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The Junkyard Kids
Witnessing the gruesome murder of his parents and nearly becoming a victim himself, leaves a boy psychologically disturbed and homeless. Along with this, he must protect his younger brother, and years later they form a bond with other young outcasts, eventually taking refuge in an abandoned junkyard. By chance, two criminals stop by the junkyard one night, leading him to witness yet another murder. Shortly after, he kills the murderer in self-defense, and he and his junkyard friends quickly get rid of the bodies and the evidence. Unfortunately, they realize they must leave the city to avoid being caught. However, things take a different turn when they accidentally stumble on the identity of his parents' murderer, and soon they decide to track him down. But before long they learn that the murderer not only stays one step ahead of them but enjoys playing cat and mouse with his pursuers. The protagonist eventually discovers something about his brother that adds more to the search, a search for himself, even while his sanity and heroic efforts to do the right thing seem to circle the drain. His fate is balanced on a knife's edge, almost literally, and the reader is left wondering to the end what will finally happen.
412 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 1, 2017
120 people are currently reading
120 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
July 2, 2017
This book kept my interest all the way through. I wasn't sure what I would think of this book when I first started reading it but it is very good. I liked the story and the characters and exciting twist and turns. I little bit of a cat and mouse book. I liked where the author sent me in this book and I was having a great time trying to guess the ending. It does have some violence but the author did a good job of not making it overshadow the other action in the book. * I received this book from the author and this is my honest review*
July 7, 2017
Junkyard Kids was a tale of the different variety. A dark, crazy variety. But, oh man, was it good.
After witnessing a murder, and subsequently becoming involved, a gaggle of homeless kids embark on the most terrifying journey. Serial killers, hallucinations, guilt, and plot twists.
There were quite the handful of unique things about this novel. We'll start with the protagonists. Normally when homeless people are involved, the end goal is, of course, a home. Not in this narrative. To be honest, their main goal is survival. Food, shelter, clothing...all of that takes the biggest back seat. So the author is already deviating from standard tropes.
The main character is a POC. And he's not a stereotype either. There's a few intersecting storylines involved in the narrative, and I can't decide if his or Leon's is more heartbreaking. His level of development throughout is astronomical. He's not the only POC in the novel, either. They're all respected characters, not bad stereotypes.
Alright, now the tone and writing. Easily my favorite part. Mostly because of the dialogue. Instead of keeping everyone speaking "proper" like many novels do, these kids have imperfect grammar. They stutter. They feel like actual, real people.
Character dynamics between each other really came full circle, I feel like. They start together, split up, then come back together. Through everything that happens, they stick together. And, I mean, why not? It emphasizes the point that they're all each other has left.
I liked the way the plot was set up. It teased readers with the appropriate amount of information. There's several twists throughout. Most of the time, the reader won't see coming, even if they recognize the foreshadowing points. I thought I had things all figured out. Nope. Not even close.
I will say some of time jumps took me a second. Chapters are marked with what time period each one takes place in, but it doesn't feel like the smoothest transition. They did do an excellent job of providing backstory for the reader. They focused on all of the junkyard kids, how they met, and how they got to their current state of things. It's adds a bit more emotionality and sympathy for them when the reader realizes just how bad things are for them.
Junkyard Kids provides such a powerful, colorful picture. These kids are crazy tough and resilient. And yet, they're still brilliant. Not just smart (and believe me, they are), but they're excellent people. This is such a wild, worthwhile read.
After witnessing a murder, and subsequently becoming involved, a gaggle of homeless kids embark on the most terrifying journey. Serial killers, hallucinations, guilt, and plot twists.
There were quite the handful of unique things about this novel. We'll start with the protagonists. Normally when homeless people are involved, the end goal is, of course, a home. Not in this narrative. To be honest, their main goal is survival. Food, shelter, clothing...all of that takes the biggest back seat. So the author is already deviating from standard tropes.
