Review: Reality Boy by A.S. King

24 March, 2014 Reviews 13 comments

Warning: This book will give you all the feels. Reader discretion is advised.

You know when you finish a book and just sit there for a long time trying to process why your eyes won’t stop leaking? Reality Boy will do that to you.  I feel like I should be very straightforward and tell you that I am a huge A.S. King. I’ve read all her books and I loved most of them. Some writers are masters at pulling every single one of your heartstrings and creating relatable characters. A.S. King is one of them. If you’re familiar with her stories, this book has a similar feel to Everybody Sees the Ants. If you’re not, think of John Green’s clever writing meets Sarah Dessen’s realistic characters.

In this novel, our main character’s current reputation is based on his behavior as a five-year-old boy on a reality TV show called Network Nanny. Gerald and his family–his mom, dad, and two sisters–are pushed to the breaking point by the producers of the show. It goes without saying that the version of events seen by millions of people are completely different to reality. Every minute of their lives is edited down to create the most dramatic episode possible. So, what would a child do if he’s sick of all the crap happening in his home? If you’re Gerald Faust, you defecate. Everywhere. Yes, that’s right. A.S. King went there.

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He did what to his sister’s room? AND to his mother’s purse? AND to the kitchen table? Dear God.
All of these unsanitary (and really disgusting) outbursts land Gerald the reputation of “The Crapper,” even twelve years after these episodes aired. The novel follows Gerald as he learns to deal with his insecurities and comes to terms with the people who ruined his life. As far as the characters go, Reality Boy has some of the most disturbing individuals ever. While their personalities are rich and complex, they also push you to the limit. For example, Gerald is one of the angriest characters I’ve ever come across in YA Fiction. To say that this dude is self-destructive, aggressive, and a tad insane is the understatement of the century.   He lives inside his head to process his issues, he’s in anger management, and he can explode at any given time. Since his life has been dissected by everyone, Gerald has self-esteem issues and low expectations.  Jail or death. He thinks those are his only choices.

Emotionally speaking, Reality Boy takes you on a horrible journey of self-discovery. How can you enjoy a book that makes you, the reader, feel so…awful? Well, the writing is that excellent. It is personal and suffocating.  Every moment leaves such a powerful impact on the reader and every breakdown gives the story that extra layer of familiarity.  It doesn’t hurt that Gerald’s family is as dysfunctional as they come.  The mother in this book is infuriating. I found myself putting the book down from time to time because I was so incredibly angry at this woman. The things she does to Gerald are so agonizing to read.  I’m not a hugger but I wanted to take this guy in my arms and never let him go.

Gerald, let me love you.

Gerald, let me love you.

If I could pinpoint a weakness in Reality Boy, I would criticize the ending. I felt like it didn’t match the rest of the book. I expected something a little bit more dramatic considering the fact that the story is frustrating, emotional, and uncomfortable to read. Also, as much as it pains me to say this, I think that the story didn’t benefit from the love story. Some of the best scenes in the novel are the ones where King goes inside Gerald’s head and shows the reader that he’s projecting his pain and anguish as anger. When you add a girl who has issues of her own into his life, it distracts from the other mentally unstable characters. I’m just being picky here, though.

Overall, I highly recommend Reality Boy to anyone who loves a good/heartbreaking YA Contemporary novel. Just make sure you have a box of tissues nearby.

13 Responses to “Review: Reality Boy by A.S. King”

  1. Nadia @ Nadia Reads

    Sounds like an amazing book! It reminds me a bit of 1984 just because of the reality thing! I think I’m going to love it! Adding it to my tbr!

  2. Kat C

    Yay ! I really wanted to read this book (but I’m trying to cut down on my book buying) so I’m so glad to hear it’s good ! Although, for some reason I thought the show the main character was on was more like Honey Boo Boo than Supernanny. I think she picked such an interesting topic to explore, these poor kids on TV nowadays who never even really signed up for any of it.

    • Paola Carolina

      Yes! That’s what I thought too. I didn’t expect it to be about a Supernanny kind of show. It works really well, though!

  3. Rebecca @ The Library Canary

    This one sounds really good! I haven’t heard too much about it, but it sounds like something right up my alley. I love books that make me cry and make me feel all the feels. I will definitely be adding this to my wishlist. Great review!

    • Paola Carolina

      Thanks! 🙂 This book is so messed up! I didn’t even talk about the worse part of it because I don’t want to ruin it for anyone. You can’t even imagine the way the story unfolds!

  4. Lili

    I tried reading this book and I had to DNF. I had a feeling it would really move certain people, but it wasn’t my cup of tea. I had trouble being able to stomach Gerald’s thoughts and cynicism and negativity. After reading this, though, I’m tempted to give it another shot.

    Thank you!

    • Paola Carolina

      Yeah, it isn’t the easiest book to read. I do love how the story develops, though. You get to see so much of his childhood that you start to understand him a little bit better. The more you learn about his mother and his sister, the more you see why he’s so angry all the time.

  5. Eileen @ Singing and Reading in the Rain

    Wow this book sounds really interesting and totally weird. I know AS King is credited for being able to tackle tough and unorthodox subjects perfectly, but I definitely didn’t realize the extent to which it’s done with Reality Boy, especially with Gerald’s constant pooping problem. It sounds like a great read, fantastic review! <33

  7. Kalliope

    Sounds really interesting! I will definitely check it out when I go on another book buying splurge (I need to read all the ones I bought XD)!