Book Review

Deadline

An 18-year-old boy named Ben Wolf was told by a doctor that he had a fatal illness. The illness would slowly tear him down and take him out. Crazy right? Well what's even better is that Ben decides to forgoe treatment and says that he "...somehow always new that he was meant to die young." This book takes you through the eyes of Ben Wolf and shows the reader that your actions do not only affect you, they affect the others around you. Technically Ben is at the age where he can do what he wants because his is grown, so he demands confidentiality from the doctor that diagnosed him so that he wouldnt tell anyone. Ben didnt want his mother, father, brother, or crush to know about his illness and he wanted to make the best of his life without people feeling sorry for him. He tries out for the football team and makes it, goes on a date with the girl of his dreams, and bulks up on knowledge so that he can challenge his biased history teacher. On his way to discovering that keeping his illness a secret was not the best idea, he tries to help an old catholic priest who is now a drunk, and he becomes his own man.

This story takes you through the life of a teenage boy and explains how they think. The author, Chris Cutcher, has a brilliant vocabulary of curse words (they're great) and he finds a way to touch every sould who reads this book. I would recommend this book to anyone over the age of 13, it is definately one of the best books I have ever read!