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The Boy Who Couldn't Die

3.63 of 5 stars 3.63 · rating details · 876 ratings · 158 reviews

When seventeen-year-old Ken's best friend Roger dies in a plane crash, Ken suddenly realizes that he too could die at any moment. Terrified, he seeks out a plump, middle-aged psychic named Cherie Buttercup, who grants him invulnerability from death in exchange for his soul. Eager to test his new powers, Ken talks his family into a vacation in the Caribbean, where he can sw...more

Paperback, 184 pages

Published April 1st 2005 by Harry N. Abrams (first published April 1st 2004)

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And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

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Sep 25, 2008 Kirsten rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: work-related, from-library, fiction, children-or-ya

After 17-year-old Ken's best friend, Roger, dies in a plane crash, Ken becomes obsessed with death and is constantly afraid of dying. This finally leads him to Cherie Buttercup, a creepily sweet old psychic who promises him that she can store his soul for him, thus rendering him invulnerable. At first Ken is thrilled with his new power, but as one might expect, it turns out that the price is more than he bargained for.

This is an enjoyably creepy YA thriller from a master of the genre. What's fun...more

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Mar 29, 2009 Celestasaurus rated it 1 of 5 stars Recommends it for: No one

Shelves: young-adult

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

3 likes · like · see review

Mar 29, 2013 Deborah Takahashi rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: teen-zombie-lit

After losing his best friend in a plane crash, Ken is terrified of death. Not only does he want to evade death, but he wants to live forever. After researching psychics, and other spiritual advisers, he finds an ad from a Cheri Buttercup in Queens, New York. After traveling quite a distance by train and bus, he manages to cheat death after an almost accident with a car on the way to Cheri. When he gets there, he is beyond disappointed with what he sees. In her ad, Cheri guarantees that she can h...more After losing his best friend in a plane crash, Ken is terrified of death. Not only does he want to evade death, but he wants to live forever. After researching psychics, and other spiritual advisers, he finds an ad from a Cheri Buttercup in Queens, New York. After traveling quite a distance by train and bus, he manages to cheat death after an almost accident with a car on the way to Cheri. When he gets there, he is beyond disappointed with what he sees. In her ad, Cheri guarantees that she can hide Ken's soul so he won't be vulnerable to death. Although Ken is skeptical, he agrees to her instructions that involve powder and paste. After surviving the ritual, Ken feels like a load has been lifted from his shoulders and that the pain of his best friend's death has dissipated. When Ken musters up the courage to ask the hottest girl in the school, and angering the jock who has claimed her as his own, Ken is testing his new invulnerability by getting beaten up. However, no matter how many punches or kicks the bullies make, Ken can't feel a thing. After realizing that he is practically invincible, he tricks his parents in to taking a vacation in the Caribbean where he will swim in shark infested waters. When he meets Sabine, not only does he fall for her, but he learns the truth about his invulnerability and goes on a journey to save his soul. The ending is definitely unexpected.

Honestly, we have to give William Sleator some serious cool points for writing this original zombie tale. Some readers my be familiar with voodoo, but those who do not know about this art will get a slap upside the head. Although Voodoo tends to have a negative connotation to its practices, Sleator outlines the culture and the history of the people who practice. I will confess that Voodoo does tend to creep me out, but, from what Sabine tells us, it's not meant to be evil. With any religious practice, there is always going to be a good side and a bad side. Unfortunately for Ken, he made a deal with the dark side and he has no control, whatsoever over his mind and body. The irony of this story is that Ken wants nothing but control, but, now that he is a zombie under the control of a black magic user, he gave that up. The real issue at hand, in this story, is that we cannot escape because whether we like it or not, it will find us. For Ken, death found him and now controls his mind, will, and soul. Ken's character is very stereotypical rich kid who gets what he wants, but, in the end, he falls prey to his own ambitions that leaves him soulless and unsatisfied. Although this book is tiny, and quick to read, it packs a lot of serious consequences, especially when we deal with things that are beyond our knowledge. Call me a pessimist, but Ken really got what he deserved, but, as he develops his relationship with Sabine, he almost starts to look more like a human than a zombie. This story is seriously twisted and complicated, which makes it a great read for all of those who love a zombie love story. (less)

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Jun 01, 2012 Audrey Laurey rated it 3 of 5 stars

Excerpt:

