I have many, many thoughts about this book and they are all jumbled in my head. That's what this book will do to you. You will feel glad that you read it, but also very jumbled by the end. So I'll try to straighten my thoughts out:

First, there's the nature of the main character, Oscar. Adult readers will see him as a boy with autism, but many children will not make that connection because readers only know Oscar's perspective, and he's never heard of autism. Certainly many of Oscar's characteristics are exactly what we've come to associate with autism (not looking at people's faces, difficultly reading emotion, one savant-like ability, discomfort with loud noises, love of routine), but this book is fantasy and it takes place in a made-up world, so maybe there's no point in trying to diagnose Oscar in terms of our real world. I can only talk about where this leads with spoilers: The thing to take away is that Oscar feels less "real" than other people and comes to believe that he's not even human. If Oscar had been right, if he had indeed been made out of wood and magic, it would be hurtful (even offensive) for people with autism, because that's like saying they're not "real." So adult readers will probably guess early on that Oscar is not, as he suspects, a wooden boy.

Next, though this is squarely in the fantasy genre, there's not a lot of action or exciting magic in it (partway through this book, I suspected that the twist would be there wasn't actually any real magic at all in Asteri because there's so little of it on the page). The tone is by turns quiet, sad, scary, and suspenseful. I can't help but compare this to [b:Jinx|207684|Jinx|Meg Cabot|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1348718416s/207684.jpg|2114772], which is another great addition to the fantasy genre that came out this year. Jinx followed a more familiar path than The Real Boy. It had a more fleshed-out cast of characters overall (think of how much better you know Simon than Caleb). It had a clearer journey and more funny, whimsical bits (there are only brief whiffs of humor in Oscar's life). I think Jinx is the more enjoyable book, but The Real Boy is more out-of-the-box and has more gravitas, which may be why it was long-listed for the NBA and Jinx was not (though that doesn't explain how [b:A Tangle of Knots|15780279|A Tangle of Knots|Lisa Graff|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1359234306s/15780279.jpg|21495195] made the list).

I'm a little stumped about how this would do as a mock Newbery pick. I read for great characters and great language, so I liked The Real Boy, but I think there's something deeply unsettling about it, which keeps me from loving it. I think it's only a cryptic spoiler to say that the end suggests the death of magic. Bummer. Still, you have to respect this book. It's a thinker.

I've read a lot of criticism about how the magic in this book isn't easy to pin down. It doesn't have clear rules. But it’s okay with me that magic can’t really be pinned down. The point is that magic was once useful and good in the hands of wizards, but after the wizards were gone the culture changed and people became addicted to it, and now it’s become a scourge. Can’t you say the same thing about our real-world use of natural resources? Oil was at one time an amazingly useful and great thing, but now it threatens our existence on this planet. The environmental degradation of Aletheia being caused by greed for magic is similar to our real environmental woes caused by greed for energy to fuel the machines on which we are now dependent. ( )

Young Oscar works for Caleb, the magician; however, Caleb's apprentice is a bully. When Caleb and the healer disappear, Wolf is killed in the forest, leaving Oscar and Callie (the healer's apprentice) to deal with a series of differing ailments among wealthy patron's children. Oscar knows about plants and their healing properties, but needs Callie's people skills to solve the mystery. I did not enjoy this. ( )

children's fiction (mocknewbery 2013); magic and orphans. Not bad, but I never really got into it, and kept getting frustrated waiting for the main character to gain courage enough to climb a ladder (literally). I know this was going to become character development at some point, but really? I'm not feeling it. ( )

Oscar is an apprentice to Caleb, the only magician in the land of Aletheia and the owner of a magic shop. All the true magicians are gone, but no one seems to know exactly why. Even Caleb disappears for long journeys, leaving Oscar in charge of the shop.

Meanwhile, in the shining city of Aleri, which is full of spoiled rich people, the children are coming down with eerie ailments. Despite Oscar’s shyness, his difficulty deciphering social cues, and his preference for books, plants, and cats over people, his friend Callie seems to think that he has just the right skills to help her heal Aleri’s children and figure out what’s happening in Aletheia.

When Callie and Oscar discover the source of Aletheia’s destruction, they must find new bravery in themselves in order to overcome it. But are two child apprentices enough to fight the monster?

Read carefully: you may not always know who is good and who is evil, and you’ll need to be comfortable with loose ends to be satisfied with this one. ( )

The massive walls around the protected island city of Asteri writhe with enchantment. The wizards’ powerful magic protects the city from illness and harm. A devastating worldwide plague many years ago killed numerous people from the island. “The boy”, Oscar, works as a lowly “Hand” for Caleb, the most powerful magician in the city. His job is to secure supplies like herbs and mushrooms from the forest, and grind them for the magician Caleb to make into healing potions.

Mysteriously, animals in the Barrow begin acting strangely, children are becoming seriously sick, and odd things are happening in the forest. With all the magicians and wizards gone, Oscar and his new-found friend, Callie are forced to team up to try to unravel this mystery.

"The Real Boy"is an intriguing, well-written story with believable characters, and enough secrets and mysterious events to keep readers engaged until the very end. Fans of the Harry Potter series will especially like this enjoyable fantasy. Written for tweens, all ages will enjoy this book.

Sharyn H. / Marathon County Public Library
Find this book in our library catalog.

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