanded on--the horrifying circumstances there were disgusting, but of course, who cares, right? Living in filth, breeding children, most likely being raped every 9 months or so, but whatever, they are just fat breeders, right?) but the fact that a mother sold out her first child, the one that she raised for 13 years, and sentancing him to death, or worse, physical and mental torture until he dies a long death of malnutrition, or a nice quick death being splattered against rocks. And if she didn't know that that would happen, I mean, is it that hard to guess? How can you really hate the world enough that you would essentially kill or torture your own son? And the other women? They'd have been there longer, have no emotional attachment to JD, would gain a lot (and they knew it), and yet all they decided to do was yell about his presence, and therefore increase the likelihood of ANOTHER person reaping the benefits? How can MULTIPLE strangers who had been tortured for longer, be more compassionate towards some random boy than HIS OWN MOTHER?
So as for my point there, Masson had painted this woman to be uncaring, self-involved, inhuman and a worse parent than his father.
Aqua. As I said earlier, while I love the stubborn and strong female character, I hated Aqua. Stop crying, get a grip. She had been in that world longer than JD, running around the streets, evading the Leaders or Silver Men or whatever you call them, and then suddenly a nice male protagonist comes along, and she's shoved to the side, become some weak little girl who needs JD to keep pushing her to fight, and then she does one small thing and all of a sudden she's seen as a strong character. I admit, living in a world like that would have caused a lot of stress, but JD never really broke down, and yet he has to pull her along with him. The one time she TRIES to do something, she gets caught, and JD has to help both of them get out. Masson has held men and women in two different standards; the men strong and helpful, the women meek and a small act is blown out of the water, because, heck, as if they could do any better. This annoys me SO MUCH--a few small things that had to be done, and she's held in the same respect as if she'd just kneed a Silver Man in the balls.
The final woman; Chaetelle or whatever her name is. The only other evil character; all the Leaders were men, the ones who formally held power were all men; she was the only person in controll of something and female, and not only that, but I had no idea what the hell was the point of having her there; did she run the household? Was she in control of a Pit? Probably not, because that was all men doing those HARD jobs. Not only that, but a character that COULD have been a strong, empowered figure, even if they were evil, was just an old crone who was such a stereotypical evil figure, that I wanted to just roll my eyes. She was SO BAD, that I couldn't even take her seriously.
A little sidenote; when JD bit her arm and caused, alleged peices of her flech hanging off, a flash of bone and blood coming out; blood would be pouring out, pooling on the floor within minutes, not only that but SHE WOULDN'T HAVE TIME TO GET ALL THE BOYS TO LOOK OUT OF THEIR CELLS. Soon she would be suffering from blood-loss and have to get BLOOD TRANSFUSIONS because SKIN WAS TORN AWAY FROM THE BONE, arteries would have been at least PUNCTURED, the whole thing was ridiculous, it annoys me just remembering.
So those were the only significant characters. None of them could achieve their goal, at least, not without a male character; Ma couldn't be free, Aqua couldn't escape, and I don't even know the other one's goals, but she sure as hell couldn't keep Aqua as a prisoner, she couldn't even catch JD, and her goons couldn't apprehend anyone.
The plot was boring; I had to force myself to read, everything was unrealistic (do I have to outline the being bitten in the arm scenario once more?) and I just didn't like any of the characters (which reminds me--JD's grandfather, Godrum, was the only decent character, and he was average, not only that, but his two sons were idiots, who only JUST managed to realise that they shouldn't relate their whole plan in front of JD and Aqua. Not only that, but JD could relate his plan to Aqua about how they were going to get away, because a malnourised, dehydrated little boy was faster at running up stairs than a fully-grown man. And said fully-grown man didn't realise that MAYBE JD was running ahead to discuss a plot against him with someone?)
I could go on, but I'm not bothered--I won't be recommending this to anyone, and the unrealistic parts of the plot that are added to an already unrealistic storyline (no one would notice all our water is running out--and no government would realise that this was MAYBE a bad idea?) it was all just too fustrating.
