The Last Boy

by Robert H. Lieberman

Robert Lieberman, the bestselling author of Baby, as well as six other novels, has been called a "talented storyteller" by Kirkus Reviews. Now, Robert joins Sourcebooks Landmark with his stunning new novel, The Last Boy.
A spiritual thriller, this utterly compelling novel tells the story of Danny Driscoll, a huggable, enchanting five-year-old boy who one day disappears from his nursery school in Ithaca, New York. Molly, his distraught single mother, begins the feverish search for her missing son. She is aided by Lou Tripoli, a divorced, street-wise cop, with whom she begins to fall in love.
As the search stretches on for months, and hope begins to fade, a miracle occurs as little Danny Driscoll comes marching down the streets of his hometown. However, he comes back changed, mature and wise in a way that seems almost impossible for his young age. As Molly and Tripoli search for answers, the townspeople begin to notice a change in Danny, and soon discover that he returns with a message-one that offers a new hope for all of mankind.

Genres: Fiction

512 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2002

About the author

Robert H. Lieberman is a novelist, film director, and a long-time member of the Physics faculty at Cornell University. Initially he came to Cornell to study to be a veterinarian, but ended up becoming an electrical engineer and doing research in neurophysiology. He has also been professor of mathematics, engineering and the physical sciences and was recently awarded the John M. and Emily B. Clark Award for Distinguished Teaching at Cornell University.

— From wikipedia

Lieberman's first success as a novelist was "Paradise Rezoned, which sold over 300,000 copies. It has been issued in a new edition available on Kindle and Amazon. His other books including "Baby," Goobersville Breakdown" and "Perfect People" are now available in new editions. “The Last Boy” his latest novel (Source Books) continues to be a strong seller. All of his books tend to be page-turners that plunge the reader into the lives of richly imagined characters and worlds.

Lieberman's most recent film "They Call It Myanmar" was a New York Times Critics' Pick and was selected by Roger Ebert as one of the top dozen documentary films of 2012. See a trailer at: http://www.theycallitmyanmar.com


He is the writer/director of "Green Lights," a comedy: http://www.ithacafilms.com

Reviews

[Briansmom · Rating 1 out of 5]

First of all, this book is WAAAAAAAY too long. It could have been shortened by about half. There is so much detail and so many things are explained/described ad nauseum, and often things that the reader thinks are importent are just red herrings. That said, the author also has the annoying tendency to not elaborate or ultimately explain/resolve things that ARE important. No, the unfortunate reader is simply strung along for HUNDREDS of pages of worthless descriptions and endless details. I confess, it had me at the beginning: I love a good mystery, and was eager to find out what happened to Danny and why. Then, after he returns, the book becomes downright creepy as it becomes clear that he has somehow "changed." I'm the mother of a boy, and I totally related to how Molly felt with this difficult to please and (IMHO) obnoxiously-behaved child who looked like her son but didn't act like him. But then, the book changes yet again into a ridiculous save-the-earth rant that was unbelieveably silly. I mean, Danny actually, literally hugs a tree. Are you kidding me? I truly wasted my time on this one, but I do have to admit that it did give me more than a chuckle or two, so maybe I should have rated it higher for the comedy factor....

[Mollie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ugh. Seriously? This book was terrible. It was badly written. The first section was at least moderately interesting, and kept me reading, as it was an interesting missing kid sort of story. I powered through. Then it just turns hokey and stupid, and by the last book the writing is so poor and the story so unbelievable that it was just me groaning at the end of every chapter. The one good thing: books like this give me hope that I too can write a novel that will get published! It would have to be better than this!

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first part of this book was a thriller about a missing child - couldn't put it down. By the end of the book, it was more of a thinly veiled lecture on the environment, which was interesting but nowhere near as gripping, and a bit bizarre. Still enjoyed the book though.

[Karin · Rating 2 out of 5]

This started off ok: a boy disappears from his day care. I couldn't figure out why only one person had a cell phone, then realized it was set in the late 90s (based on the copyright). It lost creditability with me when the mother randomly slept with the lead detective. Then it got overly long, preachy and boring, and the poor editing started to grate in me. Skip this one, I can summarize it in two words: go green.

[Carre Saunders · Rating 1 out of 5]

Dear lord, this book was awful. The disappearance drug on entirely too long, the mother’s actions were looney tunes and unrealistic. And the moralistic messaging about the environment was way over the top. And it’s quite clear the author has never stepped foot in the state of Florida. Oranges aren’t grown in orchards, they’re grown in groves...and they haven’t been grown commercially in the panhandle of Florida (from the AL line to about Tallahassee; it’s not the entire state dude) since the ‘80s...the EIGHTEEN eighties. 🤦🏼‍♀️🤦🏼‍♀️ And Molly blaming herself for Rosie’s death because she got her car repaired!?? C’mon dude. This book was just straight up awful.

[Douglas Gibson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Whoa, not since Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged have I been so preached to by a book! I liked this cautionary environmental yarn, but next time just beat me over the head with a picket-sign, it'll be quicker and have the same effect.

[Lorrie Savoy · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was a jumble of several different ideas, and it did none of them well. If you want a novel about environmental impact, read Flight Behavior. If you want a novel about being willing to take a chance on love, try something bu Maeve Binchy. Need a good investigation that will break your heart/ Read Child 44. Doesn't The Deep End of the Ocean have to do with an abduction? Or better still, Room? Any one of these books would be a better choice.

