Shelly's Book Blog

As a big fan of Gary Schmidt's books, I was happy to finally get a copy of his latest, Okay for Now. The story is narrated by Doug Swieteck, an 8th grader with many problems, including an abusive father and an older brother who bullies him. At the beginning of the story, Doug's father loses his job and they have to move to Marysville, New York, a town Doug henceforth refers to as "stupid Marysville" because he has such a difficult time adjusting to his life there. Doug has many complaints, but I was never annoyed reading about his troubles because underneath the whining, buried deep under his cynicism, I always sensed a nugget of hope. This small ray of goodness shines through when he describes the positive things in his life, such as his time spent in the library learning to draw, his relationship with his mother, and his relationship with his father's boss, Mr. Ballard. In fact, I think Doug's distinctive voice is one of the things I like best about this book. He tells his story honestly, only holding back when what he wants to describe is just too painful to put into words. He quite often asks his reader, "Do you know how that feels?" Invariably, I had to answer "no" when he asked this question, but I also knew that I had a much better idea after having read what he had to say.

One thing I had to laugh about was particular to my copy of the book. On page 184, when Doug says, "Reader, I kissed her", the word kissed has been covered with white-out! I guess at least one reader disliked mention of romance in his/her stories. This sub-plot is handled with a very light touch, though, so I hope the white-out wielding reader did not give up the book because of it.

Mushy stuff aside, I really loved this book. I will not be at all surprised if this book wins the Newbery Medal this year. It's that good.