April 1, 2023
JD is a normal kid, or so he thinks. He lives in a world where it is a daily struggle to find water and food but it's the same way it had always been since as long as he can remember. Sometimes at night the silver men come and hurt his Ma and when she finally has enough and went to the city to live. The silver men came back and got angry, they beat his Pa and burned down JD's home with JD and his dad still inside as retaliation.
JD is able to get out although hurt he wanders the desert like place looking for some water.
That's when he comes upon an old man with his mouth sewn shut and his life changes forever.
This dystopian fantasy novel has an alarming amount of stories and wake up calls for human kind all wrapped up in a book that you just have to devour. I will be honest some parts were tricky to read but I couldn't put the book down.
I also really like how it ended. It was clever and cryptic.
Loved this book and would love to read more of his work 😍
JD is able to get out although hurt he wanders the desert like place looking for some water.
That's when he comes upon an old man with his mouth sewn shut and his life changes forever.
This dystopian fantasy novel has an alarming amount of stories and wake up calls for human kind all wrapped up in a book that you just have to devour. I will be honest some parts were tricky to read but I couldn't put the book down.
I also really like how it ended. It was clever and cryptic.
Loved this book and would love to read more of his work 😍
January 28, 2021
This is such a good book, which means a lot coming from someone who doesn't like to read very much. I just couldn't put the book down. It was so detailed and a little hard to digest because so much was happening but that's one of the things that made it so good. I think it deserves more credit than it has!
September 12, 2021
Completely different to anything I’ve read before.
A bleak dystopian novel filled with all the anxieties about our future world.
Friendship & loyalty are key components in this book.
Worth a read and a sequel maybe?
A bleak dystopian novel filled with all the anxieties about our future world.
Friendship & loyalty are key components in this book.
Worth a read and a sequel maybe?
June 10, 2014
Review by Callum - Year 8
Boonie is a dystopian novel based on a boy named JD who is trying to survive in a world without water. After his father’s death, JD meets a man whose mouth is sewn shut but who has a vital secret that could save the world. Together they travel to the city to find JD’s Mother. During his time in the city he meets a girl called Aqua. She ‘s an adventurous girl from the farm who aids JD, evading murderous Silver Men and together they continue to search for JD’s Mum.
Boonie is set in a futuristic world where there are only two places, the scrublands and the city. Our protagonist lives with his father out in the scrubland and is therefore a Boonie, while his mother travelled to the city. It is a vile place where they farm children, and force them into slavery to dig immense holes in the desert.
The plot is quite different to any other book I’ve read. It has a dark sort of macabre feel to it and is a grim representation of what might happen to Earth in the near future. The entire book is a metaphor of how we should treat our planet better and not take it for granted. It is a great read and is very engaging. With every page I turned, I wanted to read more. It is an emotional book and really develops the characters in the story so that you feel empathy with them. It makes you see them not just as words on a page but also as living, breathing people.
Richard Masson’s skill in characterization is demonstrated by the fact that even a character dubbed not important enough to have a name in this story (he just goes by the number 377) is made real to the reader by using clever dialogue and description. The writer puts feeling into every scene. From the murder of JD’s father to when the slave children fight over water in the pits, he makes you feel like you’re there watching it all unfold.
This book is one of my favorites and has lots of twists and turns and with each page you never really know what’s going to happen. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys novels like The Hunger Games that are dark and unsettling but hold the reader in an iron grip.
Boonie is a dystopian novel based on a boy named JD who is trying to survive in a world without water. After his father’s death, JD meets a man whose mouth is sewn shut but who has a vital secret that could save the world. Together they travel to the city to find JD’s Mother. During his time in the city he meets a girl called Aqua. She ‘s an adventurous girl from the farm who aids JD, evading murderous Silver Men and together they continue to search for JD’s Mum.
Boonie is set in a futuristic world where there are only two places, the scrublands and the city. Our protagonist lives with his father out in the scrubland and is therefore a Boonie, while his mother travelled to the city. It is a vile place where they farm children, and force them into slavery to dig immense holes in the desert.
