Review: The Reluctant Journal of Henry K. Larsen by Susin Nielsen

Publisher: Tundra Books
Published: September 11, 2012
Pages: 256
Source: From Random House Canada
Rating: 5 Stars

Thirteen-year-old Henry’s happy, ordinary life comes to an abrupt halt when his older brother, Jesse, picks up their father’s hunting rifle and leaves the house one morning. What follows shatters Henry’s family, who are forced to resume their lives in a new city, where no one knows their past. When Henry’s therapist suggests he keep a journal, at first he is resistant. But soon he confides in it at all hours of the day and night.

In spite of Henry’s desire to “fly under the radar,” he eventually befriends a number of oddball characters, both at school and in his modest apartment building. And even though they know nothing about his past – at least, not yet – they help him navigate the waters of life after “IT.”

In short: The Reluctant Journal of Henry K. Larsen by Susin Nielsen was a wholly enjoyable read with a very important message.

What a lovely, quick read this was! I'm not really sure what I had been expecting of The Reluctant Journal of Henry K. Larsen - perhaps just a nice and moral story about bullying - but I had no idea of the depth of the subject matter, nor that I would end up enjoying it so much! Susin Nielsen manages to create a perfect balance of serious and poignant subject matter and cute and witty humour with effortless writing to produce a thoroughly enjoyable MG contemporary read with an important message. The Reluctant Journal of Henry K. Larsen was, simply, a JOY to read and I highly recommend it to all readers.

The varied cast of colourful characters was a huge part of the reason The Reluctant Journal of Henry K. Larsen was such a delightful read for me. I seriously loved them all. They were excellently written, with their quirks on full display, and they were just so VIBRANT. They may have been a bit on the cliched side, but I found that there was something very comforting and heartening about them, perhaps because of those reliable well-known personalities.

Something else that I really and truly loved about this book was how Canadian it was. Admittedly - and rather ashamedly - I don't really read a whole lot of local fiction. But after reading The Reluctant Journal of Henry K. Larsen, I am convinced that I MUST read more books from local authors in the future. It was so fun to read a book with Canadian references and a Canadian setting. And it's always good to support local authors.

But above all, I really appreciated the message of the novel. The importance of being true to yourself and loving others for being themselves. The importance of standing up for yourself and not taking to heart what the bullies say. Because in the end, those who mind don't matter, and those who matter don't mind. I wish I could've had the maturity and self-assuredness that Henry develops when I was his age.

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