Rating: My bookshelf

Reading Level: Early Elementary, Mid-late Elementary

A boy and his buddies stumble upon a crook, a drunk, a black widow spider, and several other adventures.

Possible Concerns:

  • Alcohol. One boy’s father is a drunk, says his boy is good for nothing, and he makes more choices damaging to his family. The son gets angry at people who make and sell alcohol.
  • Obesity. One boy is described as being as wide as he is tall, shaped like a barrel, casting a shadow when lying flat, and his dad tells him to get off the henhouse roof so it doesn’t cave in.
  • Peril. The boys attack a crook no realizing he has a gun. There are gun shots, gun wounds, kidnapping, and a bank robbery.
  • Ghosts. Pretending to be ghosts, talk of a haunted cabin, and discussion that ghosts aren’t real.
  • Not getting adult help. I get frustrated when kids in books don’t get adults “because they will spoil the fun.” In this case, boys attack a crook with a gun instead of getting authorities right away.
  • Judgement. There are a lot of comments about what it means to be a good dad or mom or a good person. The drunk dad is contrasted to a Christian dad. For better or worse, parents or kids who are unbelievers in Christ will feel a sense of being an outsider.
  • Sexism. The boys make comments about not liking girls; the main character is disappointed when his mom gives birth to a baby girl.
  • Use of the term “gang.“ The title and several other references to the term gang might warrant a conversation about what a gang means in other modern contexts.
  • References to the robber swearing and cussing; one of the boys also used to swear until his friend told him not to. You never actually hear any swearing or cuss words.
  • Strong evangelism. This may or may not be a good thing for your family. If you or a loved one is not a Christian, get ready for some serious salt. Expect: comments about a good mom or a good dad being a Christian; mention of going to heaven or hell, the family goes to a prayer meeting on a Thursday night; they celebrate when a wounded 18-year-old boy accepts Jesus in his heart. This evangelism may be good for your family, but might be worth a prayer first to check in for the right timing.

Things I liked:

  • Respect/love for parents. The main character likes his parents and has a good relationship with them.
  • Strong Christian values. Faith and prayer are celebrated.
  • Helpfulness. The main character helps with chores.
  • Strong evangelism. This may or may not be a good thing for your family. I loved the honest talk about God, honest prayers, and talk of receiving Jesus into your heart.
  • Thankfulness. Several times the main character is thankful, whether for his parents, his friends, or for a way that God protected them from a gunshot.
  • Good clean fun/mischief. I liked that the boys fish, swim naked in a river, camp out, admire nature, and do other healthy fun things.
  • Several possible editions. I heard talk of revised and modernized versions, so be sure the one you’ve got is the one you wanted. We listened to the audiobook by Oasis Audio in Sept 2018, read by Aimee Lilly.