Customer Reviews

The Last Invisible Boy

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I enjoyed reading THE LAST INVISIBLE BOY, by Evan Kuhlman, but it isn't necessarily a happy story.

The book is about a 12-year-old boy named Finn Garrett who has just lost his father. Told in a journal/diary style of writing, the story gives readers a glimpse into this boy's journey of recovery as he records his thoughts and emotions going from sadness to anger to confusion to guilt.

It continually breaks the "third wall," as the character Finn addresses the reader from time to time by asking questions etc., always including the reader on this trip.

I don't know why some reviewers found the story boring, because it is talking about a very delicate subject matter--the death of a parent--and so I'm not sure how you make that interesting. In any case, I never found the story boring and thought it was done with absolute sincerity.

And the drawings by J.P. Coovert are cute and soften the blow of the many sad journal entries that you encounter along the way. The story does end on a happy note so it's not all melancholy (btw, some parts are even funny).

This is such a wonderful book and it really shows how people, especially young people, go through the grieving process in their own way. And more importantly, that it's OK to go through the sadness because you will come out on the other side.

I loved the idea of this book. It's about Finn Garrett who has lost his dad and feels like he's turning invisible little by little. The book is written like his journal with text and his drawings.

I was very intrigued by the description on the jacket and the book started off well. Finn does not talk of the tragedy in the beginning he just imagines a giant eraser fell from the sky and starting rubbing him out. However, by the middle I could not read it any longer as it was too boring. Although, this is meant to be a diary of a young kid it appears disconnected. The activities Finn Garrett undertakes are normal for a kid his age but the author has not been able to capture the spirit of a middle schooler with the way Finn speaks or even thinks. In parts, it seems like an adult trying to think and talk like a younger kid.

Overall, it is a nice idea but I could not help but compare it with Jeff Kinney's Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. Jeff Kinney makes you really relate to the main character in the book. Although this book comes froma sadder place in a kid's heart it should not be so difficult to relate to a the character. In fact, the circumstances make us predisposed to like the character but it did not quite get there for me.

I also gave it to my 5th grader to read, she loves reading and finishes a book a day but left this one half read. She lost interest in the story midway, which makes me wonder if the 9-12 year audience who the book is intended for will feel the same way.

The Last Invisible Boy reads like a feeble attempt at some sort of cross between Clarice Bean, Don't Look Now and Diary of a Wimpy Kid. The Last Invisible Boy is, in a word, boring. The jacket cover promises "really funny, really happy moments" and that "anything can happen." There isn't a single thing that could be described as even remotely funny (much less "really funny"), nor "happy." And unless "anything can happen" is referring specifically to the ridiculously unlikely cause of the (thirty-six-year-old) father's death, then that statement is also false.

The basic premise of the story is that twelve-year-old Finn Garrett is slowly becoming invisible in the aftermath of his father's death. The boy shares anecdotes about happenings involving his family and friends; defines the meaning of the name of every single solitary stinkin' character in the entire book (gets old, trust me); provides factoids on various subjects (fireflies, the constellation Pegasus), drawings, and "pictures" (the illustrations of which are exactly the same format as the supposed drawings); refers regularly to "The Terrible Day That Changed Everything, the day I lost my dad forever" (finally explained on page 155); tells "Cemetery Tales" and updates the reader regularly on the state of his invisibility.

Although over 200 pages in length, it is a quick (though dull) read due to pages only partially filled with text, large and frequent chapter titles, and a fair number of illustrations. Unfortunately, discriminating readers are unlikely to reach the end due to a lack of plot. Unless it is due to the inclusion of the words "stupid," "crap," and "hell" and subjects like evolution, reincarnation and God, the 9 to 12 age range seems high. Worst of the book: the inclusion of the meaning of the name of every character; the vague storyline involving Finn's invisibility, and the overall lack of plot. Many times better: Clarice Bean, Don't Look Now by Lauren Child, Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney, and Emmy and the Incredible Shrinking Rat by Lynne Jonell.

The Last Invisible Boy is a serious and sometimes touching account of a middle school boy dealing with the sudden and unexpected death of his father. So why is it packaged like a carbon copy of the popular humorous book Diary of a Wimpy Kid?

Written in the form of a journal, including drawings by the narrator, The Last Invisible Boy presents the non-linear musings and experiences of Finn Garrett, a boy whose father's death has so destroyed his world that his hair has turned white. (Thus, the invisibility gimmick.) The reader realizes early on that the invisibility is not the science fiction/fantasy type of invisibility -- it is a physiological reaction to stress and grief. It is, perhaps, the most interesting and original part of a book which contains not much plot, few interesting characters, and entirely lifeless drawings.

I did not care at all for the drawings. I thought they added nothing to the story -- they contained no additional information -- frequently they were merely sketches of characters' faces. It seemed to me that they were present only for their marketing value -- because books with drawings are popular right now, thanks to the aforementioned Wimpy Kid.

There were moments in The Invisible Boy that touched me, but I was bored through a lot of the book. There is some value in Finn's journey through the stages of grief -- but the illustrations lack style or charm and they ultimately water down the book's message and theme.

The Last Invisible Boy is an expression of grief--from a kid's point of view. I was nine when my father died--and that is the year when I, too, began writing. The book is absolutely appropriate for kids 9-12, and will be a great book to hand to a kid who has endured a sudden (or not-so-sudden) loss. While there are slight anachronisms throughout the pages (I'm surrounded by kids all day at work and I never hear any of them use the word "bummer"), the text and drawings (the latter being in concert with the type of graphics which appeal to today's kids) are contemporary and appealing.

My favorite page is page 233:
"If you are ready for this book to end, turn the page. If not, please set this book aside until you are ready, or go back to the first page or someplace in the middle and start reading again.
I'll wait while you make up your mind."

Indeed, books become our friends and sometimes we are reluctant to say good-by to them--especially if they offer a particular solace or comfort. The Last Invisible Boy does so in a touching, poignant way.

Some years ago I had a turntable of high quality to play my vinyl records (we will now pause while you google "turntable", "vinyl", and "records"... hm...hm...oh, good, you're back). Most of the time, I would just put on a record, sit back, and enjoy the music. Every so often, however, I would detect a problem. There was this (ever so) slight drag on the disc, most likely caused by the tone-arm being just slightly too heavy. This caused an al most imperceptible drag which caused the music to be j-u-s-s-s-t slightly off. Many people wouldn't even notice. IT DROVE ME NUTS!!!! I relate this incredibly boring anecdote to put my reaction to "The Last Invisible Boy" in perspective. Basically a story of a kid adjusting to the loss of his father, the tone is just that little bit off... on every page... that it just doesn't work for me. Moreover, I can see the kids in my family getting just as annoyed by it and, finally, screaming JUST GET BLOODY ON WITH IT!!!! It's not that the book is bad, it's just that, it doesn't work! There's this (ever so) slight drag in the writing. Oh, and the illustrations are condescendingly awful (and awful because they are condescending).

This book seemed like it was trying to be like "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" but it didn't have the humor or the interest or the character development. The drawings, which were integral in Wimpy Kid, did not add anything to the story or help define the character. They weren't even funny. Also, some of the pictures were supposed to be photos and some drawings but they all were in the same style.

The character of Finn was very inconsistent--sometimes talking older than his age, sometimes younger. I got very annoyed about his having to give the meaning of every single name in the book--unless he has a reason to be so name obssessed, this could have been left out.

The story was just plain dull. Most of it was in flashbacks presented in random order. There was little about his present which was really what I was interested in. It is probably true-to-life that a boy would go through all these rememberances and the depression after losing a parent--it it might even be helpful for someone in that situation to read--but it just didn't make for an interesting story.

I'm accustomed to reading juvenile books that are geared for adults too. Initially, I had a hard time reading The Last Invisible Boy, but when I realized this first-person account in journal form was supposedly written by a twelve-year-old boy, that changed everything! I prepared myself for the read by pretending I was my grandson at that age.

After I found the proper mindset, the book became cohesive and even clever. I related to little Finn Garrett. He's quite a boy: great imagination, logical thought processes, and is quite resourceful.

I'm in awe that author Evan Kuhlman understands the tween mind so well; the writing leaps off the page as though a twelve-year-old really wrote it. For the story's purpose, the creative illustrations are supposedly drawn by Finn, also, but the artist is J. P. Coovert. He did a fine job creating simple, descriptive art that seemed perfect for each journal entry. I'm pleased there are so many illustrations. At first I thought I might prefer them in color, but I came to realize that black-and-white were ideal for this book.

The premise of the book is that Finn has lost his father unexpectedly and he thinks he's becoming invisible because his hair and skin are turning white. He feels that if he becomes invisible he can join his father and have more adventures with him whenever he wishes...jumping from his real life in Sunnyvale, Ohio to wherever his father is. His struggles to come to terms with that concept are heart-breaking, endearing, and at times amusing--but never outrageously hilarious.

It's at all times charming!
The Last Invisible Boy is a unique "take" on dealing with grief, but the part I enjoyed most was listening in on Finn's thought processes. Just one example: He's thinking about his eyes remaining the same ocean blue color when he writes: "Eyes are pretty weird, don't you think? They see things. The trillion colors. The trillion things to see. Like this book, like these words, like the white spaces around the words. If you think too much about how your eyes work, how they pull the world inside of you, you may get a severe case of the thinking ooglies." While that's not too dramatic, I think it's cool and typical of a kid Finn's age.

In addition to Finn's interaction with his mother and younger brother, he also has his first girlfriend Melanie; she's great at sports while his father always described him as the "sensitive, artistic" type. They hold hands, ride bikes together, visit the cemetery often, and, of course, they're "going to start dating next year when they're thirteen and get married when they grow up." It's a really cute touch, adding another note of childish realism to this book.

I recommend The Last Invisible Boy for parents who want to understand their tweens' mindset, for those who have lost a parent, and for children from ages ten to twelve, especially those who are seeking a warm, poignant, yet amusing story about family love and loss. (Amazon recommends it for ages 9-12, but I think age nine is stretching it a bit!)

Reviewed by: Betty Dravis
Author of The Toonies Invade Silicon Valley

Despite the title and what most people think, The main character (Finn) is not turning invisible. He is slowly "disappearing" as he calls it. His dad was taken away from him so quickly, that he slowly evaporating bit by bit. This book was really amazing andI didn't quite understand the low reviews. This book is happy and sad.Evan Kuhlman manages in this book to pull of a plot as sad as this one while mixing humor along the ride.

Well written, and clever, this story is about loss. A very intriguing device, making the boy turn invisible, allows the reader see Finn's feelings in a way that his own words cannot express. These heavy subjects, death, divorce, abuse etc. are hard to deal with in books for young readers and I have to give the author credit for trying. Half way through the book, however, it gets tedious and slow. It's a tough subject to be sure, but the pace is too slow and probably won't keep the interest of the average young reader.