A review by wheems01
Right Behind You by Gail Giles

4.0

At the age of nine Kip MacFarland threw gasoline on seven year old Bobby Clarke and set him on fire. After years in a mental hospital Kip must now try to join society once more, but how do you make a future when your past is always right behind you?

This book is a difficult one for me to both read and evaluate. I am not a big fan of realistic fiction for one, and this is about as real as it gets. Secondly I had trouble with the violence, and just wanted to cry for the mother of Bobby Clarke. As a parent, I think my greatest fear is losing my child and to lose a child to such senseless violence. I wanted, really wanted, to sympathize with Kip, but no matter how much I liked Kip and appreciated his battles, I couldn't get past the fact that a child had died.

Giles is a master storyteller, and even though you know Kip did this horrible thing, you find yourself both rooting for his successes and condemning him for his actions. At points you want to stand up for Kip and say that you know he didn't mean for Bobby Clarke to die, and at others you too want to condemn him for his thoughtless and selfish actions. She makes her characters so real you can reach out and touch them and you share their pain.

This is definitely a tear jerker. The reader will find themselve frustrated and torn apart by all the injustices. It is a perfect example of how this isn't a perfect world and people have flaws.

My favorite character in this novel would have to be Kip's new stepmother, Carrie, who marries Kip's father and knows Kip's history. She was a trooper and unconditionally loves Kip because his father loves him--I just loved her.

Overall I would say that if you like realistic fiction and don't mind a few tears, this is a great book. It is an extremely fast read, and definitely worth picking up.

Cautions for sensitive readers: Extreme violence, drinking, but no sex.