Customer Reviews

Chicken Boy

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Frances Dowell is one of the finest young people's authors

out there today. From the masterful and gripping Dovey Coe

to the canny Secret Language of Girls, to the thoughtful

and gripping world of Chicken Boy, Dowell shows again and

again that she understands kids and their concerns. Her books

have both strong storytelling and a moral code. She makes characters that provoke lively discussion between parents

and kids and teachers. There's so much gloss out there today,

books that seem more concerned with showing girls how to be pretty and boys how to be cool. Dowell's books show kids and grownups how to be loving, responsible, kind human beings.

And she does it with grace and style and wonderful stories.

Her characters seek to improve and expand their hearts and

minds.

Dowell's books are essential.

Chicken Boy tells the story of young Tobin McCauley who comes from a bad family and who is just sure he will end up the same way. People do not expect much from him and he does not expect much from himself. His world changes when he enters the seventh grade and begins to form his own identity rather than accepting the one forced on him by his family's reputation. He is surprised when he makes a friend and together they learn how to raise chickens so as to discover if the birds have souls. Tobin begins to recognize that his family does not have to be the way that they are and he makes small efforts to alter their lifestyle. He is torn between staying with his father who only attempts to provide a home life after a Social Services visit and his granny who called Social Services because she resents Tobin's father, but Tobin is sent to a foster home instead. He realizes how much he loves his family when they gather for counseling sessions and he learns that the good things in himself come from his family as well and not just the bad. The character of Tobin is well written with a "who cares" attitude because he knows what the world thinks of him. He surprises himself when he feels strangely good inside for sticking up for a teacher and for giving an extra credit oral report to the class about the soul of a chicken -- a feat never attempted by a McCauley. He does not like how his family lives up to their public image and longs to be away from them until he is forced into the situation. Chicken Boy captures the time in a boy's life when he feels most alienated from his family but his situation makes him realize how much he never wants to be away from them. He learns about himself while trying to figure out the nature of chickens and forges his own identity rahter than becoming just another lowdown member of the McCauley family.

I agree with most of the positive reviews this book has received, however I feel the need to make parents, librarians, and teachers aware that the book contains a few four-letter words and some slang, which would be considered inappropriate for this grade level in most circles. This is an AR book with a reading level of 5.1 (5th grade). I understand that the language is used to make the story as real-life as possible. In that case, the book should be considered at a higher level due to content.

I really liked this book until the last few chapters, where the boy gets adopted by an upper-middle class family. From that point on the book's direction changes and it didn't satisfy me. The ending left a lot of loose ends and didn't seem to fit the rest of the book.

Maybe I'm a traditionalist. I wanted to see more of the boy running - now that he had sneakers and was dressing out for gym. That part of the book created a surge in energy for me. And I wanted to see more of what was going to happen with the chickens and with his oral report for Science Class.

I read a few chapters every night and I kept looking forward to them. But when the book changed with him being sent to the foster home, I kept saying "Huh?" and wanting a return to normalcy.

I didn't take it as real, either, that the boy would suddenly start reading and discussing National Geographic articles with his foster dad.

How much do you know about chickens? The book is written by Frances O'Roark Dowell . The story takes place in North Carolina. Tobin (main character) has the last name of McCauley, his family has a record for getting in trouble. Tobin is neglected from his peers and never talks to anyone. That is until he meets Henry. From that moment on Henry never leaves Tobin's side. Now Henry is obsessed with chickens. He gets Tobin involved in the chicken business that he and his brother Harrison are in. At the same time Tobin's family issue becomes horrible. As the book goes on Tobin finds the souls in these chickens and his life becomes better.

I thought this was a good read for people who like realistic fiction stories. I recommend this story to people in middle school for the main character is in 7th grade. Also a story that has a fast paced story line and a sarcastic point of view from the main character. I dislike the lack of content in the book. The ending happens too fast in my opinion. But overall it is an awesome read and I highly recommend it.

Chicken Boy, by Frances O'Roark Dowell, sounds very childish and silly, but is a very true and can almost be sickening. The boy, Tobin, lives with is brothers and sisters in an old house behind a gas station. They live in pretty much a pig sty. This is mainly because Tobin's mother died of cancer and since then, their house has been a mess and his Grandma and dad will not talk to each other. This book gives you a real life feeling, it shows you how other people's lives can be. Tobin goes back to school and he doesn't have any friends. There is only one class he likes, and that is English. His teacher really believes he can do great things when no one can. One day, he gets in a fight with a boy and another boy, Harrison, helps him. Tobin and Harrison become good friends. Harrison raises chickens and is using them for a science extra credit project. Tobin gets to know all the chickens and soon gets involved with taking care of them. He buys his own chickens and takes care of them. He gets very close to them and learns that he can relate to them more than some humans and they give him a new outlook on life. This book is really touching because even through all Tobin is going through, he always goes to see the chickens.

By Grace

Chicken Boy, by Frances O'Roark Dowell, is an honest and strikingly insightful look into not only the life of seventh grader Tobin McCauley, but into growing up in general. Told in a first person daringly honest narrative, Tobin's story is filled with an earnestness and good-hearted humor that cracks his tough exterior and reveals the essence of his character. A character that makes it worth it to find joy in the journey.

No matter what background the reader comes from it is easy to relate to and empathize with Tobin's experiences of being poor in suburban America, living in a broken home, and searching for a way to matter. Filled with a fun ensemble cast, including an entrepreneurial nine-year-old track star and a rough, passive-aggressive grandmother who still finds a way of becoming a sympathetic character, Chicken Boy takes a reader back not only to her past, but to her roots.

And then there are the chickens. Putting all metaphorical interpretations of them aside, Tobin learns to take care of-- and eventually love-- animals that did nothing to deserve it except exist. And he finds out that matters more than he ever hoped.

A great read for any age, but especially middle school to early high school, Chicken Boy is a poignant, funny, sometimes heartbreaking glimpse into the thoughts and hearts of an eclectic bunch of people with an eclectic bunch of problems not too different from our own.

Ive read this book so many times and still cant get enough of it. Frances O'Roark Dowell has done it again!! Just another thrilling story! I recommend this for all ages. Trust me you won't be dissapointed.

Purchased this book for my son who is trying out for Battle of the Books. Was a good book but not a great book. Was on the list to read.

Good southern coming-of-age book for middle school boys. The characters occasionally seemed a little mature for their ages, but likeable none-the-less. I don't know why the mother always has to die in boys' coming of age stories, but it does seem to be an over-riding theme including this book. Ah well. A custody battle, although not bad, between (Tobin's) the main character's father and grandmother is a central theme as well as raising chickens and whether or not chickens have souls and friendship and identity. Oddly it all ties together and works. I enjoyed this one and will recommend it to boys and some girls age 9-12.