At the age of 5 Remy's whole world changes when his survivalist father takes him from their home and moves them to the wilderness, in the middle of nowhere, to avoid what he believes the approaching apocalypse. At the age of 8 Remy's father unexpectedly dies. Left on his own to fend for himself the month's go by, the seasons change, supplies run out and feeling desperate Remy sets out on foot for civilization. Many challenges follow as well as many life lessons.
Author Catherine Ryan Hyde's characters are always realistic, well-developed and memorable. Remy is no exception!
A story that brought tears is also a wonderful heart warming story!

Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for an arc of this novel in exchange for my honest reveiew.

There was so much I loved about this book but at the very top are the conversations Remy has with himself. In exploring his rationale for his actions while remembering that he is a very young child he has the logic of someone who hasn’t been tainted by social pressures. Six or seven years old he is left to survive on his own with few physical resources other than his ability to reason and discover his limitations. He deals with pain, with being alone and totally cut off from society not knowing who to trust, believing that the world is on the brink of destruction. Broken bones and broken in spirit he is a little boy facing at best despair and at worst death.

There is a woman, Anne, who is damaged in her own way, but her salvation, or so she believes, is saving children, especially those no one else wants. She desperately wants Remy, this terribly damaged child. And Remy needs to be wanted so is this going to be a miraculous match or a spectacular failure?

There is no going back - this story will haunt you. Amazing, incredible story, writing, characters, thoughts. Brava Catherine Ryan Hyde. A million thanks to Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for a copy.

Every book I read from Catherine Ryan Hyde is a masterpiece for me, I fall in love with her writing with every word and with every new character, all her novels are just out of this world.

Just a regular boy, I fell in love with Remy, I probably agree with Catherine this is her best book or at least one of her best, Remy is a character that will steal your heart. He's young but with a powerful character that will move everything with his words and his mind the way he expressed himself after everything had happened just amazed me how strong and intelligent this boy was.

I cry so much with Remy, I felt every tear he dropped, every howl he screamed, his loneliness was something I could relate to so much, but at that age, I could say it was hard to read in a boy, I couldn't imagine a million orphans out there and even the ones in foster homes who feel very alone just like Remy, who feel abandoned and that the world had failed them, that it wasn't fair that at such a short age he would go through what he went through.

I keep even now crying to remember how can someone do this to a boy.

Remys life changed for the worst after his mother passed away, his father couldn't handle her absence so he took Remy to live in the worst circumstances a boy could live in, literally into the wild without any information or communication Remy believed everything his father told him including there were living in somehow and apocalypse, Remy suffered so much in the conditions his father made him live, he practically went to sleep every single day crying, I don't know what happened to his father mind but he totally abandoned his boy even if his fiscal body was present his mind was not.

Anne was a wonderful character in every aspect, she had a heart of gold and she never felt intimidated when she first learn about that feral boy who was out there all alone, trying to survive. Anne was a mother of two adopted children, she had a good marriage, and she had a good family this was the perfect place for Remy to decompress and try to start again.

I really love how Anne and all the family really took the time to meet and understand Remy, there was no moment of hostility at any point and I enjoyed how the other siblings were so open to meeting and loving Remy, this was a very refreshing part.

One of my favorite moments of the story is when Remy gets back to the store he used to "go" and finally has a chat with the owner, I think it is one of the best feelings, to see both characters understanding each other and forgiving one another for what happened before.

Favorite book of 2023

Thank you, NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing, for the advanced copy of Just a Regular Boy in exchange for my honest review.

Having experience with fostering kids in the past, this story felt close to my heart. I felt angry at the boy's father for putting his survivalist ideology, hopes and dreams well above his 5y old son. The poor chap just lost his mom and here he's losing his father in a super weird, selfish way - "Call me Roy, not Dad" - wtf is that?!! He doesn't need a manly companion, he needs his Daddy. The resulting events only prove my point. I'm so glad he was eventually found by the townspeople, but only after he ventured out when he realized Roy wasn't coming back and he really, truly was alone. I'm glad he finally got his happy ending.

Thanks netgalley for giving me the advanced pdf so that I can share my thoughts and opinions with y'all 💛

I found this a unique & very emotional thought provoking read.
Well written this amazing story draws you in & I couldn’t stop reading.
If nothing else it will certainly make you stop & think.
This is a story of a heartbreaking situation & the human will to survive.
Remy’s father has gone into meltdown mode when his wife died & believes everyone is out to get him.
He becomes a survivalist & takes his 5 year old son into the wilderness to live a very basic life.
The small bare log cabin is equipped with just bunk beds & a basic log burner.
They have brought essential only provisions & they must hunt & fish for their food.
The toilet is any place you want to relieve yourself outside.
Remy has been taught to fear anyone from the outside world.
Then the very worst happens & his father dies leaving him all alone.
This is a story about the human will to survive at all costs.
A heartbreaking engrossing story that can’t fail to move you but it does have its heart warming moments too.
I really enjoyed this unusual story.
I

Overall I loved this book. The characters were lovable and the storyline was great.

