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There was always something exceptional and different about ten-year-old Reuben Otis O’Brien, but no one, including Reuben Otis himself, can figure out quite what it is. All that he knows is that he can smell something very strange that no one else can, and sometimes it makes him sick.
The Boy Who Could Smell Warming is the story of Reuben Otis’s quest to discover his special ability and its purpose. Since, as he describes himself, Reuben Otis is a “nerd in a cool guy’s body,” he does his own scientific investigation and finds out that he possesses a very unusual superpower which is vital for the whole world and will make him a true superhero. As he starts to use his superpower with the help of his family and two neighborhood friends, he learns he can change things vital to his hometown and to the entire planet. This gives Reuben Otis a newfound pride and a whole new direction to his life.
sumaira –
The Boy Who Could Smell Warming’ by Patrick Fleming is a story about human relationships, trauma, and human senses and everything that encompasses them, written with dignity and deftness. This touching story surely takes us on this breathtaking adventure of a small boy with extraordinary abilities and explores many crucial ideas from family and self-discovery to the unsustainability of human connections.
Pros:
The author is a wordsmith’s dream. Contained within his lyrical prose, he accurately portrays the protagonist’s level of synaesthesia.
The themes of trauma, grief, and moving on are well embraced by the novel as it does not attempt to glorify these subjects, instead, it portrays them in a calm manner as they should be in real life.
The character development is adequate in that readers can relate to the protagonist, especially with his slight voice changes.
Cons:
Turning pages may be a bother to some readers and in this case, the readers have to be selective despite having been primarily interested in reading the novel to the end.
There are a few subplots that seem rather interesting but regrettably, they are not well developed and at the same time, there are a few holes that bring down the entire narrated story.
Excluding the main intending characters, who are sympathetic, at times they come off as stereotypes rather than as real people.
For all, ‘The Boy Who Could Smell Warming’ is an impressive and heartbreaking story which will appeal to many who appreciate deep yet gripping narratives. Definitely one of the best and the most beautiful.