Billy Dead

by Lisa Reardon

In the wake of his brother Billy's murder, young Ray Johnson must relive the violence that has marred his family while the police track down the killer. A first novel. Reprint.

Genres: Fiction, Mystery

272 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

Reviews

[Jennifer Rockwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am absolutely wrecked. Some of the most searing, brilliant, unflinching, heart-breaking writing I've read in some time. A powerhouse of a novel. Not for the fainthearted, but very much for the open-hearted. Highly recommend.

[Amber Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this a few years ago but still recall so much of it. Mostly I remember the way this book made me feel-uneasy. It also took me way back to the towns and trailer parks I spent time in during the occasional weekends with my deadbeat father. I imagine the home of the family was dimly lit and reeked of cheap beer and cigarette smoke...Turns out that this story takes place in one of those small towns in Michigan (also where the author grew up).

It opens with the mysterious murder of Billy, a terrible, sadistic person who had many enemies...Sounds like genre fiction but its literary, I promise.

It's about three siblings, their evolution out of heavy child abuse, the way it effects them as adults, and IT IS DISTURBING (but damn if it isn't enormously powerful and impossible to put down).

The characters in this novel are so real and so very fucked up, yet on some weird level I can identify with their place in the world (although it's a place I haven't been to in a long time).

[Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a novel that does the first person present tense narrative in a masterful way. Lisa Reardon is an intensely empathetic curator and guide as she takes readers on a keep-up-with-me-please look at a girl's life, forsaken by her mother when it most counts, and who is raped not only by father and older brother as a very small child, but develops a very dysfunctional yet loving common-law relationship with a second brother. I don’t want to know these people; my revulsion is strong; I want to walk away. But I can’t walk away from a characters that are so loved by their creator.

My teacher Randall Brown shared with me some notes of his from Steve Almond essays, and I was struck by how perfectly Reardon’s novel overcomes my objections and soothes my hesitation to continue reading after the first 10-20 pages. I guess this review is as much an appreciation for Steve Almond as it is for Lisa Reardon.

Almond said, the heart of a particular character must be on the brink of emotional tumult. The character, in this case the narrator Ray Johnson, must care a lot about something and this passion places him in danger over and over again. Reardon checks this box off sharply. There's a great scene at the very end when Ray will go out of his mind if he doesn't find what he's looking for, and the narration goes into run-on overdrive: "Clatter clatter Judy would you grab the napkins please dishcloth flopping on the counter no I want the red one Mommy slices of ham with beans and onions hush up now water running anyone seen Sherry little girl in a checked green dress chewing on a naked paper doll I'm out of town usually four days out of the week Ray your mother's been looking for you." It works so well -- she uses that trick only once in the novel and just where it works perfectly.

Almond also said it’s impossible to sympathize with a character unless you are embedded in their world, a world that is not composed of vagaries, but a precise set of dramatic circumstances—of which your loyal reader should be apprised. And this is exactly why I didn’t rate Laura Vandenberg’s “Find Me,” also written in the first-person present tense, as highly as Reardon’s novel. Reardon’s narrator is a fully submerged opticon, seeing in all directions and reporting what he sees, but Vandenberg’s (and stylistically this makes sense because that narrator is addicted to cough syrup) is a fog of abstract observations. But Reardon’s mile-deep scene setting doesn’t slow the narrative down.Every detail adds sympathy and moves the story forward. There’s this little character, Whaley, he’s a 92-year old man, and he’s as important to this story as Owl Eyes is to Gatsby. Come to think of it, he is this novel’s Owl Eyes. Another reason to love Billy Dead.

A final point of Almond’s that I can apply to Reardon is that the writer must love her characters at all times, and Reardon certainly does. She sends them barreling into the danger of their own desires. In doing so, on the other side of the page, I as a reader care for them to survive. As they go through life smashing things up, I feel like the deer that flies over the windshield of Ray’s car, who says “Oh no,” and is unharmed, but I’ve been given an experience by this writer that is full, and fair, and truthful.

Five stars.

[Christie (The Ludic Reader) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lisa Reardon's book, Billy Dead, earned copious praise when it was published in 1998 and it deserves the honors. Years after I first read it- I keep thinking about the story’s flawed and difficult characters, siblings Billy, Ray and Jean. The story is narrated by Ray and it’s a story of poverty, abuse and redemption. It’s unflinching, too; Reardon doesn’t gloss over any of the details and it is for perhaps this reason that the book was highly regarded by critics. Alice Munro (perhaps the greatest writer of short stories ever) said: “Billy Dead is a brave, heart-wrenching debut. I couldn’t look away.”

I chose it for my book club several years ago…and no one liked it. Truthfully, the book probably isn’t for everyone: it’s graphic and violent. But the characters are so compellingly real and their journey is so honest, they’ll make an indelible impression on you. Really.

[Lizzy C · Rating 5 out of 5]

I <3 You Lisa

[Becca · Rating 3 out of 5]

Knocking points for surprise incest

[Ruth Sims · Rating 1 out of 5]

Billy Dead is considered, by some who are closer to being intellectual than I am, to be very good. The writing is; there's no doubt that Reardon can write very well.

But "Billy Dead" is one of the most unpleasant books I've ever read. Usually I remember characters long after I've finished the book, but I finished it a week ago and I can't remember any of the names except Billy of the title. And I wish I could forget him.

The story is narrated by Billy's younger brother and it begins by telling about Billy's horrific murder at the hands of a family member. Even though everybody who knew Billy wanted him dead, it's not to hard to predict who killed him. This is mostly a story of one of the most violent, unlikable, dysfunctional families that ever existed. Suffice it to say that the story is built around incest. Brothers and sister. Father and daughters. And ultimately brother and sister fleeing to spend the rest of their lives together as lovers, which is also predictable pretty early in the story. The only mystery with this book is why I finished reading it.

I realize that it's not a novelist's function to write only about sunshine and frolicking bunnies or clever children. Good novelists often show the underbelly of society. Great social changes have sometimes come about not, perhaps, as the result of a novel but novels have sometimes contributed greatly to them. "Uncle Tom's Cabin," for one. But "Billy Dead" is underbelly plus. And dysfunctional, violent families are all too present in our world. But this book is simply too far afield for me to enjoy. Perhaps you would not agree.

I can recommend it for the writing, which is excellent, but not for the story itself.

[Leife Shallcross · Rating 5 out of 5]

Completely shattering. A devastating but beautifully rendered portrait of a family defined by the abusive behaviour of the father. What I found most interesting and most striking was how Reardon manages to convey the strength of familial relationships, even under the appalling circumstances these children grow up under. This book explains why it might be so hard to sever your ties with the very people who have damaged you beyond belief. What was terrifying was how normalised some of the abusers' behaviour was by the characters and how this affected the way they related to the other people around them.
Incredibly challenging, but very rewarding read.

[Al Sevcik · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first of Lisa Reardon’s three novels – all of which are winners. In Billy Dead she pulls off a tour d force, a novel that is beautifully written but – centered on a family which the word “dysfunctional” barely begins to describe. In the entire book there isn’t one character whom a sane person would invite to dinner. Yet – yet – step by step the reader becomes involved. The genius of Reardon is that the moment you decide a character is as awful as he/she can get, suddenly, that person does something that illuminates their humanity. Then something else happens and that insight is flipped inside out. Really, it’s an amazing novel. I’d rate it six stars if I could.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Billy Dead was loaned to me by a colleague who said I just randomly found this book on the shelf about 20 years ago and have never been able to forget it. Let me tell you, I'm not likely to forget it either. I alternatively couldn't put this down and then just couldn't read another page because it is so disturbing and sad, really hard family stuff. I think Lisa Reardon wrote an important book that tries very hard to get at the core of how love, inspite of enmenshment in dysfunctional families that are so messed up and abusive you would expect them to run away, keeps them together. The time and setting of this novel also factored into this story (small town, Michigan in the 70's ) which sets the scene for bars, murder, domestic violence, rape.

[Doreen Cavazza · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written and engaging. The characters were very life-like and believable. I liked it.

[Jordan Mello · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book made me feel uncomfy but damn can she tell a story

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written but disturbing and not enjoyable due to subject matter of family dysfunction and incest.

[Michelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

At first this really bores me, I started reading it a few months from now but i stopped because it lacks me interest cause it was actually random and you couldn't get what the books was trying to say. But as soon as i read further, it kept me going like crazy. I almost couldn't put the book down because each chapter ends with a very intriguing scenario.

The story behind this book is truly admiring, intriguing and very very disturbing. Most of the time it really disgusts me, it's pure violence for me but I loved how the story went on.

It's a story about a revelation of a family history when Ray Johnson found out that his older brother, Billy, was murdered. And as he discovers who did it by himself, he come across to every memory he and his family had every now and then, and this what made it interesting. It's all about incest, addiction, murder, rape, aggression..

I actually pity and admire Jean, the abused, rebellious, and brave little sister of Ray, at the same time. in fact, it was more like the story was all about her. It's because of her existence that the story were made. She was the reason behind every event in Ray's life. So she played the big role in Billy Dead.

I liked how Reardon writes such brutal story but it's just disturbing and disgusting, so It's 3.

[Danielle · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you’ve seen the film “The Florida Project”, this is in the same vein. Heartwrenching, disturbing, and constructed of such raw and beautiful artistry that it will live in your brain forever.

I pulled this book off the shelf of my local library at a time when a card catalog still graced one of the walls. I don’t know what struck me to pull it out of its comfortable tuck on the shelf, but whatever it was I am permanently grateful. I kept it with me at all times because I would read at any opportunity, including stoplights. After I read it, I read it again. The prose was so plain yet so beautiful that I was shook. I was in awe of the ability to write this way, not just the prose but the story building.

This story will not warm your heart. It will, however, drag you through the emotional gamut, and push your brain to question how you might be able to understand things that aren’t understandable.

I wish Lisa kept writing. She is a genius.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Billy and Ray Johnson were brothers that had the usual brotherly spats but also suffered abuse. The description of their life and the things that Billy does at a young age are uncomfortable to read.
When Billy's body is found, the reader assumes that it was by someone who watched him crawl down the road by Ray's house. The misery is described but Ray's reaction seems cold and matter of fact.
This sorrowful picture and writing style reminded me of Erskine Caldwell's "God's Little Acre." That book chronicles an impoverished family in rural Georgia. "Billy Dead" takes place in the country back roads of small town Michigan.
The Johnson family are unsympathetic to read about their comings and goings. They were hellions and were disliked.
Ray continues with his life as sheriff Keith McCutcheon investigates the murder. We see the reaction of other family members to Billy's death but there isn't any display of sorrow.

[Francesca · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book took me nearly a whole year to finish reading but not because it was boring or bad, the story itself is actually quite compelling but in a kind of meandering type of way. I could not read it for 3 months then pick it up again and it was like visiting an old friend.

This book is propelled solely on vibes alone, despite ostensibly revolving around a murder mystery that was probably the part of the book that was least interesting. Living inside Ray's head and hearing him recall all these horrific memories in such a matter of fact, almost languid tone is somehow hypnotic despite some of the truly awful things he recounts.

The dull Americana backdrop with a sinister underbelly has the tone of both something like Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn or a JT Leroy story, incredibly evocative that you feel sweaty and grimy just reading it.

Happy that I finally finished it, a very heartfelt and bittersweet book that I'll definitely be thinking about for a long time to come.

[JG · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lisa Reardon can write sad and deppressing atmosphere no doubt. But i dont think i like what she had written; hence teh 2 stars.

So Billy Dead is more like psychological suspense novel, no one got arrested for the death of Billy but it was fairly predicteable who commited the crime so i dont think it was much of a mystery.

Wow though...the world that Lisa created is unforgetable. I remember reading it when i was in the 6th grade and 4 years later i can still recall that intense feeling i was plunged into when reading this novel. Even though i didn't like it, im amazed to say i remember it, not as clearly, but i remember the characters and small details. I guess that's a compliment to Ms. Lisa Reardon

It's fair to say the the hero, Billy's younger brother, lived a screwed up life and made some bad decisions, which is the center of the whole novel.

[Donald Jans · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not about unicorns pooping rainbows. Great novel, about a really tough subject. Very insightful, and tough to read at times. But every story doesn't need to be about unicorns pooping rainbows. Kudos to the author for tackling this one.

[manfred · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short review on my blog.

[Courtney Himes · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a provocative book about incest and deep seeded family issues. This book is about love, hate, heartache, and murder.

[Marla Sommer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Brutal story of incest, physical abuse and neglect within a family.

[Joann · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a well written, but very disturbing book. It was hard to decide a star rating because I can't really say I "liked" it at all.

[Nance · Rating 1 out of 5]

incest, child abuse, child molestation, alcohol abuse, rape, violence, hatred: sick people, sick book

[Emu147 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Strangely captivating