Inspection

February 1, 2019
In a remote patch of forest, in old turreted towers, a group of 24 boys and another group of 25 girls, each assigned letters instead of names, are being raised as part of an experiment without knowledge of the outside world, each other, or the very existence of an opposite sex.The founder of this dark experiment, Richard (aka the boys' D.A.D.), is seeking to develop geniuses by eliminating the distractions of sex. The 12-year-old Alphabet Boys and 11-year-old Letter Girls have been taught that they grew on trees. The possible existence of God is omitted from their lessons and from the lesson-bearing novels that outside writers, including a tortured soul from Milwaukee, are paid to write. For Richard, "obedience trumped religion." Those who aren't obedient, notably boys A and Z and girl J, are taken to a mysterious basement room called the Corner, never to be seen again. But even at the risk of extreme punishment, the male J can't resist sneaking out to investigate his surroundings after the shattering discovery that things his adored D.A.D. is telling him are not true. J's fearless female counterpart, K, whose story converges with his, becomes even more determined to penetrate the lies and hold the so-called Parenthood behind them to account. Though one shocking plot turn is forced and the publisher needlessly gives away what would have been a beautifully orchestrated surprise, this unlikely cross between 1984 and Lord of the Flies tantalizes.Malerman, whose profile was significantly raised by the recent Netflix adaptation of his first novel, Bird Box (2014), delivers another freaky thriller. The book ultimately lacks real depth but still enhances his reputation as one of today's most unpredictable novelists.

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Starred review from March 1, 2019
Malerman's (Bird Box, 2014) latest has all of the claustrophobic tension his fans crave, but this time the monsters are 100 percent human. The 12-year-old Alphabet Boys live in a tower in the woods of northern Michigan. They have been raised by their D.A.D., Richard, in an isolated world where women don't exist, part of an experiment to see if separating the sexes will allow true genius to be cultivated. And if there is a boys' tower, there's probably a girls' tower too. Every narrator, including adults and kids of both sexes, is unreliable?either a deliberate liar or raised in a false world?so much so that readers can't rely on their own assumptions about rules of character and plot. Malerman makes the horror of this impossible experiment appear completely plausible while thoughtfully contemplating grand issues like nature versus nurture, gender roles, and scientific ethics?all of that, plus he manages to create a satisfyingly oppressive atmosphere. And yet, for all of this serious intensity, Inspection feels effortless; the story flows easily and at a compelling pace: think Shirley Jackson writing Lord of the Flies (1954). Hand to fans of Margaret Atwood or Never Let Me Go, by Kazuo Ishiguro (2005).(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)

November 15, 2018

J. studies at a school for exceptionally gifted boys that's hidden away in the forest, while K. studies at a similar school for girls. Students, who are forbidden to leave their respective premises, don't know the other school exists or what the wide, wide world is like, but both J. and K. are beginning to ask what the purpose of their education really is. From the Bram Stoker Awardnominated Bird Box, basis of a film being released in December 2018.

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