It was a typical CRH book in that it was a quick read that tells a big story. It makes you think, rips your heart out somewhere along the way and yet still gives you hope for the world at the end.

My two irritations for the book and why it only got four stars is that I felt the covid part was unnecessary and I felt that Remmy (while lovable and sweet) dealt with the big issues a little to well to the point of being unrealistic.

Thank you to Netgalley for a copy of the book in exchange for my review.

In Just A Regular Boy, Catherine Ryan Hyde has written yet another perfectly gorgeous novel about human nature and all it's beauty & inconsistencies.
Remy Blake's father is afraid of the world. So, after his wife dies, he becomes a survivalist dragging Remy along with him. Suddenly he finds himself living in the middle of nowhere without any connection to the wider world.
When Remy’s father suddenly dies, he's left with no choice but to take care of himself. After several seasons all their survival supplies is gone. So, Remy decides it's time for him to try and find his way back to civilization.
When he's hit by a car and ends up in the hospital, social services gets involved. Enter Anne, who takes one look at Remy and knows he's meant to be her child.

This book is absolutely one of my favorite books I've ever read in my life. It's so beautifully written; so pure, emotional, and thought-provoking. I loved every second of it and I will re-read it again and again.

If this author of Just a Regular Boy weren’t Catherine Ryan Hyde, I don’t think I’d have made it past chapter two. I was fairly certain that I did not wish to read about a five-year-old boy whose father dragged him away from civilization and forced him to live the life of a survivalist. However, having read a several other novels by this author, I knew that this boy, Remy, would somehow find a way out of this trying situation. Someone would come into his life to make a difference, and there would be light at the end of dark confusion and loneliness that he felt while away from civilization.

Remy’s mother had died, and his father’s view of the world had grown more radical. He sold their home and took his son to a remote property, where he had stockpiled a year’s worth of supplies. There were no modern conveniences and no other human beings nearby. That’s the way Roy wanted it. No more calling him “Dad.” They were supposed to be equals now. But were they really? Despite his hatred his new surroundings and longing for his old life, Remy did learn some survival skills, but he was still a young kid. When his father died unexpectedly, Remy had no choice by to leave. “Go to Canada,” his father had told him. Heck, if it weren’t for bad luck, Remy would have had no luck at all. He had no idea how long he was on his own, but at eight years old, he did what he could to survive. People who saw him thought he was nearly feral.

Finally, when he could go on no longer, he was badly injured. He was “captured” – rescued – actually. Being hospitalized was a traumatic experience, but without knowing it, Remy’s luck was about to turn. Anne was about to enter his life. Anne was a mother of two adopted kids, a savior of lost children, as it were. On first impression, she seems to have a messiah complex or something, but much later, we learn something about her own past. Her marriage is on shaky ground, so taking in a kid – this kid – is risky business.

This author is such a wonderful creator of characters that feel like real people with real problems. Oh, sure, maybe things tend to fall into place just right. I mean, does real life work like that? Maybe sometimes, for some people? So what? If you’re looking for a book that will not just touch your heart but expand it, pick up a novel by Catherine Ryan Hyde. I may not have been a fan of the extreme survivalist setting at the beginning, but it worked. It set up Remy’s mindset, his emotional and psychological makeup when he returns to the real world and tries to cope with people again. What’s real? Was his father right or wrong? Anne, Chris, and their kids, their therapist, and most of all, Remy, are unique people that I came to care about. Best of all, there is growth. Remy not only survives his horrific ordeal; he emerges as a “regular boy,” one who is lovable, loving, and engaged with his new family. In the beginning, Anne and Chris have a relationship that is clearly in trouble. That also changes. So, if the ending is predictable, perhaps too pat, it only bothered me just a tiny bit. Just a Regular Boy felt like a unique story about a kid with a hard luck story who found the right people and the right place to land on his feet.

I received an ARC digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. My thoughts and opinions are my own. Thanks to NetGalley, Lake Union Publishing, and the author for making this book available.

Note to the publisher: Someone else in my household has reviewed this book on Amazon; therefore, per Amazon’s rules, I am ineligible to post this review there.

4.5 stars rounded up

Master storyteller returns following So Long Chester Wheeler with another heart-wrenching emotional coming-of-age tale, JUST A REGULAR BOY.

