Young Adult Books for Grown Up Guys and Girls discussion

I know we had a great discussion about this book at Smash Burger the other night but I hadn't read it at the time. Well, the discussion excited me so I cracked it open that night and I'm almost half-way through. I'm really enjoying Kraus's writing style. In particular, I love the sentence: "I stepped onto the curb like a newborn, into the shadows of giants, deaf with traffic, blinded by glass" (chp.3).

Also, I feel so damn bad for Joey. The mom side of me just wants to give that poor stinky kid a hug. The inner-teen wants to berate him for not standing up to those evil teachers and bullies.

I'm up to the part where he's training with his father so it's getting pretty good and I am looking forward to my next opportunity to read.

You're at the "turning around point" - this is when it gets good :)

I agree with Nathan.....you are about to get to the good stuff! I also was horrified by the tragic experiences Joey has, but the growth he makes through out the book is exhilarating! I however, wanted to smack him for being the stinky kid....the gym at his school has a shower.....obviously!!!

I'm really rooting for this kid but at the point I'm in, there doesn't seem to be much for him to look forward to...

That was going to be one of my discussion questions (don't answer until you're done!) What do you think of Joey's "coming of age"? Was it realistic? Was it what you wanted for his character?

Coming of age is such a different thing for most people that it seems hard to describe any instance of it as "realistic".

Do you think it was realistic that he joined the Diggers? Do you feel his transition to becoming one was smooth and well thought-out?

Okay, I'm about two thirds into the book and I'm having a really difficult time buying into the whole grave robbing is noble thing. They just drove to lionel's house and he asks about Grinder. When told she broke, lionel says she was a good instrument. Somewhere earlier, someone asks Joey "remember what it felt like when you dug your first hole." Seriously?! I'm just not getting this pseudo religious/ spiritual side of graverobbing. Am I missing something?

I agree with Andrea that his joining the Diggers seemed a little rushed. There didn't seem to be a lot of incentive for him to want to do anything his Dad did at that point in the story. But, I have never been in his shoes: moving in with a parent I barely know as a teen. He was a little desperate to have some place where he belonged, and maybe that was the only place that seemed to exist for him. As for Hillary's question about the digging. I don't personally get into digging, but I do find myself getting caught in mindless, redundant tasks - they are therapeutic. I imagine digging is like that. The way runners feel about running, or the way I can sit and played timed sudokus for hours. It's a sickness, but I can relate to it.