FORMAT: Hardback
BUY IT: Waterstones
RATING: 4 Stars
PUBLICATION DATE: 01/05/14
This review refers to an uncorrected advance edition.
SUMMARY
SUMMARY
A riddle rarely makes sense the first time you hear it. The connection between Dane and Billy D doesn't make sense any time you hear it. But it's a collection of riddles that brings these two unlikely friends together. Dane Washington lives by two rules: don't hit girls and don't hit special kids. Billy D has Down syndrome and thinks a fierce boy who won't hit him could come in useful. Billy D has a puzzle to solve, after all, and he has the perfect plan to make Dane help him. Billy is sure the riddles in his atlas are really clues left by his missing dad. Together, Billy and Dane must embark on an epic road trip, although most of the clues lead to dead ends. What Dane doesn't realize is that Billy D isn't as innocent as he seems and the biggest secret is hidden close to home...
REVIEW
A wonderful tale of friendship and family.
Dane and Billy D are such different characters, and their differences are what makes them work so well as a pair. I don't think I've ever read a book about anyone with Down's Syndrome before but I felt it was written with sensitivity and care, and it highlighted the importance of not judging someone by how they look - just because Billy D doesn't look like the majority of people, it doesn't mean he doesn't think and feel thinks. I liked how literally he took everything, it made the clue solving even funnier. Dane is also brilliantly flawed despite having violent outbursts he really does become protective of Billy D.
The plot was great, there were some great twists and revelations and the end was realistic - I felt that it was realistic; not everything gets a lovely happy ending so the up in the air way it was left felt suitable (even though I'd have loved and epilogue to see what happened in the future!)
A must read for fans of John Green and R.J Palachio.
- Gem.
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