"Those are private voodoo ceremonies, run by houngans. Houngans are voodoo priests who don't practice black magic. When they beat those drums, some people get possessed by spirits-I've seen it"
-page 57

"But now, he's moving in slow motion compared to me. He doesn't get a chance to turn around. Against my will, I slash his throat with a knife. Blood spurts out, splashing my face, my clothes. He makes a gurgling noise and says something garbled that might be, "A cave under the far side of...more Excerpt:

"Those are private voodoo ceremonies, run by houngans. Houngans are voodoo priests who don't practice black magic. When they beat those drums, some people get possessed by spirits-I've seen it"
-page 57

"But now, he's moving in slow motion compared to me. He doesn't get a chance to turn around. Against my will, I slash his throat with a knife. Blood spurts out, splashing my face, my clothes. He makes a gurgling noise and says something garbled that might be, "A cave under the far side of the island." He crumbles to the ground." -page 73

Plot Summary:

16-year-old Ken's best friend dies in a plane crash. In order to deal with his loss he decides to see a witch doctor about making him invincible against death in exchange for 50 dollars. In return, he becomes a living zombie that losses his free will and must carry out the heinous crimes of the witch doctor's request.

Critical Analysis:

The Boy That Couldn't Die is fast paced, gripping, engaging, and most recommended for an enjoyable, quick read! Ken is somewhat of a dislikable character: he's rich, cocky, takes things for granted, and thinks everything has a price tag. Those are facts that do not particularly change as Ken goes through various trials to test hs lack of vulnerability, and then to finally cure his zombie fate.

This is a book that I would recommend for older juveniles and teens, or anyone for that matter that has a penchant for fast paced YA lit that specializes in the macabre and has a few hours to spare.

A lot of aspects of this book follow an archetypal YA lit formula. For example, Ken seems to have no parental or monetary bondaries, Also, he gets him self into life threatening problems just as easily as he gets himself out of them and, even though he makes ample mistakes that throw him into the face of danger, he just as easily gets himself out of them. But, that is what makes this book so great. It's like YA crack. This book lacks substance, most likely will not be included in the YA canon of pivotal literature but, I couldn't put it down.

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Dec 01, 2011 Zack471 rated it 4 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. The book begins after the main character 17-year-old Ken's best friend, Roger, dies in a plane crash, Ken then always is consumed with death on his mind and is scared of dying. Later on in the book he meets Cherie Buttercup, an old psychic who says that she can keep his soul safe, for the price of $50. By doing that he is invulnerable. He later meets Sabine in Hawaii who gives him some insight on the truth about his little agreement with the psychic Cherrie Buttercup. Ken is excited about his n...more

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Feb 23, 2011 Jayla added it

The Book that I chose is The Boy Who Couldn’t Die by William Sleator. This story takes place in modern day. The setting is in NY City, in the USA. In this book William Sleator tells a very dark and intriguing tale about a boy named Ken. Ken is very upset after his good friend Roger dies. In an effort to rid himself from the pain of this loss, Ken resorts to selling his soul to Cheri Buttercup, a voodoo priestess, for $50. At first, everything is great. Ken finds that not only is the pain gone, b...more The Book that I chose is The Boy Who Couldn’t Die by William Sleator. This story takes place in modern day. The setting is in NY City, in the USA. In this book William Sleator tells a very dark and intriguing tale about a boy named Ken. Ken is very upset after his good friend Roger dies. In an effort to rid himself from the pain of this loss, Ken resorts to selling his soul to Cheri Buttercup, a voodoo priestess, for $50. At first, everything is great. Ken finds that not only is the pain gone, but he is now invulnerable. No one can hurt him and he is very strong and powerful. Shortly after this, things start to go bad. Ken starts to have nightmares and evil things begin to happen. Evil things that appear to involve Ken, but he can’t remember doing any of these things. What Ken doesn’t know is that he has become a zombie. On a trip to the Caribbean Islands, Ken meets Sabine. Sabine, a girl who is a zombie like Ken, helps Ken to realize the truth of what is happening to him. Ken realizes that the only solution to his problem to go and get his soul back. When Ken tries to do this, Cheri has raised the price. She now wants $50,000 in exchange for Ken’s soul. Ken doesn’t have the money. Sabine helps Ken by telling him how to go about searching for a way to defeat Cheri, which Ken successfully does and receives his soul back, although it was a difficult challenge. Ken learns that what he thought was a small price to pay for immortality was actually much more than what he had bargained for.

