The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys by Chris Fuhrman

First published in 1994

This coming of age novel has been compared (for its style and bravado) to A Confederacy of Dunces. Unfortunately, Fuhrman's novel takes few chances, offers few insights, and reflects none of Toole's caustic wit. An altar boy named Francis and his friends get in trouble at his Catholic school for drawing an explicit comic book. Francis and his friends devise a plan to capture a bobcat and set it loose in the school to make the principal forget about punishing them. Along the way, Francis makes faltering attempts to have a relationship with a girl who seems to like him. In the end, Francis grows up a bit. Yawn.

To be fair, this is a novel that has appealed to many, particularly to younger readers. Even though it's the sort of book I generally enjoy (and one I looked forward to reading), it just wasn't the novel for me. The story neither moved nor entertained me. Through most of the novel, nothing happened that seemed to be of any consequence. The humor seemed childish. I will grant that the last few pages are quite good but the journey to get there was tedious. Fuhrman's prose style is adequate but unexceptional. This novel did nothing for me and I can't recommend it, but again, your mileage may vary.

NOT RECOMMENDED