Boy’s Life by Robert R. McCammon is an excellent coming of age story. A recurring subject in this book was evil. The teaching moment of the book is that everyone has their own monsters, but it is how people handle those monsters that shows their character. Cory goes over to his friend Ben’s house, where they see his dad, reveal another side of himself. A man full of rage and destructive thoughts who yells ugly words: “There are things much worse than monster movies. There are horrors that burst the bounds of screen and page, and come home all twisted up and grinning behind the face of somebody you love.” (50) Earlier in the day, Ben and Cory watched a movie about aliens, which spooked them. After seeing Ben’s dad, they were no longer worried …show more content…
I don’t think he’d ever believed that evil could exist in Zephyr.” (135) As he got older, Cory became more aware of what was going on around him and lost his naivety, a trait he shared with his father. Prior to witnessing the murder, Tom believed that everyone was good and they could do no wrong. This event was a rude awakening for him and he did not know how to handle these new monsters. This trait can be good and bad throughout life. It can lead you to become a more optimistic person but it could also be harder for you to experience anything …show more content…
Cory, a big fan of the song, disagrees: “This is the way the world spins: people want to believe the best, but they’re always ready to fear the worst.” (194) He believes that if he wanted to, he could make an argument that almost anything is evil, it just depends on your viewpoint. Cory’s dad reveals to Cory just how bad life had been for him after he witnessed the murder. ‘When I was your age, I wanted to believe I lived in a magic town,’ he said softly, ‘where nothin’ bad could ever happen. I wanted to believe everyone was kind, and good, and just. I wanted to believe hard work was rewarded, and a man stood on his word … There never was such a place,’ my father said. ‘There never will be. But knowin’ can’t stop you from wishin’ it was so.’ (232) He had to accept the fact there is evil in the world and he will have to endure some hard times. This is an important lesson because everyone will face hard times but they will not last forever. Any good book teaches you a lesson at some point in the story. Boy’s Life by Robert R. McCammon teaches about how to handle evil in our