The main character is a POC. And he's not a stereotype either. There's a few intersecting storylines involved in the narrative, and I can't decide if his or Leon's is more heartbreaking. His level of development throughout is astronomical. He's not the only POC in the novel, either. They're all respected characters, not bad stereotypes.
Alright, now the tone and writing. Easily my favorite part. Mostly because of the dialogue. Instead of keeping everyone speaking "proper" like many novels do, these kids have imperfect grammar. They stutter. They feel like actual, real people.
Character dynamics between each other really came full circle, I feel like. They start together, split up, then come back together. Through everything that happens, they stick together. And, I mean, why not? It emphasizes the point that they're all each other has left.
I liked the way the plot was set up. It teased readers with the appropriate amount of information. There's several twists throughout. Most of the time, the reader won't see coming, even if they recognize the foreshadowing points. I thought I had things all figured out. Nope. Not even close.
I will say some of time jumps took me a second. Chapters are marked with what time period each one takes place in, but it doesn't feel like the smoothest transition. They did do an excellent job of providing backstory for the reader. They focused on all of the junkyard kids, how they met, and how they got to their current state of things. It's adds a bit more emotionality and sympathy for them when the reader realizes just how bad things are for them.
Junkyard Kids provides such a powerful, colorful picture. These kids are crazy tough and resilient. And yet, they're still brilliant. Not just smart (and believe me, they are), but they're excellent people. This is such a wild, worthwhile read.
September 30, 2017
Good story, needs LOTS of editing
Excellent story and characters, but it really needs an editors touch. At first I thought the choppy speech was supposed to be how the character spoke, but then I found that a plethora of words were misspelled (not ones that would have been caught in spell check), and realized that the author just does not have a good grasp of the English language. I always start with a full set of stars and remove as needed, so I removed one for the spelling/grammar errors. I didn't see any bad punctuation errors. Just a missing quotation mark here and there.
Here are the errors I found in the book, at least staring around the middle, so the author can begin to fix them. This is not all of them as I did not really pay attention until it became annoying to me. This is why I believe an editor is needed, and why he does not have a decent grasp of the English language.
'pressing the petal to the floor...-
S/B PEDAL
MANY TIMES USED PASSED S/B PAST (ie, 'he dragged it PASSED (S/B PAST) two garbage bags...')
'padded Tanner on the shoulder...' S/B PATTED
'Zeke took a deep breath and shuttered...' S/B SHUDDERED
'Zeke pulled his cousins truck into the garage and hoped out...' (S/B HOPPED)
“All arise!” said the bailiff. (S/B RISE)
'word got out that not only had Bloody, Bloody Bijou’s identity had been discovered but...'
“With the evidence I will I present to you, I will prove that these three...
The bailiff led him to the witness stand, and after Marty swore in front of the court (I believe he meant 'after Marty was sworn in...')
And this is what I mean by choppy sentences, where words are left out or sentences are not complete. The book is FULL of this type of sentence. I thought at first it was supposed to be the way the character spoke, but I'm not so sure now:
"so I could help my pack of street rats find their way out the cheeseless maze."
Excellent story and characters, but it really needs an editors touch. At first I thought the choppy speech was supposed to be how the character spoke, but then I found that a plethora of words were misspelled (not ones that would have been caught in spell check), and realized that the author just does not have a good grasp of the English language. I always start with a full set of stars and remove as needed, so I removed one for the spelling/grammar errors. I didn't see any bad punctuation errors. Just a missing quotation mark here and there.
Here are the errors I found in the book, at least staring around the middle, so the author can begin to fix them. This is not all of them as I did not really pay attention until it became annoying to me. This is why I believe an editor is needed, and why he does not have a decent grasp of the English language.
'pressing the petal to the floor...-
S/B PEDAL
MANY TIMES USED PASSED S/B PAST (ie, 'he dragged it PASSED (S/B PAST) two garbage bags...')
'padded Tanner on the shoulder...' S/B PATTED
'Zeke took a deep breath and shuttered...' S/B SHUDDERED
'Zeke pulled his cousins truck into the garage and hoped out...' (S/B HOPPED)
“All arise!” said the bailiff. (S/B RISE)
'word got out that not only had Bloody, Bloody Bijou’s identity had been discovered but...'