A courageous orphan boy raised by a survivalist is left alone in an uncertain world of fear, trying to survive the only way he can in the forest surrounded by danger with no one, food, or water.

Remy's father, Roy, is a cruel man. He justifies taking his five-year-old son to live in the wilderness after his mother dies. The dad is a survivalist, and they live in a log cabin in the wilds of northern Idaho to survive what he believes is a coming apocalypse. He says they will have freedom.

Remy's father instills fear of the world and everything around them: no power, phone, indoor plumbing, social interaction, people, or modern conveniences.

Then when he is eight, his father dies of a heart attack and leaves him alone. He does not know whom he can trust. How will he survive, eat, and live?

JUST A REGULAR BOY is told from two POVs. Remy and a woman named Anne.

Anne is married to Chris with two children she has adopted through foster care. Her father left her when she was a young girl, and her mother blamed her and her siblings for being too many and too much. She has a big heart and is a wonderful mother.

She takes in Remy no matter how much time, rehabilitation, and care it will take. The two will be suitable for one another and learn from each other.

I loved his friend Lester and his mom. Remy is the story's hero, and your heart will break with what he went through living alone in the forest. No one of this age should be subjected to this life. Thank goodness Anne and her family found him.

Hyde portrays this emotional story from the eyes of a young boy and how his father's actions and beliefs affect this young boy.

Profoundly moving, your heart will go out to Remy. I enjoyed Anne and her family and supporting characters. The author has a talent for writing emotional and inspirational stories of overcoming tragedy with joy and hope. There is always someone to help; she writes with sympathy and compassion and many essential life lessons.

Ideal for book clubs and further discussions. An ongoing theme of fear-driven behavior runs through the novel. There is so much to be afraid of, from the chaos, the collapse of society, sickness, pandemics, guns, violence, and one another.

Beautifully told, I adore all of Hyde's stories. JUST A REGULAR BOY is thought-provoking and highlights the fears we must all face in order to live our lives to the fullest, from trauma, grief, and loss, to joy, love, and belonging.

I have read all of her books as a long-time fan, and she is one of my favorite authors. As always, impressive storytelling! The novel would make a great movie. Highly recommend.

I purchased the audiobook narrated by Michael Crouch (fav) and Kate Rudd for an engaging performance and listening experience.

Thanks to Lake Union Publishing for a gifted e-ARC via #NetGalley for review purposes.

Blog review posted @
Judith D. Collins
@JudithDCollins | #JDCMustReadBooks
Pub Date: May 2, 2023
My Rating: 5 Stars
May 2023 Must-Read Books

Wow. I went into reading this fairly blind - I had read the blurb when I first downloaded the book but didn’t reread it before I started the book properly. What an introduction to this author this book was!

After his mother dies, 5 year old Remy is taken by his father to live in the remote woods. Why? His father is a survivalist, and believes the world is ending and the only way to survive is to live off the grid, avoiding anyone related to the government. We follow Remy’s story from when his father first takes him to their cabin in the woods at age 5, until he is aged 9. Without spoiling the plot, we experience the fear and not knowing what the world is like through Remy’s eyes, as well as the challenge to survive in a harsh environment away from civilisation.

We also experience part of the book through Anne’s eyes. Anne is a woman who fosters children, and hears about Remy - whose name and identity they don’t yet know - through her contact at social services. Anne and her husband Chris are struggling in their marriage, and Anne is also trying to work through her own trauma from childhood. Eventually Anne and Remy’s worlds collide and they both discover that even the most unlikely people can help you make sense of the world.

This was a truly excellent read and I sped through the book. I definitely need to read more from Catherine Ryan Hyde!

All in all, this was a strong five star read from me. It pulled at my heartstrings and really was a great book. Highly recommend!]

Intriguing story about a survivalist and his son. Not particularly nuanced regarding good and bad, but a nice story to read.

Catherine Ryan Hyde's Just a Regular Boy (Lake Union Publishing 2023) tells the tale of a young boy, whisked out of civilization at the age of five by his survivalist father to live in the mountains alone, off the land, following one basic rule: The world is dangerous. Avoid it at all costs. That could work except his father dies, leaving the eight-year old alone, with few resources to survive, but desperate to do just that. By the time the boy reluctantly realizes he must get help from someone, he has broken all four limbs, has deep almost deadly infections, can barely speak, and so much more. To reach his goal of becoming 'just a regular boy', he must regain his trust in people and a world he thinks is evil while making sense of events like Covid, school shootings, and more.


This is a heart-wrenching story that will make readers evaluate and then reevaluate how civilized we are and what is safe or not.