The plot is quite different to any other book I’ve read. It has a dark sort of macabre feel to it and is a grim representation of what might happen to Earth in the near future. The entire book is a metaphor of how we should treat our planet better and not take it for granted. It is a great read and is very engaging. With every page I turned, I wanted to read more. It is an emotional book and really develops the characters in the story so that you feel empathy with them. It makes you see them not just as words on a page but also as living, breathing people.
Richard Masson’s skill in characterization is demonstrated by the fact that even a character dubbed not important enough to have a name in this story (he just goes by the number 377) is made real to the reader by using clever dialogue and description. The writer puts feeling into every scene. From the murder of JD’s father to when the slave children fight over water in the pits, he makes you feel like you’re there watching it all unfold.
This book is one of my favorites and has lots of twists and turns and with each page you never really know what’s going to happen. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys novels like The Hunger Games that are dark and unsettling but hold the reader in an iron grip.
May 12, 2013
This was something fresh and...different. It's dystopian and sci-fi but not your usual fare. Which is a good thing.
The Story:
JD's father has been burnt alive by the Silver Men. His mother has run away. Lost in the desert without water, JD meets a strange old man whose mouth has been sewn shut. That man's secret will save his life. The search for his mother leads JD to the City, where he must face the true horrors of life under the Silver Men. Trapped inside the Pits of enslaved children scraping for water, he must risk everything and everyone he has ever loved in order to survive.
My Notes:
1. Like I said, I thought this concept and premise was interesting and unique. I thought the world-building was pretty well done by the author! It was very vivid and convincing. I could picture it on the big screen someday.
2. I liked the characters -- JD and Aqua. Even Godrum. I felt attached to them and I really admired JD's determination and fighting spirit especially. It made me think about stuff.
3. Nice revelation towards the ending! I was pleasantly surprised.
4. Quite a pageturner for the most part -- I was eager and anxious to find out how JD got himself out of the rut he was in countless times.
5. Didn't particularly find the ending fruitful though -- lots of uncertainties and forays into the unknown.
Verdict:
Quite an enjoyable dystopian/sci-fi read, despite it not being your usual YA fare.
The Story:
JD's father has been burnt alive by the Silver Men. His mother has run away. Lost in the desert without water, JD meets a strange old man whose mouth has been sewn shut. That man's secret will save his life. The search for his mother leads JD to the City, where he must face the true horrors of life under the Silver Men. Trapped inside the Pits of enslaved children scraping for water, he must risk everything and everyone he has ever loved in order to survive.
My Notes:
1. Like I said, I thought this concept and premise was interesting and unique. I thought the world-building was pretty well done by the author! It was very vivid and convincing. I could picture it on the big screen someday.
2. I liked the characters -- JD and Aqua. Even Godrum. I felt attached to them and I really admired JD's determination and fighting spirit especially. It made me think about stuff.
3. Nice revelation towards the ending! I was pleasantly surprised.
4. Quite a pageturner for the most part -- I was eager and anxious to find out how JD got himself out of the rut he was in countless times.
5. Didn't particularly find the ending fruitful though -- lots of uncertainties and forays into the unknown.
Verdict:
Quite an enjoyable dystopian/sci-fi read, despite it not being your usual YA fare.
February 12, 2013
Fantastic story. Quite harsh in places, and it rips along, and as a previous reader said, it stays with you after you've finished. When you are reading it, it's very vivid, and you can easily imagine this making a great film. In fact, I can see this developing into a great series if the author wants to carry the story further. I can imagine a great "prequel" as there are so many great characters that you want to know more about, their history, how they got there, etc. And as for a follow-up or sequel, you are so involved with JD and his story by the end of the book, you *really* want to know what happens next!
February 11, 2013
Boonie is the story of a young boy trying to survive in an incredibly harsh, dried up world where cruelty abounds. Despite the horror of the society, the boy JD does what he can to struggle against injustice. I'm not a huge fan of the book (too depressing even for me!) but the boy's 'voice' does give some energy to the story.
February 13, 2013
This book works on so many different levels. It has a plethora of wonderful, finely observed characters, a gripping story line and it will wrench your emotions in so many ways. The first thing I wanted to do when I finished reading it was to start again. And don't think its just a YA read, this book works for adults too.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews