The Dentist and a Boy

by Paul Kelly

WILLIAM BRIGHT was bright by name, but many thought he wasn't too bright by nature until William proved them all to be wrong. He was a little slower than most of the other pupils at his school because it was later learned that he was dyslexic and he had a bad stutter. He wasn't very popular with the girls either, although he was considered to be rather handsome ...He was also tall and he was dark, so what was missing you might ask. . . and probably the answer was that William was very shy and found it very difficult to converse and mix with young people of his own age. William adored his father, but the father died at an early age when William was only six and he wore his father's wedding ring around his neck until he was old enough to wear it on the fourth finger of the left hand, swearing he would never remove the ring until he found someone that he could love as he had loved his dad. William's mother wasn't interested in the boy and considered him to be too stupid to do anyth...

211 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

I've been reading and writing books since as long as I can remember, although this is the first book I've ever managed to bring to publication. In my other life I work as a School Cover Supervisor. The Lost Brigade is the first in a series of three books, the original idea of which came from a dream (or perhaps nightmare is a better description!)

Reviews

[Russ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't really know what to expect when I began reading this book. It started out rather slowly with the police questioning a young man who is being charged with assault, possibly even murder. He's a mild-mannered sort with a very humble - sometimes humiliating - past. As the authorities speak to him and interview others who have known him, the picture of his life comes together. But slowly, cracks begin to appear in the wall and some unexpected aspects of his history and personality emerge; well along in the story, the cracks widen, the wall crashes down and suddenly we realize the young man is not who we thought. Things move quickly at that point, racing to a logical conclusion.
I found this book to be very easy to stay interested in. Even during the first half when the writing was mostly dialogue and omniscient thoughts, I never found myself bored and looking for a 'time out'.
It's not the greatest book I've ever read of course, but I enjoyed it and consider the time well spent.