Humor, Sadness Make Story Much More Real

Every so often, a book comes along that is THE BOOK. You can hardly find any mistakes in The Book, but The Book is constantly changing. For the time being, that book for me is “Almost a Hero” by John Neufeld.

Here is a book that is cute, dramatic, witty, sad, not enough to anger you, and satisfying. That is hard to get nowadays. The one mistake is the boring character names, like Ben Derby (why not Alec Moriarty or Snapper Hove?).

Ben Derby has been given an assignment to do over spring vacation: join a volunteer organization. In a refreshing twist, Ben doesn’t really care that he is missing vacation, even though his buddy, Felix, sure does.

Derby joins Sidewalk’s End, a day-care unit for homeless people’s children. Here, Ben meets Jennie Johnson. There’s a lot of chemistry between those two, even though it is never capitalized on. Also, Jennie seems to have a secret.

Ben meets some of the best characters in the kids at Sidewalk. There is Stephanie, the abused little girl who takes a liking to Ben’s legs, and Batista, who quickly becomes a center of attention in an amusing, yet heartbreaking scenario. Wendell, the bully with diapers, also provides a great story. And there is Miguel and Esteban, whose 3-year-old teamwork creates a hilarious break from the drama of this book.

And drama there is. While at a grocery store, Ben witnesses Batista flying through the air and landing on a heap of tomato cans, and he instantly assumes Batista is being abused. While Ben watches Batista everyday, and everyone else watches Stephanie, tragedy strikes where it is least expected, providing a very moving scene between Ben and his father at a funeral.

John Neufeld brings out a powerful story, telling it the way it should be told, with a little humor, sadness, and enough of all to make you think.