The novel addresses many themes. Avoidance of pain is one theme that I think contributes to the book because Ken, the main character is trying to avoid pain of death. Another is running away from your problems, Ken is trying to run away from death and run away from the bullies. Taking the easy way out is Ken trying to not end up like his friend Roger and does anything to avoid that situation. Darkness and death are just minor themes that are addressed in this story.

I would recommend this story to all of my friends. I absolutely love this book! Every time you read it, each chapter leaves you wanting to know more. It is a story that never has a boring moment. I give this book 5 star!

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Nov 04, 2010 Michele Velthuizen rated it 5 of 5 stars

Interest level: 6th +
Reading level: easy, short
Genre: horror, death, immortality, zombies, diving

When Ken's best friend dies in a plane crash, Ken is not only devastated but also terrified of dying himself. So he seeks out someone who can help him become immortal so that he never has to fear death again for the meager price of $50.

But when his soul is finally removed from his body and he becomes invincible to pain and death (he tests this out by confronting the school bullies and deliberately s...more

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Apr 26, 2013 Jovany Cobian rated it 4 of 5 stars

Jovany Cobian
THE BOY WHO COULDN'T DIE

The boy who couldn't die is about a boy who of course,couldn't die. After his best friend dies in a plane crash,Ken realizes that he doesn't want to go through a gruesome and painful death. So he sets out to find a gypsy woman who claims that she can give eternal life for a small price of only 50 bucks. Little did Ken know that not having a soul would backfire on him. Everyone at school including the girl he was trying to impress thinks he's a freak, his p...more

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Jun 19, 2012 Malxox ♥ rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: library

To be honest I got this, as I've said once before, because my Mom was reading the back and was just like freaking out. She's... claustrophobic, so she couldnt quite finish it. So really I got this because of the hard time she had reading the back-- aloud I may add. . . Okay, lol that's only a good 1/8 of why I got it. It was because you should've seen the look on her face! xD That was priceless!

Anyway, haha, back to the review. For just randomly grabbing up this book I suppose my did a pretty go...more

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Nov 07, 2012 Jimmy rated it 4 of 5 stars

When you first look at the cover of the book "The Boy Who Couldn't Die" you might think that it’s going to be like a horror book, really scary, and full of killing and dead bodies. But the saying don’t judge a book by its cover stands true. This great book was a mysterious, energetic, suspenseful book, that tells the story of a brave 17 year old boy named Ken Pritchard.

I could relate to Ken because he was 17 years old and in high school, but more recently could relate to him even more. This reas...more

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Mar 08, 2011 Luca Chiaperotti rated it 5 of 5 stars

A great book about a boy who becomes paranoid of death recently after his best friends in the whole world (roger) died. He finds an add on a magazine that claims it will make him immortal. He goes to the address it said and meets Cheri Buttercup. She stated that for him to escape death, he must encounter it. So she scratches him with some sort of potion on her nails (cant reveal what) and slowly he dies. And she hides his soul without telling him where it is. She said it was so he would never le...more

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Oct 10, 2009 Jena rated it 5 of 5 stars

The Boy Who Couldn't Die was honestly the best book I have ever read. The action started right on the first page and when some people hear a book about zombies they think it's going to be stupid, but deffinetly not this book. I borrowed it from the library and finished it in a week, its a great, short book. I'm already going out to buy it for myself. But anyways, the action started right away. I highly recommend this book. Once you get to the 9th or 10th chapter you can't put the book down. It w...more

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Jun 09, 2011 Phillip Dimarzo added it

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Jan 09, 2012 Snoko rated it 4 of 5 stars

I think this book is pretty good, its an easy read, and has a quick paste to the point. It's about a boy who is a spoil rich kid, and he sold his soul to a "boker" woman to, in his mind, gave his soul to her so that way he'll be invulnerable.

**spoilers**
I think that the "boker" woman, Cherri Buttercup, could've done better if she really wanted his and the other people souls. She thought that she had him, but she wasn't as clever. I think the author should've gave her more fight into her, but ov...more

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Jun 10, 2011 Lexie rated it 2 of 5 stars

This book started off really good and interesting. A different plot line, well written, but things went south after the first couple of chapters. The writing style was terrible. If I wouldn't have known any better I would have guessed that it was written by a middle school student. The plot line became twisted and didn't make much sense. Nothing connected anymore and it was all very disjunct. It was like Sleator was trying to make the book intersting and throw in some surprises, but it was too m...more

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Jul 24, 2011 Meghan Ely rated it 4 of 5 stars

An edge of your seat thrill ride. Never wanting to put it down. It's a great story to keep you up at night wondering what is to come next.

