First Boy

by Gary Schmidt

". . . he was a kid with no dog, no brothers or sisters, no parents, and no grandparents" (29). Fourteen year old Cooper Jewett's last living relative, his grandfather, dies and leaves Cooper completely alone on the family farm. Big men in black suits and long black sedans appear in his little town and even out along his road. About the same time strange things start to happen at Cooper's farm. The fence was cut, a post was pushed in, his house was ransacked, the small barn caught on fire and the Sheriff blames Cooper! Cooper begins to realize that everyone around him is acting strangely, not just the Sheriff.

This book is one of my favorites. I especially liked the relationships that were developed throughout the story. Cooper couldn't define himself at the beginning of the book, but at the end he could. He said, "'But I am a fine runner, I have fine friends, and I'm a moderate driver. I am a Methodist most Sundays. I am a dairyman every day. And I live with people who . . . people who love me'" (178). This book redefines the word "family".

Happy Reading!

Mrs. Stevens