[Bob · Rating 2 out of 5]

What a good story, ruined when it went off on lecture tangent then finished with a lousy ending. Even the lecture could have been bearable if it had been anything original about saving the environment, but the trite suggestions for saving the planet weren't even original in 2003 when this was written. And now they're going to make a movie. Can't wait so see how the film script writers improve it.

[Anna Hargett · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm kind of confused as what to say about this book. It was really long, but I thought the writing was really good so it kept my attention. But towards the end of the book the story kind of took a wierd turn and instead of finding it really interesting, I kind of got a little bit bored.

[Heather Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

slow to start...crappy ending

[Joby Sunny · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book is overall good. It has some good characters in it. The characters try to spread the message of global warming and how people should react to it. All good things said in a good way that came off to me as too good to be realistic at many places..

[Laura Rowland · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! I've never read a book of this length quite as fast as I did this one. I felt that it was well written and the length of the book was necessary in order to take you through the transition of the main characters. I enjoyed it.

[Dinah D · Rating 1 out of 5]

Terrible. Slow. About 200 pages too long (I really thought it was 512 pages too long).

[T · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disappointing.

[Lindy · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first part of the book was so long...I thought the whole book was going to be about this missing boy. I just felt like this book would never end. It was just ok. As others have mentioned, it turned into a lecture about how to treat the earth. Meh. (Not that I'm against treating it well, mind you).

[Victoria · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book certainly sucks the reader in from its first pages with a thrilling story of a missing boy. But, Lieberman is something of a manipulative writer, as the book shifts gears after this well-written first section full of mystery and heightened emotion. With readers fully engaged, Lieberman steps away from the main plotline to include soapbox speeches on saving the world, and its environment. While it is hard to disagree with his stance, its sudden onset really negatively impacts the dramatic tension. And the book, which is a weighty one even in trade paperback format, begins to feel bogged down with the author’s own personal agenda. It’s certainly a great example of a literary bait-and-switch as the plot becomes entirely focused on ecology. Not to mention the fact that some pretty major holes are left gaping open even by the time the reader has made it through all 500+ pages! I really want to know more about the mystery behind The Hermit... but I certainly would not pick up another book by this author. I hate it when books have such promising beginnings only to feel like complete let-downs by the end...

[Lacey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting. Reading the other reviews I was expecting a huge discrepancy between the disappearance of Danny and the return of Danny. It wasn't that big of a deal. True the first part of the book is a cop mystery story and it does turn into a different kind of story in the second part but I think the only way to find out exactly what happened to Danny is to see what happens after he returns. Instead of a telling of where Danny was we get the point of view of his impact on others and how they process his return. True the story was also focused on how we are destroying the earth and the signs the earth is giving us and how if everyone does a little something then a big difference will occur. The end just seemed a little too easy for me. Molly and Trip just seemed to reap all benefits while not really altering their lifestyle.

The book was easy to read and while it was somewhat long the storyline kept me interested. What I did like about this story was the potential of Danny and what he will do. Molly bugged me, she seemed too interested in having this "normal" life but it did have it's place in the plot.

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book about a 4 year boy who disappears from his preschool class. He just vanishes with no trace in sight. His mother Molly does everything she knows to find her son but reluctantly must finally give up the search. Seven months later Molly is looking out her window and notices a boy walking towards her trailer who resembles her son. This book was very good, kept you in suspense and goes on to tell you how special her son is.

[Georgeann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well it was good enough to finish despite its length. An odd mix of fantasy, mystery and religion revoled around a single mother, her five year old boy and a policeman assigned to the case when the boy vanishes without a trace. I'm not sure who I would recommend this to because it does cross several genres and is daunting in size. I guess the reader will have to take a chance with this one.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A genuine page turner -- until it shifts. I was as confused as anyone else, until the Ah Ha! hit. Then it became fascinating, aspirational, and complex.
That trajectory of mine follows the story - concern, disbelief, hope.
Let's hope that when we face a choice like this we have learned enough to let go our our preconceptions and listen, then act.

[Pa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This starts off as a very intriguing story about a boy who disappears only to reappear months later under mysterious circumstances and strangely changed. However in spite of starting with great promise the tale fizzles out. An OK read, but disappointing.

[Stacey Cukierski · Rating 3 out of 5]

The beginning really hooks you into the story of a lost boy and a distraught mother. As the book continues the plot changes into a bizarre tale of a boy whose a chosen one who has a close connection with nature.

[Andrew · Rating 2 out of 5]

The message in the book was fantastic. The overarching theme does not become apparent until about page 290 - at least for me that's when it got interesting. Once the message starts it's great! But boy, way to stuff it in at the end and beat a dead horse!

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my all time favorite books! I couldn't stop reading it.

[Jenn · Rating 1 out of 5]

Incomplete

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

really enjoyed this book until the last 3rd when it took a strange turn and I had a hard time buying in

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

it was a really good read and it had a lot of twists and turns that kept me really interested except that I don't feel like the ending really explained it all. Never felt satisfied.

[Shari · Rating 1 out of 5]

Terrible. Can't believe I bothered to finish it. Trite.

[Mitzi Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good read. Yes, it has a message, but a good one. The story was well written with nice attention to detail. The characters were well developed and very likeable. I would recommend it!

[Laurel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Intersting premise but not very compelling read.