Review of Third Wheel

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Mercy Udeokeke
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Review of Third Wheel

Post by Mercy Udeokeke »

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Third Wheel" by Richard R. Becker.]
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5 out of 5 stars
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Fourteen-year-old Brady is left to wallow in a mesh of decisions he struggles to break free from. Deprived of affection and supervision from favorable inceptions, he turns to social vices for solace, and when that too appears to rob him instead of comforting him, he wanders in his subconscious endlessly. Brady's mom, in particular, seems to be facing a myriad of problems putting up with her son. Having him remind her every day of her deceased husband has left a pang of hatred in her, and she doesn't relent in taking it out on her teenage son, who needed her affection and attention the most instead of the unnecessary and unwarranted hostility, and the people he looked up to, who ended up being a mirage. Brady's selfless personality blinded him to several choices; despite being bullied by the ones he called friends, he still kept his stand with them, and this ended up being the worst decision he had ever taken, leaving one to wonder if he ever got at peace with anything or anyone. Read this book to find out.
 
Third Wheel by Richard R. Becker is an exhilarating story that portrays the struggles of a teenager to keep up with his friends' activities even though he appears to be the least experienced in terms of age and everything else. Because of his youth and inexperience, the title of the book aptly describes the main character as the third wheel in every situation. The book provides us with a detailed analysis of the lifestyle that the main character is forced to maintain while finding it abhorrent. The sentiments Brady has when his mother is there are accurately captured in the book. His mother, who was meant to love him with tremendous devotion, used his birth as a justification to harbor him under her roof when his grandmother became ill. I rooted for Brady even though he was involved in a lot of crimes that could lead him through a good number of years in juvenile court since he was a minor. His admirable personality left him vulnerable in the hands of manipulators.
 
The aspect I admired the most about the book was how Brady was able to endure all the odds thrown against him by his mother and his people, who pretended to be his friends so they could use him to their satisfaction. It was saddening to learn that Brady's mother isolated the love from her son that he craved in the name of keeping his wings clipped. She looked for every possible measure to downplay his ambitions at every avenue she had, and he endured her hitting and embarrassment. She makes him feel more like a liability than the child she birthed. It was beyond irksome that she neglected him for a cause, and she and her husband made jokes that hurt him emotionally. He was fully aware that since a supposed substitute had taken a place among his circle of friends, things were never going to remain the same, but he still tried to convince the ones he could trust and strived to make things right.
 
There was no part of the book I didn't like. I enjoyed every bit of the dilemma, but at the same time, I felt compassion toward Brady. He omitted bravery even in the face of hazardous conditions. As a result, I rate the book five out of five stars.
 
The book is professionally edited. I found only one error in the book. I recommend this fascinating book to individuals who are going through one challenge or another.

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Third Wheel
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Odichimma Okoye
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Post by Odichimma Okoye »

I am almost 100% sure that Brady would've been able to tell the real friends from fake ones if he was trained by a loving mother. The fact that Brady did nothing wrong but was used as an object for expression of anger is what annoys me the most. A child's gene expression isn't particularly involved. For the fact that he wasn't trained properly or lovingly, he resorted to those he knew- his bad friends, and they too led him astray.
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