BOY 21 - MATTHEW QUICK //

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I went into reading Boy 21 with absolutely no knowledge as to what the book was about. I had an inkling that it had something to do with sports, but that was all the indication I had. Halfway through the book, I realized there was a bright orange sticker on the front of the book that proclaimed the author, Matthew Quick, as the New York Times bestselling author of The Silver Linings Playbook. I have yet to read said book, but I have seen the movie, and it was phenomenal. But that’s beside the point. This post is about Boy 21. 

This book follows Finley McManus, the only white boy on his high school basketball team. He lives in a town called Bellmont located somewhere in Pennsylvania, where his town is ruled by an Irish mob, drugs, and violence. He lives with his father and his grandfather, and his girlfriend Erin is his only friend. One day, his basketball coach tells him of a new kid in town named Russ. Russ and Finley have a lot in common, and Finley’s job is to watch after Russ and make sure Russ tries out for the basketball team. I’m not going to say much more because it would involve an insane amount of spoilers, so I will leave it at that.

This book was an incredibly fast read. I didn’t put it down, and that was shocking to me. I was wary of how I’d react to this book considering I’m not a sports person in any sort of way, but I really enjoyed this book. I couldn’t identify with nearly any of the situations or circumstances in the book, but both Finley and Russ had characteristics with which I could identify. In a way, the ending of this book reminded me of The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, which is one of my favorite books. I can’t tell why it reminded me of that book because it would spoil everything, but I hope those who have read both books can agree with me, or at least see where I’m coming from. 

If I were to give this book a rating, I’d genuinely give it a 4.5/5 or higher. It’s heartwarming, it’s heartbreaking, and it emphasizes the importance of friendships and relationships. I can especially identify with this book because it’s set during Finley’s senior year of high school and deals with the notion of college and its inevitability, and I am also in my senior year of high school, very close to the end for me. It factored in a special nostalgia-for-the-future factor that made me enjoy this book more than I already did. I absolutely recommend this book to anyone. I think it can be a universally appreciated read and that anyone could enjoy it.