Kilbourne, Christina. 2008. They Called Me Red.
It's been about a week since I read They Called Me Red, and I'm still not quite sure what to make of it. It had my attention--I'm not saying it didn't. But it was so unique, so different--in a way--that I'm not quite sure how to sum it up without giving too much away. (I don't know if that will make sense to others or not.) They Called Me Red is the novel of a father and son divided. First divided because of the father's attentions to a woman--a wicked stepmother type--and then divided by death. Devon, our young hero, endures a lot within the pages of the novel. Much more than you're probably expecting. It's an ugly story in many ways. But it's not without glimmers of hope either.
Because of the subject matter--a child being sold into the sex industry (a male brothel) in another country, a foreign country--it won't be for everyone. Also because of the content, it's impossible to say that I "enjoyed" this one. But just because I didn't enjoy it, doesn't mean it was poorly written--far from it. It was an engaging story, but one that will take a certain kind of reader to appreciate.
© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
3 comments:
Hmm . . . I wonder if I'd like this one.
It was good in many ways. And unusual in other ways. I don't know about you, while I've read about the sex-slave trade/underworld...(notably SOLD) I've not read about an American boy being taken and sold. So it's an unexpected twist.
Ok, you've got me intrigued. Off to the card catalog site to try to order a copy.
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