After the death of his mother, Remy’s dad, Roy, takes his beliefs to a new level and buys a chunk of remote property in Idaho. Roy has become a survivalist and sells their home in Pocatello and moves Remy to a small remote cabin in the woods. It’s a very difficult existence, especially for a five year old, but Remy learns how to survive through thick and thin. When his father fails to return from a hunting trip and with supplies dwindling just as winter hits, Remy knows it’s time to the leave the cabin behind with no love lost. Living in the woods above a small town and too fearful to ask for help, Remy survives the only way he knows how. When he’s finally caught, there’s already a loving home just waiting for him, but the life he’s led has left some trauma in its wake. Will the love of Anne and her family help find the heart of the boy Remy used to be or is it too late? Hyde really know how to write books that tug at the heartstrings. Her characters are always spot on and her stories have a way of filling you with hope! Just a Regular Boy will stay with you long after the last page is turned. Thank you to Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for ARC of this book.

Another great story by, Catherine Ryan Hyde. I love that no two of her books are exactly the same.
She puts a lot of thought in her books.
This young boy went through so much in his young life to come out learning to love and accept love, even from dogs, that he feared most.
She is my favorite writer, ever!!

Thank you so much, Catherine Ryan Hyde, your publisher, and, NetGalley, for giving me the opportunity to read and review this wonderful book.

Gentle and sensitive telling of a story that shouldn’t have happened. But it did. And the gentle reaching out with unconditional love on all sides turns a horrific tale into something very beautiful. Catherine Ryan Hyde - yet again - never disappoints.

One of Catherine's best! Orphaned young boy raised in deep woods by survivalist father...can he survive by himself in woods ? in civilization? Excellent book, highly recommend.

I've only recently discovered her work, but I've been wanting to read more Catherine Ryan Hyde books ever since a fantastic first experience with her writing last November. I knew that I simply HAD to read Just A Regular Boy as soon as I read the blurb. The survivalist angle, the poor boy being forced to go all those horrible experiences, the foster mother trying to help him piece himself back together... There is so much potential in the premise, and I have to say that the execution knocked it out of the park.

Part of the reason I wanted to read this story was because of it survivalist angle, and I think that this element was very well portrayed in Just A Regular Boy. The main focus of the plot isn't on the survivalist politics though, but rather on how his father's actions and beliefs affect the young Remy. I could appreciate that there were quite a few chapters set in the wilderness, helping the reader show just how extreme Remy's situation was and how much he was forced to go through before he was finally 'rescued'. Both the setting and Remy's voice truly made this element come alive for me.

Just A Regular Boy uses a dual POV structure, where we switch between Remy and his foster mom Anne. I preferred Remy's POV initially, but as soon as the two characters meet both POVs are equally strong and truly complement each other. Remy will win over your heart in record time, and the cast of characters in general is very easy to warm up to. This made it really easy to connect to them, and get truly invested in their growing relationship and improvements in Remy. The characters are flawed, but this only made them feel more realistic and likeable. There were a couple minor niggles along the way, but nothing to write home about.

There are quite a few heavy topics included in the plot, and it's definitely not an easy read with everything that happened to Remy. There are some lighter moments to balance things out though, and the journey itself is well worth your time. If you enjoy well written, deep and emotional contemporaries, Just A Regular Boy will fit the bill perfectly. It's a story that will stay with me for a long time, and it has definitely reconfirmed to me that I need to read more Catherine Ryan Hyde books ASAP.

Roy Blake is a survivalist and seems to be falling into a deeper hole after the passing of his wife and mother of Remy Blake his five-year-old son. With thoughts that the world is coming to an end he takes Remy to the middle of nowhere Idaho a place within miles of the border of Canada. He teaches his son how to survive and trust no one and not to even recognize him as his father. This seems a pretty tall task for a 5-year-old boy. When his father passes away Remy is forced to survive on his own and anyway, he can. Eventually finds his way into the foster care system and fines one special family with a mother who is no stranger to the foster system and looks forward to fostering the hardest cases. The story jumps back and forth between the world as Remy sees it and how Anne the foster mother sees things and the struggles in bringing Remy to a so-called normal life if there is such a thing. So I found this book an easy one day read but I struggled with this book even though i have read other books by this author that were great. I know this is a work of fiction, but it was hard to grasp some of the things that happened that you are led to believe a five- or six-year-old could accomplish. I also realize that authors will grab recent events to put into their story, but it seemed just to many of recent events that the author put into this story. Overall, I felt the story was a little to thin. But as always give it a read and see what you think.

This is a book about an orphaned boy being raised in the woods by his survivalist father. He is taught by his father to fear everything and everyone. So what does he do when his father doesn’t come home after a hunting trip? He’s hungry and thirsty and all alone.

This story is full of heartwarming moments, hope and never giving up someone. I really enjoyed this story.