Miller’s spirited, surprising debut finds an unexpected pair saving each other through delightful mundanities. The elderly Ruth, baffled by the mysterious presence of an 8-year-old boy in the retirement community, sets cookies and milk on her kitchen table, which the starved boy stealthily nabs whenever Ruth is away. One day, knowing that the boy—whom she says wanders “around eating bird food … like some kind of rabid raccoon or an off-his-meds possum or something”—will surely come to her doorstep, Ruth stops leaving treats. Indeed, the ever-hungry boy peeps through the screen door, and thus begins their adventures—and misadventures, most of which consist of them sitting on the couch watching the Mariners on T.V., playing cards, betting, arguing, hiding in the closet when neighbors visit, and pulling pranks against mean neighbors. Their rule is to never talk of the past, the “dirty water under a creaky bridge.” But beneath the boy's smart and mischievous facade, Miller’s deft first-person perspective reveals the heart of a sad and broken child, unaccustomed to being read bedtime stories and sung lullabies. Miller’s storytelling is charming and contemplative, contrasting the innocence of their interactions with the boy's sometimes unhinged thoughts, subtly showcasing the defensive psyche of a child shaped by a rough childhood.
The boy never admits to being fond of Ruth and often contemplates running away, but the book, for all its witty prose and playful footnotes (including a recipe for brownie soup), proves rich with feeling. “You’ve already seen what’s behind the rainbows and teddy bears, haven’t you? You know what the world is, don’t you?” Ruth asks, trying to break through the boy’s distrust and discomfort with every kind gesture or statement of love. His precocious observation, "Things in the world don't stay nice for so long before they go bad" encapsulates his wary outlook, but Ruth's wisdom and her persistent compassion might be the candle in the dark for both. A vital, moving novel.
Takeaway: Playful, moving story of a boy and an elderly woman saving each other.
Comparable Titles: Elizabeth Strout; Kevin Wilson’s Nothing to See Here.
Production grades
Cover: A
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A
