The Boy Who Drew Monsters

August 4, 2014
The ghostly influence of Henry James’s The Turn of the Screw haunts this chilling novel by Donohue (The Stolen Child), which follows a troubled boy whose interest in drawing coincides with the appearance of strange creatures around his family’s “dream house” in coastal Maine. When Jack Peter “Jip” Keenan, an agoraphobic, occasionally violent 10-year-old with “high-functioning” Asperger’s, takes up drawing, his parents, Holly and Tim, hope this new creative outlet will help to combat Jip’s introversion. But, over the course of a bleak December, a series of inexplicable phenomena—a beast-like man in the road, the bone of a human arm in the sand, visions of evil babies “scuttling... like silverfish across a page,” etc.—begin to throw the family, as well as Jip’s only friend, Nick, off-balance. With Jip receding further into himself, and his drawings—visually linked to the phenomena—growing darker, Holly seeks the counsel of a mysterious church worker, Miss Tiramaku, who, having Asperger’s herself, believes she knows Jip’s “secret.” Donohue is an adept creator of atmosphere—the nor’easter that frames the novel’s climax is expertly rendered—but repetitive flashbacks and the characters’ underdeveloped emotions detract from what is otherwise a brisk and winningly creepy narrative.

September 15, 2014
What happens when the monsters under the bed come from the boy sleeping on top of it? Jack Peter is not a normal boy, and it's beginning to take its toll on his family. He's always been an odd child, but at 7, he nearly drowned and withdrew from the world. For the three years since, he has refused to leave the house, preferring to move from obsession to obsession, occasionally being bundled into a wad of blankets to be taken to the doctor. When the book begins, his obsession has moved from playing war to drawing monsters, and Nick, a relatively normal boy who is Jack's only remaining friend, is swept up in the furor. But Jack's parents and Nick are beginning to hear and see things that seem otherworldly, and it becomes clear that Jack's drawings reflect, or perhaps even create, the odd sounds and creatures. His parents, Tim and Holly, baffled by the happenings and frightened by the cracks in their marriage, try desperately to solve the growing mysteries. All suspect they are going insane; Tim takes to roaming the foggy beaches, Holly turns to the church, and Nick keeps tagging along with Jack. Donohue's (The Stolen Child, 2006, etc.) writing is as evocative as Jack Peter's drawings, both startling and heavy with emotion. The pacing is steady and recalls other recent works of literary horror, in which the terror of the monsters is uneasily balanced with the mundanity of everyday life. This doesn't discredit Jack's creatures at all, though; in fact, they're terrifying. With such a spooky novel, it's almost too much to hope for a good ending, but Donohue manages to surprise and satisfy nonetheless. A sterling example of the new breed of horror: unnerving and internal with just the right number of bumps in the night.

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July 1, 2014

Jack Peter (JP) Keenan is a ten-year-old agoraphobic with Asperger's who lives with his parents, Holly and Tim, in an isolated home on the coast of Maine. To mentally escape his self-imposed solitude--triggered by a near-drowning three years before--JP draws monsters. Among them: a wretched, haunting figure that prowls the sea; a pale, naked man who roams the snow; and a creature with smallpox scars and rotten teeth. JP shares his obsessive drawings with his best friend, Nick, and encourages him to draw some, too. Meanwhile, JP's parents begin to experience troubling phenomena, including auditory hallucinations, visions, and debilitating headaches. It seems JP's imagination has taken on a life of its own--and young Nick, JP's only remaining friend, is unwittingly involved in it all. VERDICT Although the characters are too understated at times, the novel unfolds through rich prose and a deeply imagined story. The plot takes its time; it's not one to rush through. The final page--the final sentence, really--comes as a clever surprise, but one that resonates soundly. Fans of Donohue's acclaimed first novel, The Stolen Child, will be pleased. Also recommended for readers of Joe Hill. [See Prepub Alert, 4/14/14.]--Erin Kelly, Media, PA

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September 1, 2014
Three years ago, Jack Peter Keenan was a normal little boy. But since an incident in which he almost drowned, he's withdrawn into himself; now the 10-year-oldundergoing therapy and on medication designed to ease his anxietiesis afraid to leave the house. And, apparently, he's taken up drawingnot the usual happy doodlings of a youngster, but dark, frightening images that appear, in defiance of all logic, to be manifesting themselves in the real world: the boy's parents begin to see and hear strange things, to wonder if there is some otherworldly presence haunting them. Although Jack Peter loves his parents, it's really only his friend, Nick, who's able to pull Jack Peter out of his inner gloom. But it soon becomes clear to Jack Peter's parents that Nick may be involved in whatever nasty stuff is going on in the real world. This is a traditional horror storysomething you could easily imagine Graham Masterton writingwith a delicious twist near the end that makes you rethink everything you've just read.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)