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Oct 08, 2012 Jerry rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Fans of Horror, People who fear the unknown

Recommended to Jerry by: The Book Shelf

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. The Boy Who Couldn't Die focuses on a 17-year-old boy who fears for his own mortality after his friend Roger dies in a plane crash. Ken decides to visit an awkward woman named Cheri Buttercup who claims she can free his soul to make his body immortal. She succeeds, and Ken accomplishes feats he could not do in his normal body. But he wants to take it to extremes, so he and his parents go on a vacation to the Caribbean, were he meets a girl named Sabine who works as a local scuba instructor. Afte...more The Boy Who Couldn't Die focuses on a 17-year-old boy who fears for his own mortality after his friend Roger dies in a plane crash. Ken decides to visit an awkward woman named Cheri Buttercup who claims she can free his soul to make his body immortal. She succeeds, and Ken accomplishes feats he could not do in his normal body. But he wants to take it to extremes, so he and his parents go on a vacation to the Caribbean, were he meets a girl named Sabine who works as a local scuba instructor. After a confrontation with a shark, Ken tells her that he is a “zombie” and she believes him. Ken realizes his soul is being used by Cheri Buttercup to embark on murderous killing sprees. Ken and Sabine run away to an old inn pointed out by clues in his dreams, and they rescue the jar containing his soul. Cheri Buttercup uses her own zombies to assault them, but they survive and Buttercup is arrested by the police. The ending reveals Sabine to also be a zombie the whole time, which begs the question: Did she really have control of herself, or was she controlled by Cheri’s rivals?

This was a chilling book because it utilized my main favorite genres of horror: Isolation, Paranoia, and Lost Sense of Security. This book appeals to all 3 of those. The Isolation is represented during the period of time Ken and Sabine are underwater below a thick layer of ice. Isolation is represented in the fact that if something happened to them, no one would know. Paranoia is explained when they realize they could be attacked by Cheri’s Zombies, even while they sleep. Knowing something could happen at any time without anything you can do is a mortifying experience. The lost sense of security is the fact that Ken does not have control of his soul; his spiritual essence is harnessed by Cheri to kill anyone that defies her. The pacing was also another good part of the book. The time between periods of the book feel like real time. When a month in the book passes, it really feels like an entire month. The dramatic buildup created an excellent sense of pacing. But overall, the Shock ending was what got to me. Normally shock endings just represent unanswered questions: The best shock endings are the ones that leave you satisfied, but still somewhat pondering on the rest of the outcome.

Overall, I rate it 4/5. The buildup and mood set in the book was great, but it could have been longer and could have made room for sequels.
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Feb 07, 2013 Danielle Sheppard added it

Shelves: semester-2-2012-2013

The boy who couldn't die, is about after a 17 year old Ken's best friend, roger, dies in a car crash, then ken becomes obsessed with death and constantly afraid of dying.This leads him to Cherie Buttercup, a creepy sweet old psychic who promises him that she can store his soul for him. He really began to want this too. First Ken is thrilled with his new power, and he doesn't know he priced what was asked for.This is a good book, I plan on reading it again. If I was ken I wouldn't be afraid to di...more

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Nov 08, 2010 Anthony rated it 5 of 5 stars

This book is one of the best mystery book that i have ever read. This book by william Sleator is full of adventure, suspense. On top of that it also has some romance. Ken's best friend dies in a terrible plane crash. Ken wants to make himself inmortal. He never wants to die. He starts to have dreams. These are bad dreams that lead him to start killing innocent people. He finds out that what he did was wrond and he must undo what he has done. This book was short and very intense. This book i woul...more

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Apr 27, 2010 natercopia rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites

I thought this book was abit creepy despite it's intriguing content about zombies and black magic. No, not the usual zombies they portray in movies and comic books. I like the characters in the story and the struggles they had to go through together. Subtle romance in it which I find it quite delightful to read. Found myself taking less break and I finished it in 2 days. Previously, I read Sleator's House Of Stairs and didn't really enjoy that book as much as I did for this one. This one is a sh...more

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May 25, 2011 Ana rated it 3 of 5 stars