“With the evidence I will I present to you, I will prove that these three...
The bailiff led him to the witness stand, and after Marty swore in front of the court (I believe he meant 'after Marty was sworn in...')
And this is what I mean by choppy sentences, where words are left out or sentences are not complete. The book is FULL of this type of sentence. I thought at first it was supposed to be the way the character spoke, but I'm not so sure now:
"so I could help my pack of street rats find their way out the cheeseless maze."
February 24, 2021
The Junkyard Kids by Caleb Broderick centers on a group of young adults that live in a junkyard - Leon, Sean, Tabitha, Xavier, and our storyteller (who was never given a name or, if he does have one, I missed it). The story goes back and forth between two timelines. Present day 1995-ish where the junkyard kids kill a man (a guy that came into the junkyard and offed the guy that was with HIM) and then take both bodies, stuff them into the trunk of a car, and ditch the car in a river. The second timeline takes place in the 80s with our storyteller and his brother Xavier coming in contact with a serial killer/cop (not a spoiler, author is open on who the killer is) who breaks into their home one night, kills their parents, and runs before he could finish off the brothers as the cops arrive. I think this wanted to be a thriller/police procedural but it wasn't a very good one. I ended up not finishing because the police portions of the story were unbelievable to me and completely pulled me from the book. I think this would have benefited a lot more if it had spanned the 80s into the 90s, focusing in on the two brothers, the other junkyard kids, and glossing over the police procedural parts. The writing wasn't awful, I just think the execution of the story could have been better and more focused.
May 22, 2021
I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway. Fast-paced and action packed. The book is a heartbreaking tale, but one of redemption and understanding. The intricate plot had plenty of twists; some were easily predictable and some were not. The four-star rating comes as the result of this being a self-published book. There were multiple spelling and grammar errors. At first, I thought they were part of the language used by the characters, but realized there were just many errors missed during editing, for example, hopped misspelled as hoped. The mistakes are noticeable but enough to ruin the the story and the meaning behind it.
June 4, 2017
This author of this book totally leaves you on the edge of your seat throughout. The characters are strongly written leaving you with full appreciation of psychological damages they have witnessed and how they attempt to survive.
I would strongly recommend this book if you enjoy psychological thrillers like myself.
A real page turner !! That definitely leaves you with food for thought! With many twits and turns
I wish to send my thanks to the author for giving me this opportunity.
I would strongly recommend this book if you enjoy psychological thrillers like myself.
A real page turner !! That definitely leaves you with food for thought! With many twits and turns
I wish to send my thanks to the author for giving me this opportunity.
September 15, 2017
The Junkyard Kids
A stunning, outstanding, heart pumping experience. The vivid gruesome details of the story unfold before you so intensely it's like a movie that just doesn't stop. Each character so emotionally described and the agony of their lives will tare at the heart strings of the strongest person. I Loved It!!!! If you don't read this book you will be forever sorry you missed out on the best book ever written.
A stunning, outstanding, heart pumping experience. The vivid gruesome details of the story unfold before you so intensely it's like a movie that just doesn't stop. Each character so emotionally described and the agony of their lives will tare at the heart strings of the strongest person. I Loved It!!!! If you don't read this book you will be forever sorry you missed out on the best book ever written.
February 4, 2018
My thoughts
I loved this book. It shows that we all have good in ourselves, but there are things we are capable of doing
to protect the ones we love, whether they are family or friends. We don't live in a perfect society, and we rush into judgement of people by the way they look. We should learn not be so judgemental until we have walked in their shoes. There is a lot to take away from this book of you keep your mind open.
I loved this book. It shows that we all have good in ourselves, but there are things we are capable of doing
to protect the ones we love, whether they are family or friends. We don't live in a perfect society, and we rush into judgement of people by the way they look. We should learn not be so judgemental until we have walked in their shoes. There is a lot to take away from this book of you keep your mind open.
