Review by LindaPerry1860 -- Island Games by Caleb J. Boyer

[LindaPerry1860]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Island Games" by Caleb J. Boyer.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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Island Games, written by Caleb J. Boyer, takes us on a series of adventures when two teen-aged boys find themselves stranded on a very strange island. With no memory of how they got there, they are forced to find a way to survive. All they have is each other and the sparse tools they earn along the way. Fighting beasts and various climates, solving puzzles and finding food and water were everyday priorities. Hopefully they would survive each danger-laden level and find a way back to the world they had known before, if only they could fully remember what that was.

As they encountered each new trial, it didn’t take them long to realize that their very survival was dependent on their ability to trust each other and work together. Friends since kindergarten, Matthew and Ryan had taken their relationship and each other for granted, often failing to rely on the other’s strengths to fortify their own. That would have to change if there was going to be any hope of surviving the various game levels this mysterious island presented.

Boyer is incredibly successful in taking his readers on one vividly-described adventure after another. He makes no attempt to hide the fact that someone or something else is manipulating the scenarios Matthew and Ryan face each day, although he leaves the details of that source almost entirely to the imagination of the reader. I like that he develops the story around the single theme of working together to achieve common goals. In no way do the characters lose their individuality by depending on each other. In fact, characteristics that were overlooked, or even hidden, were encouraged to emerge the more the boys began to trust and depend on each other.

While the settings and events were completely mystical fiction, the characters were well-developed, realistic teen-aged boys. Small bits of humor and sarcasm made them both completely relatable. Little details, like wanting to sleep in and grumbling because they had to wake up early, reminded us regularly of their youth.

Since Boyer wrote the book specifically for young readers, I am glad he chose to leave the ending open. With so many unanswered questions, readers can explore their own imaginations to determine the ultimate fate of our two characters and to uncover how they came to be stranded on the island in the first place. This is even more important for the many medically-challenged readers to whom he donates his books. While this audience may be physically confined, they are mentally free to explore as many possible endings as their imaginations will allow.

Boyer also invites his readers to further uncover the mysteries behind Island Games by joining a website to unlock secrets that even our two characters had forgotten. I was pleased that the secrets revealed still left tremendous opportunity for one’s own imagination to fill in the details.

I would definitely recommend this book to all young readers who enjoy adventure stories. It is easy to follow and predictable with just enough deviation from the expected to keep it interesting. The book is also exceptionally edited as I was unable to find a single grammatical or punctuation error. For these reasons, I rate this book a 4 out of 4 stars.

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Island Games
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