One of those stories that will stay with you. Scott Reardon pens a story that is both devastating and yet enlightening. What would you do as a parent of a child who has less than two months to live? Would you have them continue on in a routine that has them face their own mortality, or, or do you give them the chance of a lifetime, to live a lifetime in a very limited time frame? Beautifully written with some very real wild moments, and yet so hard to forget.
*I received a copy of this book from NetGalley. This review is my own opinion*

I'm not sure how I fell about this book. It is a different story that is sad, and hard to believe at times. It will make you think about if for quite a while.

Compulsive and gripping! Suspenseful, addictive and complex! A very well-written book with wonderfully-interesting characters. The suspense builds at just the right pace as the story unfolds. Will keep you swiping the pages furiously. Worthy of your TBR list.

*I received a complimentary ARC of this book from in order to read and provide a voluntary and honest review, should I choose to do so.

This is a short story about a 10-year-old boy who has a very short time left to live. He and his dad decide to go to Montana to hunt a monster of a bear. It's about them spending their last moments together and contemplating life. It's an enjoyable read.

I didn’t finish. The premise is a 10-year-old boy has terminal brain cancer and so his dad takes him on a trip to Wyoming to participate in the hunt for a killer bear. What every dad would do, right? What mother would, after finding her kid has a couple months to live, would let this happen? On top of it, the father and son are never named, they are just “the man” and “the boy.” There is no character development, poor dialog, faulty timeline, and within the first half of this short book “the man” tells “the boy” he will be dead in just a few weeks. The gore was starting as I decided to stop reading. I have questions: Who recommended this book? Why did I read over half of it? Why did I give it two stars?

Death of a 10 year old boy is a touching novella about how a father can bond with his son, who he knows is doomed to die of cancer. Finding out what the son really wants before hsi death leads them from suburnab Connecticut to an awesome adventure in rural Montana. They learn about life and death together, and what is really in each of us. Finding an old grizzly bear that has been terrorizing the area for 30 years is the quest, and its resolution gives them both some more strength and character. Self reliance is much more important out in the wild, and that is what the 10 year old has really wanted. A beautiful read.

I received an advanced reader’s copy of The Death of A 10-Year-Old Boy by Scott Reardon though Net Galley. The Death of A 10-Year-Old Boy by Scott Reardon was a unique, interesting story. What do you when your young child is going to die and there is nothing you can do? Do you have the child live as is nothing is happening? Do you pull your child out of school and let them decide what they want to do? The man and Mom ask the boy what he wants to do. The boy hears a story about a bear who has killed three people and evading all the hunters and the boy wants to hunt this bear. During this adventure, it is a story of a father’s and son’s love for one another, how far that they will push each other, and find the truth, even if it is haunting and hard. Another reason why I enjoyed this book is how Scott Reardon sets the scenes of the wilderness making feel as if I am right beside the dad and son. Truly a story that will stay with me for many years to come.

I liked the author's writing style, but the story was just really sad. I couldn't feel/find any kind of hope or anything in it.

The Death of a 10-Year-Old Boy
By Scott Reardon
Rating 5/5
How does a parent cope with the news that their 10 year old son has weeks to live. One heck of a quandary, hold him close or let him experience life. That experience involves the killing of a huge bear that has been held responsible for the killing of two humans. Unthinkable but it happens, the father and son set off on a risky journey from which only one will return.
Laughter and tears, fear and exhilaration, The Death of a 10 year old has it all. The journey of a 10 year old who grows in experience and closer to his father and then back to a scared wee boy is uplifting but heartbreaking.
Very well written it has a poignant insight to the boy and his father’s relationship. It really seems quite apt that they remain nameless, it gives a strong impact. Scott Reardon certainly knows how to tackle a sensitive and difficult subject with compassion, insight and writing skills.
Highly recommended. Thank you to Scott Reardon, Aspen Press and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read The Death of a 10 Year Old Boy. In return I have written an honest and unbiased review.

This book is either a 2/5 or a 4/5 depending on if you handle it through a realism lens or a metaphorical lens. Because of this, I am going to average those and give it a 3/5 stars. I appreciate the symbolism of a father taking his dying child on one last grand adventure. The unrealistic nature of that adventure is hard to swallow unless you fully disengage from reality. If you can do so, its a beautiful story about grieve and letting go.

I received an advance review copy for free through NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily

A story of wondering what you would do if your life would soon be over, and if there is a God. The writing is so well done you can visually see everything that's happening, and feel the pain of both father and son dealing with the end. Beautifully written with a steady flow of emotions it doesn't disappoint the reader. I appreciate the beauty of the story while having to remember the title of the book. Thanks to NetGalley and publishers for an early read of this story.

This is a beautifully written story about a father and sons last journey together as the son faces his last few months of life. I love this bear hunt experience they go on together - it was important to the boy to feel like a man before dying and the father was determined to make that happen for him. Along the way Scott Reardon does a wonderful job capturing the love between the two, the desire to have life mean something, and how you reevaluate everything when faced with tragedy. It’s a quick read and be prepared for tears, but absolutely worthwhile.

This short novel revolved around the terminal diagnosis of a ten year old and his father's desire to let his son have a grand adventure before he dies. For the father, it seems to be an ongoing struggle to that old age questions of what is the meaning of life and does God exist?

I thought the premise of the trip taken was pretty unbelievable. A man and a boy sent off with rifles to hunt a gigantic grizzly with no hiking, camping or shooting experience just doesn't happen. :) I suppose as a backdrop for the main points, it worked.

Thank you NetGalley and Aspen Press for the early read.

First, this novella was beautifully written. It’s difficult to paint a vivid landscape in very few words, and Scott Reardon does it well. Part of this is the decision to not name the characters – they are simply known as “the man,” “the boy,” “the woman,” etc. Interestingly, the only character that gets a name is the only one we never see. Their physical descriptions are also never described, allowing the reader to fill them in naturally. Telling a story with little detail like this and still have it make sense is challenging, and yet I never found myself wondering where we were or what the people looked like.

That being said, there were a few things that I didn’t enjoy. Some were small, like the way the man tells the boy he’s dying. It was rather blunt, almost to the point of coming across as cruel. There was also a moment where the story falls into the trope of, “Character A tells Character B to avoid a specified area, Character B asks why, and Character A just looks ominously off into the distance without providing any more context.” It’s a small complaint, but it took me out of the story.

Speaking of elements that took me out of the story, some of the boy’s dialogue came across as being obviously written by an adult. Very rarely do 10-year-olds make deep, meaningful comments about the meaning of life and interact with adults on their level. Of course, I can’t speak for a child in the terrible circumstance the boy in this story is in; and despite the dialogue, I cried like a baby at the end.

So, if you’re looking for a shorter story with beautiful writing, a dark theme, and deep musings on the purpose of life, I would recommend this story.