Official Review: Low Places in the Road by Mark Stirling

[Nikolas Farmakis]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Low Places in the Road" by Mark Stirling.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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Low Places in the Road by Mark Stirling is a fictional novel about a group of adolescents in school. The book’s main character is a boy named Finn McCleary, nicknamed Hats. Finn and his friends face bullying in school from a gang of brothers that terrorize the school. The themes in the book include bullying, divorce, death, unity, and identity. The author writes in an informal, direct style, using direct speech and narrative techniques to engage the reader in the story.

The author begins the story by describing a violent attack from the group of bullies on Finn’s friends. The leader of the bullies, named Herschel, begins throwing rocks on one of Finn’s friends, causing an argument. The writer continues the story by describing the condition in Finn’s school, discussing the personalities of the principal and the history teacher. Moreover, the writer introduces Claire, a young girl in Finn’s school who is partially disabled in her legs. Claire and Finn develop a good friendship, as they support each other in difficult times. How will Finn challenge the bullies? Will Fin succeed in beating the bullies?

There are plenty of positive attributes in this book. More specifically, the author uses linguistic devices and descriptive techniques to grasp the reader’s attention, adding interest and creativity to the story. Furthermore, the story had a realistic storyline, as the events described in the book are similar to everyday life. Additionally, I appreciated the titles of the chapters in the book since they were creative and original. The book was professionally edited, as I noticed only a single error in the entire novel. What I liked most in the book was that the author followed a chronological, logical, and rational structure, meaning that the flow of the story was coherent, allowing the reader to easily comprehend the events being developed in the story. There was nothing I disliked in the story, as the novel was expertly and creatively written.

The book is best suited for young readers who enjoy young adult novels about themes such as family, bullying, and friendships. Young teenage readers will enjoy this book more, as they will relate better to the characters in the novel. The book is suited for readers of all religions, including non-religion.

In conclusion, I rate this book with 4 out of 4 stars. I gave the book a perfect rating because it was exceptionally written, professionally edited, and logically structured. I highly recommend this book to young teenage readers.

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Low Places in the Road
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[kdstrack]

This does sound like a typical high school setting. I appreciated the way you described all the members of the group and their personalities. You have pointed out many positive aspects about this book. It looks good - even though I am older than the target audience! Thanks.

[Nisha Ward]

Bullying and gangs are always relevant topics, and it's good to see that Finn and Claire develop a friendship that's beneficial to both of them. I do hope that his challenging his bullies doesn't result in anything happening to him though.