the voice

in my head
 
the weather in steve parker's world
  • the Blog

  • the Book

  • the Martian garden

  • the Stories

  • the Links

  • Blog

  • More

    steve parker | no-longer-itinerant engineer | parker@stevenlparker.com

    © 2023 by NOMAD ON THE ROAD. Proudly created with Wix.com

    reviews

    i meet a new friend

    22 Oct 2012

     Odd Thomas by Dean Koontz
    My rating: 5 of 5 stars

     

    Friends.

     

    Over the years, I have been fortunate to have had many friends to share my life with. Many of them were actual, for-real, genuinely alive people.

     

    Many others were figments of my own imagination.

     

    But many of my best friends have been figments of other imaginations. The best of them as alive, as believably real and flawed as many of the breathing humans I have known. Some even more so. I first went into space with Kip Russell. I shared a thousand adventures with Tom Swift and Huck Finn and Beowulf Shaeffer and Slippery Jim diGriz. Jake Barnes… well, I got my heart broken with him. I learned a kind of faith from John Wheelwright. And I would give anything to have one last drink with Jake Stonebender. The list goes on.

     

    Today I have a new friend, and his name is Odd. Really, his name is Odd Thomas. It’s on his birth certificate. Odd sees dead people. Yeah, yeah, I know: It’s a movie quote. With a thousand jokes attached to it. Bear with me.

     

    As I said, Odd sees dead people, people caught between this world and the next. People caught by love; by regret; by the need to tell somebody what happened to them; by, well, Odd doesn’t know all the reasons because the dead don’t talk. But they need help to finally let go of their lives here, and Odd feels an obligation to help when he can. He is often successful. Except with Elvis, course.

     

    Because the supernatural side of his life tends to complicate his world, Odd keeps the earthly side of his life modest: he works as short-order cook, does not own a car or much of anything else, his wardrobe consists primarily of jeans and tee-shirts. He lives in a one-room apartment over a garage. He occasionally dreams of working in tire sales. He thinks that might be a better way to support the love of his life, Storm Llewellyn, should she ever finally agree to marry him.

     

    Odd is good people. He is wry and self-effacing; he is funny and thoughtful and respectful; he is intelligent and philosophical. He always tries to do the right thing, often to his own disadvantage. He is what your mother would call a good boy.

     

    Early on, when he is visited by the ghost of a young woman, he chases down her murderer. Each morning, he stops by to assure his landlady that she is still visible. Did I mention that he has been trying to help Elvis cross over for years? He is. And, when his gift makes it clear that there is about to be a major disaster in his home town, he risks his life and more to track down cause and stop it before it can happen.

     

    In the end, does his best, but pays a terrible price. I’d tell you more, but the wound is still too fresh.

     

    Don’t read this book because you are a fan of Dean Koontz. Don’t read this book because you like stories of the supernatural. Don’t even read this book because you like me, although I am touched by the thought.

     

    You should read this book because Odd Thomas is someone you will want as a friend. I know I do.

     

    View all my reviews

    Tags:

    cool

    Please reload

    RECENT POSTS:

    after the binge

    December 26, 2016

    'tis the season

    December 4, 2016

    (main)landed

    August 7, 2016

    going coastal

    November 23, 2013

    under the volcano

    April 9, 2013

    welcome to my world

    February 12, 2013

    comfort and joy

    December 19, 2012

    big dog, big dreams

    October 31, 2012

    i meet a new friend

    October 22, 2012

    not ready for prime time

    October 6, 2012

    Please reload

    SEARCH BY TAGS:

    cool

    dogs

    drivel

    hawaii

    holidays

    indie publishing

    marketing

    thoughts

    toastmasters

    travel

    writing

    Please reload