April 7, 2020
Wonderful inspiring, motivating, thought provoking, and intense thriller!! I have a highlight from the book that stuck in my mind I liked alot.
Highlights:
1) But as humans, that’s what we do; make something from nothing, fly after our wings have been clipped, revive our dreams from the nightmares this life’s created. Even if we fail all our suffering, all our pain, all our unhappiness will end. We are not eternal. This life is not forever. And neither is our misery.”
Highlights:
1) But as humans, that’s what we do; make something from nothing, fly after our wings have been clipped, revive our dreams from the nightmares this life’s created. Even if we fail all our suffering, all our pain, all our unhappiness will end. We are not eternal. This life is not forever. And neither is our misery.”
December 27, 2017
It is gripping
But it needs an editor. There are some minor grammatical errors, but really, it's a pacing issue. It was a bit jarring to be flung from the main narration into flashbacks from other characters. The reveal about Xavier wasn't shocking, but I don't know that it was meant to be
But it needs an editor. There are some minor grammatical errors, but really, it's a pacing issue. It was a bit jarring to be flung from the main narration into flashbacks from other characters. The reveal about Xavier wasn't shocking, but I don't know that it was meant to be
September 14, 2017
I recommend this book to all of my friends. A very intense thriller!I loved it!Well rounded characters,intense theme,realism was on point.I will seek out more works from this author.
I finished it in one day,it's that good.
I finished it in one day,it's that good.
January 15, 2020
Great book
Was kind of sad, these kids had a hard life. Seek and Leon really surprised me!! I really enjoyed reading this book, couldn't put it down, then sad when I finished ( wanted to keep reading). Looking forward to reading more of Caleb Broderick, Thank you
Was kind of sad, these kids had a hard life. Seek and Leon really surprised me!! I really enjoyed reading this book, couldn't put it down, then sad when I finished ( wanted to keep reading). Looking forward to reading more of Caleb Broderick, Thank you
December 19, 2024
Great story
This book hooks you into the story really quickly. It's a great story and had some real-life lessons to learn in it. I really had a good time reading it and meeting all the characters in it.
This book hooks you into the story really quickly. It's a great story and had some real-life lessons to learn in it. I really had a good time reading it and meeting all the characters in it.
September 14, 2017
Rated R for language and violence. Although it had an unsatisfactory, sanctimonious conclusion, the read was a thrilling ride through the dark underworld of insanity, murder and child abuse.
September 19, 2017
Wow
Scary twisted a real nail bitter. Sad and probably more like some people's struggles to stay afloat in a cruel world
Scary twisted a real nail bitter. Sad and probably more like some people's struggles to stay afloat in a cruel world
February 5, 2018
I loved this.
This was a really different book, had lots of plots. Took you from the past, to present day. Excellent read!
This was a really different book, had lots of plots. Took you from the past, to present day. Excellent read!
November 17, 2019
I'm doing a random reading challenge, and I needed a book about siblings. I picked this one randomly from preowned stuff on my kindle. It had siblings! A few sets! MC and Xavier, Sean and Chase, Leon and Zeke...so I guess this qualifies.
I didn't really know what to expect from this book. I think it was sad? The backstories to the homeless kids...man. Their whole existence really, from how they ended up in the junkyard to their life together. This book was sad. There was an interesting story with a few twists and a decent suspense/thriller plot, but what caught me about this book was how sad it was. It made me kinda like the sorta hopeful sappy ending, I think.
oh and the main character with his first person point of view? I decided like 3 chapters in that he was a nut with a completely unreliable point of view. I like that :D
I didn't really know what to expect from this book. I think it was sad? The backstories to the homeless kids...man. Their whole existence really, from how they ended up in the junkyard to their life together. This book was sad. There was an interesting story with a few twists and a decent suspense/thriller plot, but what caught me about this book was how sad it was. It made me kinda like the sorta hopeful sappy ending, I think.
oh and the main character with his first person point of view? I decided like 3 chapters in that he was a nut with a completely unreliable point of view. I like that :D
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews