A Flavour of the Book: “All this time it was screaming and crying, and trying to bite us. I didn’t know that dogs could cry with real tears. I never saw a dog cry, but Matthews’ dog had these big tears running down its face and it was looking at me and crying…”
The Authortrek View:
This is quite a chilling account of how
a ten-year-old British boy sets out on an act of vengeance against one of his
peers at school. Panton is aided
and abetted by his older brother Toto, and it’s he who comes up with the most
of the perverse ideas, since he has more experience of the computer technology
required to make them work. So
they manage to hack into Matthews’ PC, even to the extent of controlling his
webcam… Erik Ryman’s view of the
modern adolescent is very bleak indeed, and unlike The Lord of the Flies,
there is no need for the boys to be trapped on a desert island for them to turn
into feral beasts. Certainly, with
Toto’s advanced knowledge of IT, the two boys can get up to a great deal
without the knowledge of their parents, and they find it all too easy to fool
their teachers. Panton’s voice is
truly authentic – a superb piece of characterisation by Erik Ryman. Some aspects of the novel aren’t so
convincing though: as someone who used to work for Amazon, I know that it’s
really not possible for someone’s card details to be read while using the site. However, this is a minor quibble about
a quite exceptional book. You read
in amazement as Panton and Toto’s plan becomes more twisted and sick. At times it feels as though there is
hope for Panton, as he seems to empathise with his victims, but this is only a
prelude to him harping on about his victory. Doctor Mooze is such a
vivid read that it is surely destined to become a modern day classic.
You can read a resume of the
book on our Amazon store below. To find out more about the editor, please visit our Erik Ryman page.
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