Goodnight, Boy is about a young boy named JC and his bestfriend, Boy the dog. I was sad the whole time I’m reading this. To think that he was locked in a kennel with his dog is too disturbing. The story is about how JC suffered in his past. It is well-written and emotional-driven.

I received the ARC from NetGalley.
While the premise of the book appealed to me, I found the story line less than stellar. Told completely through the eyes of an abused child, the story lacks the clear vision of an omniscient viewer.
The immigrant teen JC has been banished to a kennel by his new father while his mother is out of the country trying to legalize him. JC's only companion is a dog named Boy. Having already survived unspeakable atrocities in his past, JC is able to view his current condition with a passivity that only the truly perpetually abused can understand.
While the past and present are sad, deeply emotional, and heartbreaking, they did not seem to be balanced by his survival, release, and questionable future.

Thank you very much for allowing me to read this title; I am trying to read as widely as possible ahead of the Carnegie/Greenaway nominations and awards for 2018 and your help is much appreciated.
As a Carnegie/Greenaway judge, I'm not allowed to comment about my opinions on specific titles so I can't offer an individual review on any title as I stated on my profile.
Netgalley now requires a star rating so I am giving all titles 5 stars so as not to disadvantage any title but this does not imply any recommendation of the book above any other.

<i>Goodnight, Boy</i> tells the story of an immigrant boy in unimaginable circumstances, through an engaging character voice that keeps readers incredibly close to the protagonist.

The framing of the book was immediately interesting to me. JC is telling the story to his dog (Boy), with fluid movement between past backstory and his present in confinement. There are no chapter breaks and very little actual dialogue, but the tension carries you through so seamlessly it's hard to put the book down. I'm in awe of how the author managed to do this while breaking many conventional rules for YA (like--don't spend too much time solely in the MC's head). JC felt alive and vibrant despite the entire story being almost second-hand (him telling it to us as he tells it to Boy). Likewise, some of the foggy plot points felt okay unanswered because we are so so deep in JC's perspective.

Overall, this was an engaging read, and definitely unique. Read this if you want an example of excellent character voice!

(I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.)

It's always difficult to give a serious book a poor rating, especially when it's evident that the author has worked so hard to give voice to suffering. Still, I didn't love this book.

What Worked:

I loved JC's recollections of his country and his honesty. He paints a picture of a proud nation brought to its knees by an earthquake, and aid workers who try so hard, but can't do everything. He's honest about the times he got in fights or stole to survive, and he knows he's not a weakling. Basically, everything about the flashbacks, I loved.

I also love how his own trauma has colored his experiences with being locked in the dog kennel. He acknowledges that some people in his country have it much worse (or are dead), but he recognizes that it's not a healthy move on the part of his adoptive father. He knows he's suffering abuse, but also feels that he deserves it somehow. JC is an amazingly well-crafted bearer of survivor's guilt, and that aspect of the book really resonates with me.

What Didn't Work:

I did not like the frame of JC talking to Boy (the dog). This is where the writing got clunky and stilted in order to inform the reader of Boy's actions:

Good, Boy! You're drinking it! I'm going to bring you some more. Wait here.

Ready? All right, your mouth is full. Swallow, then I'll let you sleep. I promise. No, don't cough! Swallow. Good.

I lied. Just one more. I mean it this time. Good, Boy, you licked your lips!

Etc.

The writing throughout the frame felt forced, and it pulled me out of the ambiance of the story.

I would not recommend this for a classroom library (either MS or HS)... it just feels too clunky.

I read a blurb of this book on B&T and had to have it. It is amazing and very heart wrenching. I loved the history that was woven through JC's story. I was not ready for the ending though. I wanted more.

Goodnight, Boy by Nikki Sheehan is a small book in that, like a Sarah Crossan, it is sparse, poetic, considered. But it is also huge beyond compare. In heart, in depth and in hope. It is one I will come back to again and again.

'A tale of two very different worlds, both shattered by the loss of loved ones. Tragic, comic and full of hope, thanks to a dog called Boy. The kennel has been JC's home ever since his new adoptive father locked him inside. For hours on end, JC sits and tells his dog Boy how he came to this country: his family, the orphanage and the Haitian earthquake that swept everything away. When his adoptive mother Melanie rescues him, life starts to feel normal again. Until JC does something bad, something that upset his new father so much that he and Boy are banished to the kennel. But as his new father gets sicker, JC realizes they have to find a way out. And so begins a stunning story of a boy, a dog and their journey to freedom.'

Nikki Sheehan's writing has that beautiful mix of humour, tragedy and hope. She has balanced it perfectly; the resilience and positivity of JC set against the cruelty and suffering around him is so moving, it left me staring at the last blank page and dealing with a fierce book hangover. Goodnight, Boy is a special book and it will stay with me for a very long time.

You can get your copy here.

Source - kindly sent for review by the publisher.

This book was made special by the way it was written. As one boy's monologue to his dog, it was different to a lot of things. Even other books written in monologue haven't come close to being as good as this one. I think that's partly because as JC tells the dog his story, he often has to stop and come back to the present because something is happening with the dog.

I found that this story really captured me. Often monologue stories can be a little dull, but there were so many threads and little mysteries that kept my attention fixed on the story. What happened that caused JC and Boy to be locked into the kennel? When will Melanie come back? All these little questions keep me interested and reading to the very end.

JC's voice also just made me care for him a lot. His voice was so young and he had been through so much, it made it so easy to connect with him and want the best for him.

This was definitely a very interesting book and it's made me more interested in reading more like it.

Although it took me a few pages to work out what was happening as I couldn't quite believe what I thought at first, I soon could picture a young boy talking to his dog as though he could have a reasonable conversation. It soon becomes clear that reason does not have a place in the young boy's life. Not as a toddler in his own country, and not as a refugee in his adopted country.. The adults who should know better have let him down. At times heartbreaking and other times funny, this novel is not about a boy and a dog but hope, love and forgiveness.

I made it through 25% and could not finish. This story just didn't hold my interest.