Ken is feeling really hallow inside, I'm sure, but he's really insane for wanting to try and go out to the coral reefs, even if he is already dead and can't be hurt. It was also unfair for Kaitlin to be ignored like that instead of being told, straight out that Ken wasn't really interested in her. But i have to take into consideration about how he feels right now, being invulnerable and losing his friend just a few weeks ago. There's also the dreams that he's having that confuses me, especially...more

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Dec 05, 2007 Jason added it

The Boy Who Couldn't Die is not the worst book I have read, but it is also not the best. It plot was interesting to a certain extent but the storyline was really slow. I found myself feeling like giving up on the book ever so often.
We see character development, but we don't get to understand each of the characters at a friendly basis. Though it was supposed to be feel suspenseful, it didn't feel that way while reading the book. There are certain predictions that could be made based on what had p...more

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Jun 12, 2007 Sammy rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: f-the-ugly

I know, there were only 50 pages left... but it would have been 50 pages of torture! I feel bad saying this... but this book was horrible. I thought it was going to be okay because the first chapter was decent but... meh... just... meh.

The writing was horrible, the characters were horrible, the plot points were horrible... BLARGH! The horribleness of this book is seeping into my review. The author did not give the reader benefit of the doubt... practically spelling and explaining everything out...more

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Jan 20, 2010 Melody D. rated it 2 of 5 stars

WARNING:THIS BOOK HAS UTTER BOREDOM, AND CAN KILL IS READ TOO LONG!!!!!
This book really doesn't go in this bookshelve.I actually abandoned it a long time ago,I meen I really tried to push myself to read more and more but it's just so agrivating.I meen sure this teenager can't die and all but his personality is so annoying it's like he's a giant, snoty and spoiled seven year oold brat.He never listens and things. I think this book relates to the seven year olds in my class.

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Aug 11, 2011 Lisa Rathbun added it

A fast-paced interesting story. Not for those who don't like zombie or horror stories. Besides the obvious issues with that genre, the book had only one swear word and no sex. I thought the author captured the reader's attention well. The credibility of the police at the end was unrealistic to me, and I did feel a bit unsatisifed with the resolution that left something important unresolved, but overall the story was a fun way to spend a snowy day.

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Nov 23, 2009 Lori rated it 4 of 5 stars

This was a really creepy story. There was a lot of information about black magic that I know nothing about. The ending had a fitting twist to it.

Seems like the reviews are really mixed. I think that most of the criticism comes from people who are looking for more whether it is character development or additional details. I don't think that is Sleator's emphasis. It is more of a plot driven story and I think he does a pretty good job with that for a YA book.

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Aug 17, 2012 Yesenia Castaneda added it

I like this book it is about a boy named Ken who's friend died in a plane crash.Ken being Afraid of death must become invulnerable.
Ken can't die,but he can kill
He feels in control of his life in the day.
But at night his dreams take over.Dreams
Of digging up graves,knifing strangers.........
Then of trying to murder someone he
Loves. And no one can stop him,not
Even him self :) AWSOME !!!!!

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Feb 17, 2011 Carmenberry rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is also one of my favorites from William Sleator. It's a book about a boy who becomes a zombie because he sold his soul to a witch psychic woman so he could not be hurt or killed by anybody. At first it is fun to get back at the school bullies, but then he realizes the witch lady is using his soul for dark purposes and he experiences weird visions. Then he falls in love with a girl, and she helps him to find his soul and to get it back. (It's in an underwater cave). Then at the end of the b...more

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Jan 09, 2011 Glen Lee rated it 4 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Dec 22, 2010 Molly Giddens rated it 2 of 5 stars

I got this at our book fair, thinking - a name I recognize, looks good... It's kind of weird. Ken decides he wants to become invulnerable, so he visits a woman who tells him she can kill him, but bring him back to life - to live forever. He agrees to do it, but when he wants to go back to being a full human, she won't change him. He discovers all sorts of information about zombies - what he is. I hope my kids will enjoy it more than I did.

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About William Sleator

William Warner Sleator III was born in Havre de Grace, Maryland on February 13, 1945, and moved to St. Louis, MO when he was three. He graduated from University City High School in 1963, from Harvard in 1967 with BAs in music and English.

For more than thirty years, William Sleator thrilled readers with his inventive books. His House of Stairs was named one of the best novels of the twentieth cent...more

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